Kenosha () is a city in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
and the
seat of
Kenosha County.
Per the
2020 census, the population was 99,986 which made it the
fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Situated on the southwestern shore of
Lake Michigan, Kenosha is part of the greater
Chicago metropolitan area
The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and h ...
(Chicagoland) as defined by the
U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
. It also has longstanding connections to the
Racine
Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...
and
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...
areas to the north.
Interstate 94 connects Kenosha to the
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
and
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...
metro areas, and Kenosha itself is situated about halfway between each city.
Kenosha was once a center of industrial activity; it was home to large
automotive factories which fueled its economy. Like some other
Rust Belt
The Rust Belt is a region of the United States that experienced industrial decline starting in the 1950s. The U.S. manufacturing sector as a percentage of the U.S. GDP peaked in 1953 and has been in decline since, impacting certain regions an ...
cities, Kenosha
lost
Lost may refer to getting lost, or to:
Geography
*Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland
* Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US
History
*Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
these factories in the late 20th century, causing it to gradually transition into a services-based economy. In recent years, the city and surrounding county have benefited from increased job growth, and the city has worked on repairing roads and other infrastructure. It is home to the headquarters of the
Fortune 1000
The Fortune 1000 are the 1,000 largest American companies ranked by revenues, as compiled by the American business magazine ''Fortune''. It only includes companies which are incorporated or authorized to do business in the United States, and for ...
tool manufacturer
Snap-on Inc., as well as the clothing company
Jockey International. Kenosha is home to multiple educational institutions including the
University of Wisconsin–Parkside
The University of Wisconsin–Parkside (UWP) is a public university in Somers, Wisconsin. It is part of the University of Wisconsin System and has 4,644 students, 161 full-time faculty, and 89 lecturers and part-time faculty. The university o ...
,
Carthage College, and
Gateway Technical College
Gateway Technical College is a public technical college in southeastern Wisconsin. It is one of the largest members of the state-run Wisconsin Technical College System, serving Kenosha, Racine, and Walworth counties.
With over 20,000 students, ...
. Residents of the city are called
Kenoshans.
History
The
Potawatomi originally named the area (also transcribed , ) "place of the
pike
Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to:
Fish
* Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus''
* Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes
* ''Esox'', genus of ...
", while the
Menominee
The Menominee (; mez, omǣqnomenēwak meaning ''"Menominee People"'', also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as ''Mamaceqtaw'', "the people", in the Menominee language) are a federally recog ...
referred to the place as , meaning "Northern Pike". The early
Ojibwa name is reported as "
trout
Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...
(pike) come all at once". These refer to the annual spawning of trout, in which thousands of fish entered the rivers from Lake Michigan, providing food for the coming months.
Sites of early human habitation have been discovered in the Kenosha vicinity. It remains unclear if any sites pre-date the
Clovis Culture
The Clovis culture is a prehistoric Paleoamerican culture, named for distinct stone and bone tools found in close association with Pleistocene fauna, particularly two mammoths, at Blackwater Locality No. 1 near Clovis, New Mexico, in 1936 a ...
but, if so, those sites would be contemporaneous with the
Wisconsin glaciation
The Wisconsin Glacial Episode, also called the Wisconsin glaciation, was the most recent glacial period of the North American ice sheet complex. This advance included the Cordilleran Ice Sheet, which nucleated in the northern North American Cord ...
.
Paleo-Indians settled in the area at least 13,500 years ago.
European settlement
The first European settlers, part of the Western Emigration Company, arrived in the early 1830s, from
Hannibal and
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the U.S. state of New York and the county seat of Rensselaer County. The city is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany ...
, led by
John Bullen, Jr., who sought to purchase enough land for a town. Thwarted in
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...
and
Racine
Jean-Baptiste Racine ( , ) (; 22 December 163921 April 1699) was a French dramatist, one of the three great playwrights of 17th-century France, along with Molière and Corneille as well as an important literary figure in the Western traditi ...
