La Valle History

Many think that LaValle was named because of the French term the “valley” but the June 4, 1941 issue of the LaValle Weekly newspaper has a different story.  H.E. Blank’s local column talked about his interview with Peter LaValle whose father founded LaValle.  He stated that his father, Martin LaValle, was born in 1835 in Stevens Point.  He studied civil engineering and became a federal surveyor.  In order to maintain communication with the Surveying Department of the government, it was necessary to give a locality a name where he was working.  So he called it the LaValle Government Post.  Martin LaValle, founder, was an Irishman and not French and was a father of three sons.  His son, Peter, was only five when his father died and they were living near Missoula, Montana, at that time.  Victor lives in Idaho and Markus in Colorado.  None of the LaValle brothers had any offspring, so the family name LaValle was doomed with the passing of the three sons of the founder.