Once upon a time there was a small lake north of Elkhorn that hardly anybody had seen. It was a sleepy little lake bordered by farms and wood lots. A few local people went there to fish and it was also a favorite swimming hole of the boys. This was Wandawega, only back then it was called Russell's Lake.

For a long period it was a secluded lake without many people taking much interest in it. It was the larger lakes that were the sites of summer cottages and resorts in the early history of Walworth County. The lakes of Delavan, Geneva, and Lauderdale were popular vacation spots by 1900. Russell Lake was more or less undiscovered.

At that time, 1873, it had a different name - Otter Lake. Then came the 1920's and all this changed. Real estate developers grasped the possibilities of the little lake. The U.S. Bond and Mortgage Co. of Chicago acquired the Will and Ervin Gilbert farms and created a subdivision in 1925.

At this time a new name was found for Russell's Lake. It took a while to decide on Wandawega. It was variously called Winegaga, Winawago, Wanawega (which was close), and finally Wandawega. Wandawega was an Indian word which mean "beautiful girl with golden hair hanging down her back."