What is the history of Weiser, Idaho?
The town was named for the nearby Weiser River, but exactly who that was named for is not precisely known. In one version it is for Peter M. Weiser; an American soldier and member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition of 1804-1806. Another has it for Jacob Weiser, a trapper-turned-miner who struck it rich in Baboon Gulch in the Florence Basin of Idaho and settled in the area in 1863. The town of Weiser reached its height of prosperity when a railroad way station was established and it became a transportation hub for travelers. Its history is well represented by the great number of original buildings from the 1890s and early 1900s that are on the National Register of Historic Places. Legendary Baseball Hall of FameHall of Fame pitcher Walter Johnson played semi-pro baseball for the Weiser Senators in 1906 & 1907. After high school in Fullerton, California, the teenage “Big Train” was lured to Weiser to play baseball and work for the local telephone company. While in Weiser, he once pitched
