Many sawmills and gristmills sprang up on the river in the town's early years, and by 1855, the town's population was over 1,000, making it larger than neighboring West Bend. The first settlers were predominantly German immigrant farmers. The first church was a German Methodist church established in 1850. In 1852, the non-German settlers in the town organized the Presbyterian Society of Newark. The first Roman Catholic service in the town was held on Christmas Day, 1857. On August 12, 1858, an Austrian missionary named Father Caspar Rehrl established the Roman Catholic Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes in Barton and built the historic St. Agnes Convent and School. In its early years, the order was dedicated to education, and sisters worked in rural schools in Barton and surrounding communities.