The story of Somerset, Wis. began in October of 1852, when two brothers, Louis and Joseph Parent, settled on the east bank of the Saint Croix River at the mouth of the Apple River. They were French Canadians from Quebec, as were most of the other early settlers including the names Parent, Germain, Parnell, Carufel, Veilleux, Martell, Audette, Rivard, la Liberte, Roi, Montbriand, Belisle, Bourbou, and St. Pierre. Somerset Township was organized in 1856, the name being selected by another early settler, Samuel Harriman of Maine.
Louis and Joseph Parent, first settlers of Somerset, Wis. wrote home to Quebec, Canada extolling the virtues of their new locale and ten of their siblings relocated to Somerset with their families, as did two cousins. French Canadian families began to inhabit the Apple River Settlement in Polk County in the 1870's and 1880's. Some early names include Lemire, Pearson, Gamache, Carpentier, Gonier, Gallant, Durant, Chouinard, Landry, Penard, and Lemoine.
