Early in the 1860s,
Kaszubian Polish and
Bohemian immigrants living in
Winona, Minnesota began buying land across the Mississippi River in Trempealeau County. The Pine Creek area was ideal because of its thick black soil and its advantageous proximity to Winona's markets and services. The precise date of Pine Creek's establishment remains problematic but most accounts give 1862, which is also the year that
Sacred Heart-Saint Wenceslaus Church was founded. Once the parish was formally established as part of the then-
Roman Catholic Diocese of Milwaukee, a small community grew up around the church, including two or three taverns, a dance hall, and a general store. Although important in the history of the
Kashubian diaspora, Pine Creek never became more than a small community due to the growth of the nearby town of
Dodge, Wisconsin. ==Notable people==