, the group arrived at Pike Creek on 6 June 1835, building log houses and later homes of frame, native stone, and brick. The first school and churches followed, with platting completed in 1836. As more settlers arrived and the first post office was established, the village was known as Pike Creek, then renamed Southport in 1837, a name which lives on as a southeast-side neighborhood, park, and elementary school, and has been adopted by several businesses.
[ ]
The area became an important Great Lakes shipping port. In 1850, the village changed its name from Southport to Kenosha which is its current name. The name Kenosha was adapted from the
Chippewa word ''kinoje'' (pike or pickerel).
Between 1902 and 1988, Kenosha produced millions of automobiles and trucks including makes and models such as
Jeffery,
Rambler
Rambler or Ramble may refer to:
Places
* Rambler, Wyoming
* Rambler Channel (藍巴勒海峽), separates Tsing Yi Island and the mainland New Territories in Hong Kong
* The Ramble and Lake, Central Park, an area within New York City's Centr ...
,
Nash,
Hudson,
LaFayette
Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to:
People
* Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette
* House of La Fayette, a French noble family
** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757 ...
, and
American Motors Corporation (AMC). In May 1954, Nash acquired Detroit-based
Hudson and the new firm was named
American Motors Corporation. A west side park and an elementary school are named for Charles W. Nash. A
prototype steam car
A steam car is a car (automobile) propelled by a steam engine. A steam engine is an external combustion engine (ECE) in which the fuel is combusted outside of the engine, unlike an internal combustion engine (ICE) in which fuel is combusted ins ...
was built in Kenosha by the Sullivan-Becker engineering firm in 1900. Two years later, the
Thomas B. Jeffery Company, builders of the Sterling bicycle, began production of the
Rambler
Rambler or Ramble may refer to:
Places
* Rambler, Wyoming
* Rambler Channel (藍巴勒海峽), separates Tsing Yi Island and the mainland New Territories in Hong Kong
* The Ramble and Lake, Central Park, an area within New York City's Centr ...
runabout. In 1902, Rambler and
Oldsmobile
Oldsmobile or formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it pro ...
were the first cars to employ mass-production techniques. The 1903 Rambler was also the first US-built production automobile to use a
steering wheel, rather than the then-common
tiller
A tiller or till is a lever used to steer a vehicle. The mechanism is primarily used in watercraft, where it is attached to an outboard motor, rudder post or stock to provide leverage in the form of torque for the helmsman to turn the rudder. ...
-controlled steering. Auto executive
Charles W. Nash purchased Jeffery in 1916 and the new company became
Nash Motors
Nash Motors Company was an American automobile manufacturer based in Kenosha, Wisconsin from 1916 to 1937. From 1937 to 1954, Nash Motors was the automotive division of the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation. Nash production continued from 1954 to 195 ...
.
In 1973, residents in the Town of
Pleasant Prairie sought to have territory annexed and rezoned to allow for the industrial development of agricultural property. In the ensuing legal battle between Kenosha and Pleasant Prairie, the town accused the city of improperly coercing or bribing agricultural property owners to file for rezoning and annexation in order to obtain city water and electric services that could not be provided by the town. The town argued that industrial development would jeopardize the town's residential nature. The court found the annexation proper, with no illicit bribes or improper conduct by the city.
In partnership with French automaker
Renault
Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English; legally Renault S.A.) is a French multinational automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company produces a range of cars and vans, and in the past has manufacture ...
, AMC manufactured several models in Kenosha in the early 1980s, including the
Alliance
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
, which won the 1983 "Car of The Year" award from ''
Motor Trend
''MotorTrend'' is an American automobile magazine. It first appeared in September 1949, and designated the first Car of the Year, also in 1949.
Petersen Publishing Company in Los Angeles published ''MotorTrend'' until 1998, when it was sold to ...
''. Two decades earlier, AMC's 1963
Rambler Classic had also received the award. In 1987, Renault sold its controlling interest in AMC to
Chrysler Corporation, which had already contracted with AMC for the production of its M-body midsized cars at the Kenosha plant. The AMC Lakefront plant (1960–1988), a smaller facility, was demolished in 1990 (a chimney-demolition ceremony that June drew 10,000 spectators) and was redeveloped into HarborPark. The area now hosts lakeside condominiums, a large recreational marina, numerous parks and promenades, sculptures, fountains, the
Kenosha Public Museum, and the Civil War Museum, all of which are connected by the
Kenosha Electric Railway streetcar system.
