Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin

Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin Soundex Code P660

Wikipedia page about Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin

Prairie du Chien is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin. The population was 5,911 at the 2010 census. Its Zip Code is 53821.

Often referred to as Wisconsin's second oldest city, Prairie du Chien was established as a European settlement by French voyageurs in the late 17th Century. The city is located near the confluence of the Wisconsin River and the Mississippi River, a strategic point along the Fox-Wisconsin Waterway that connects the Great Lakes with the Mississippi River.

Early French visitors to the site found it occupied by a group of Fox Indians led by a chief whose name Alim meant Chien in French (Dog in English). The French explorers named the location Prairie du Chien, French for "Dog's Prairie". The American anglicized pronunciation is "prairie doo sheen". Originally this name applied only to the plain upon which the settlement is located, but it was later extended to mean the city as well. The city of Prairie du Chien is located between the Prairie du Chien and Bridgeport, Wisconsin.