The Town of Grand Chute was formed on April 3, 1849. By an act of the state legislature, Grand Chute was split off of the Town of Kaukaulan (later Kaukauna). It was established as the Outagamie County seat in 1851; Appleton became the county seat a year later.
In 1984, Grand Chute petitioned the State of Wisconsin to allow it to incorporate into a village, but that request was denied in 1985, at least in part because the proposed village was neither “compact” nor “homogenous.”
A pivotal moment in Grand Chute’s history occurred in 1984 when the Fox Valley Mall opened. At 1.21 million square feet, it is the largest mall in the state. It quickly transformed Grand Chute into the “shopping capital of Wisconsin.” Housing some 130 stores, it prompted the development of dozens of hotels and scores of restaurants, bars, and other businesses in the area. It contributes an estimated $1 billion annually to the local economy.
According to Wikipedia, “The mall opened on July 18, 1984, with one anchor store, Sears, along with 67 other stores, a movie theater, and a Walgreens drugstore. Expanded several times in its history, including in 1991 when Dayton’s built a new location, which eventually became Marshall Field’s, and is now Macy’s. With the last major renovation occurring in 2004, it became the largest mall in Wisconsin in 2014.”
In recent years, the Fox Valley Mall has suffered, as have malls all over the country, from the closure of major anchors such as Sears and Younkers, competition from online retailers, Covid lockdowns, and the revival of traditional downtowns, including Appleton’s College Avenue shopping district.
