The lake was formed by the construction of the
Wissota Hydroelectric Dam on the
Chippewa River, completed in 1917. The dam was built by the Wisconsin-Minnesota Light and Power Company. An engineer on the project, Louis G. Arnold, named the lake by combining the beginning of "Wisconsin" and the ending of "Minnesota". The dam is now owned and operated by
Xcel Energy, and is capable of producing 36 megawatts. ==References==