Hon. Asaph Whittlesey died at Bayfield, Dec. 15th, 1879, about fifty-six years of age. He was a native of Tallmadge, Ohio, and settled in Ashland County, Wis., in 1854, and was the first postmaster and justice of the peace of Ashland; and in 1860, represented his district in the assembly; walking to Madison on snow-shoes, and camping out at nights in the unsettled portion of his route. He was also county judge of Ashland County. In 1861, he was appointed receiver of the land office at Bayfield, which he resigned in 1868 to accept the position of Indian agent, which position he held only a year.
Reports and Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin Vol. 9 (1909
_____
Asaph Whittlesey was the first white man to build a home and settle in what is now Ashland. When he felled the first tree, he said, “This will be the site of a great city.” Whittlesey later served in the Wisconsin Legislature. At the time, the nearest train station was in Chippewa Falls and the only way to get there was to walk the 150 miles. A photograph of Whittlesey, in his winter garb and snowshoes, has become a locally well-known historical depiction.History of Ashland, City of Ashland WI