Before the village’s earliest settlement, the Menomonee River was an important resource for the Menominee and Chippewa tribes who lived in the area. Its name came from the Native American word “Mih-no-min-ee,” meaning “wild rice.” In pre-settlement days, the river was a meandering, easy-flowing stream except for a series of natural falls and rapids between Main Street and the Lime Kilns. The waterfall at this site recalls the river’s natural upstream character before construction of the Lepper Dam and Mill Pond. Early settlers used the river’s steplike descent to develop several water-powered mills, including a sawmill built here in 1856 by Charles Nehs. The site also became the location of the Maca Lime Kilns, built in 1891, and two of the original three kilns and the white lime spoils pile from the lime-burning process remain visible today.