Native American mound builders lived in the area prior to European settlement.

[4] “Waupaca” is an Menominee word, Wāpahkoh, which means Place of Tomorrow Seen Clearly.

For more than 10,000 years, the Menominee occupied about 10 million acres, including Waupaca and the Chain O’Lakes area.

In a series of seven treaties, the Menominee ceded their lands to the United States.

The final treaty, in 1848, relinquished the last of the Menominee's land, which included Waupaca.

The settlers made camp near the end of what is now North Main Street with plans to harness the power of the falls and establish a community.

By 1852, a post office had been established and the settlement was officially named Waupaca.

Waupaca was incorporated as a village on May 4, 1857, by an act of the Wisconsin State Legislature.

[8] Beginning in the 1960s and continuing to the present, the city has expanded its population and area through annexation.

[10] From 1899 to 1926, streetcar service was provided by the Waupaca Electric Light and Railway Company.

[citation needed] Gusmer Enterprises, Inc., with a manufacturing plant on Ware Street, produces products for the food and beverage, industrial and pharmaceutical markets.