Peter Faenger and a group of German immigrants first settled the Preble area in 1836. On June 12, 1859, the County Board established the Town of Preble on land set off from the Town of Green Bay. The census of the following year found 113 families in the town (520 people), 40% of them German and the remainder of Irish, Canadian, Dutch and Belgian origin. Preble had a post office only briefly (1861-1864) during the Civil War. After that war John Smith, and then others, developed truck farming into a major local business. Dairying and farming were other important town businesses. By 1964 Preble's population numbered approximately 12,000.
Throughout the history of the Town of Preble conflict and distrust marred its relationship with the neighboring City of Green Bay. Frequent contact with the City, through such organizations as the Metropolitan Sewage District, established in 1933 to construct and regulate sewage disposal in the area, apparently did nothing to reduce this friction. As Green Bay steadily expanded some Preble citizens feared annexation of the Town's highly developed portions leaving only a shell of the former community. The promise of the Green Bay City Council to annex land only when it served the best interests of all concerned did not quiet such fears.
Beginning in the 1920s the increasing urbanization of Preble made a change in the form of government desirable to many town residents. Heated debate arose over the nature of such changes. The Town had three possibilities: it could remain under town government and allow its territory to be annexed piecemeal by the City; it could incorporate as a village or city giving it definite boundaries upon which the city could not encroach; it could consolidate with Green Bay thereby combining the whole town with the city. Organized groups of Preble citizens actively sponsored the latter two options. These groups differed over whether Preble was a self-sufficient community or a logical part of the City. Supporters of the former view often accused their opponents of disloyalty to local interests.
Preble's difficulty in changing its status can be seen by this chronology of attempted changes:
| May 8, 1945 |
-Proposed consolidation with Green Bay rejected by a referendum
|
| April, 1949 |
-Petition for annexation of Preble by Green Bay filed by a group of Preble citizens
|
| October, 1949 |
-Petition for incorporation of Preble as a village filed by a group of Preble citizens
|
| September, 1952 |
-Proposed incorporation of Preble as a village rejected by a referendum
|
| November 6, 1956 |
-Proposed incorporation of Preble as a city approved by a referendum but later ruled illegal by the Circuit Court
|
| April 1, 1958 |
-Proposed incorporation of Preble as a city rejected by a referendum
|
| October 20, 1959 |
-Proposed incorporation of Preble as a city rejected by a referendum
|
| November 15, 1960 |
-Circuit Judge ruled that Green Bay could not annex all of Preble since this could be done only by consolidation procedures
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| May, 1962 |
-State Planning Commission ruled against attempts to incorporate Preble as a city
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| November 6, 1962 |
-Decision to hold talks with Green Bay on possibility of consolidation approved by a referendum. This referendum was not legally binding but laid a “moral obligation” on the town board to hold such talks
|
| 1963-1964 |
-Talks with Green Bay on Consolidation
|
| April, 1964 |
-Circuit Court upheld State Planning Commission's ruling that Preble could not incorporate as a city
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| November 3, 1964 |
-Consolidation with Green Bay approved by a referendum
|
The results of most of these referenda were extremely close. However, in the November 6, 1964 vote a consensus seemed to have been reached and consolidation received an overwhelming majority. In contrast to the bickering and suspicion between the Town Board and the City Council in previous years, in 1964 these bodies worked together smoothly to iron out the details of consolidation. Preble was divided into six city wards; existing zoning and setback ordinances remained in effect for two years; town employees were, as far as possible, given comparable city jobs with no loss in seniority; all Preble parks became city parks; all Preble recreation programs were continued; parts of the Preble Area High School District were accepted for attachment for school purposes only; and a member of the Preble school district was placed on the Green Bay School Board.
