During the November session of the Outagamie Board of Supervisors meeting (1854) Allen street in Appleton was changed to Prospect. Prospect Ave., on the bluff high above the Fox River, probably got its name because it provided a prospect or extensive view for the industrialist homeowners to look down upon their factories and companies. Prospect is the not longest street in the Old Third Ward but it does have the most homes. It also provides the longest uninterrupted stretch of sidewalk: the river side of Prospect runs from S. Memorial Dr. to S. Oneida St. with no cross streets intervening.
The section from 315-330 West Prospect Ave. (blue houses) has been designated the West Prospect Avenue Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places #01000900, listed August 24, 2001.
From Morrow and Gillett's Appleton city directory, for 1889-90:
PROSPECT, 511 Pearl, southwest to 346 State, second north of the river, numbers from 811 to 1000.
In 1925 a new system of numbering structures in the city of Appleton was adopted. In this directory both the new and old street numbers are given. In addition, College Ave. was designated the dividing line between north and south, and Oneida St. was the east-west divider.
From Wright's Appleton city directory 1925:
PROSPECT Av W - - From 300 S Oneida sw to W Carver, 3 s W College av
