[4][5] The community, then initially only a station, was named by the general superintendent for the Chicago and North Western, Edwin W. Winter, for John Coit Spooner (1843–1919), who was a distinguished railroad attorney from what is now the city of Hudson in St. Croix County, northwestern Wisconsin.

He was a well-favored politician of his time and served as advisor to U.S. presidents Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, and Theodore Roosevelt.

[6][4][5] Eventually, the lines were absorbed by the Chicago & North Western Railroad.

In 1992, the Wisconsin Great Northern Railroad was incorporated, to serve as a freight hauler from Spooner to Trego, a nearby town, with a connection to the CNW.

Although the freight idea did not work out, they began operating successful passenger excursion trains in 1997 (following the example of the nearby Duluth & Northern Minnesota Railroad, which began passenger excursions in Duluth only a few years before), and were an instant success.

The passenger trains were very successful, and after the 1995 takeover of the CNW by the Union Pacific, in 1998 UP announced intentions to abandon the line from Hayward Junction where it connected to the Wisconsin Central 13 miles (21 km) to the north through Spooner all the way down to Chippewa Falls.

The company bought the portion of the line between Spooner and Hayward Junction in 1999, which greatly expanded passenger operations.

More recently, the Great Pumpkin train nearly sold out and now runs annually around the time of Halloween.

[11] Spooner has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb), typical of northern Wisconsin with warm, humid summers and relatively long, cold winters.

The Railroad Memories Museum has a large collection of historic material and memorabilia.

[19] Each July since 1954, Spooner has hosted the Heart of the North Rodeo, which draws thousands of fans to the area.

In addition to the rodeo each evening, there is a Saturday afternoon parade, live music every night, and the cowboy church service on Sunday morning, held outdoors at the rodeo arena.

[20] Jack O' Lantern Fest is an October festival that revolves around giving back to kids and families.