From the beginning of the 20th century through the 1930s, Italian, Irish, Polish, and German immigrants, many of them skilled craftsmen, made their way to the city and contributed to the city's construction, culture, architecture, music, and literature.
In June 1993, the city installed reproductions of the historic Sheridan LeGrande
street lights that were specially designed for Kenosha by
Westinghouse Electric
The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was an American manufacturing company founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse. It was originally named "Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company" and was renamed "Westinghouse Electric Corporation" in ...
in 1928; these can be seen on Sixth Avenue between 54th Street and 59th Place. A classic downtown electric streetcar system was opened on June 17, 2000, and on September 22, 2014, the Kenosha city council approved a crosstown extension of the system incorporating the existing route between 48th and 61st Streets on both 6th and 8th Avenues.
On December 7, 2021, "Carl the Kenosha Turkey", a
turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
who became a
social media
Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...
sensation and local icon, was hit by a vehicle and killed. The turkey was named the city's unofficial
mascot
A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...
in 2020 and was seen by some as a source of positivity as Kenosha faced hardships in 2020–2021.
August 2020 protests and unrest
![Olive or Twist, 60th Street, Kenosha, WI](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Olive_or_Twist%2C_60th_Street%2C_Kenosha%2C_WI.jpg)
In the aftermath of the August 2020 police
shooting of Jacob Blake
On August 23, 2020, Jacob S. Blake, a 29-year-old black man, was shot and seriously injured by police officer Rusten Sheskey in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Sheskey shot Blake in the back four times and the side three times after Blake opened the driv ...
, protests, riots, and civil unrest occurred in Kenosha. Demonstrations were marked by daily peaceful protesting followed by confrontations with law enforcement and
rioting
A riot is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people.
Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The property targeted ...
,
looting,
vandalism
Vandalism is the action involving deliberate destruction of or damage to public or private property.
The term includes property damage, such as graffiti and defacement directed towards any property without permission of the owner. The term ...
, and
arson at night. A state of emergency was declared on August 23, and the
National Guard
National Guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards.
Nat ...
was activated the following day. On August 25,
a controversial shooting occurred during the unrest, leading to a polarized response. Both then-President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
and then-Presidential candidate
Joe Biden visited Kenosha.
Protests continued daily through August 29 with approximately 2,000 members of the National Guard assisting the city in restoring order.
[ Damages exceeding $50 million occurred with over 100 businesses affected.]
In November 2021, Kenosha once again became the subject of worldwide attention as the jury trial
A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions.
Jury trials are used in a significan ...
of Kyle Rittenhouse
Kyle Howard Rittenhouse (born January 3, 2003) is an American known for shooting three men, two fatally, during the civil unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August 2020 when he was 17 years old. At his trial in November 2021, a jury found Ritten ...
, the defendant in the 2020 unrest shooting, commenced. As part of the city's emergency preparedness, over 500 members of the National Guard were activated ahead of the verdict. Judge Bruce Schroeder dismissed Rittenhouse's unlawful possession charge and the curfew violation charge for being legally unsupported, and a unanimous jury
A jury is a sworn body of people (jurors) convened to hear evidence and render an impartial verdict (a finding of fact on a question) officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment.
Juries developed in England du ...
found Rittenhouse not guilty of the remaining charges. Following the verdict on November 19, some protests occurred in Kenosha but remained peaceful.
Historic districts
Kenosha has 21 locations and four districts (Library Park Historic District, Third Avenue Historic District, Civic Center Historic District, and Pearl Street Historic District) listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
. The city has a Kenosha Landmarks Commission, and among the many local city-designated landmarks are the 1929 YMCA, the Manor House, the John McCaffary House, the St. Matthew Episcopal Church, the Washington Park Clubhouse, and the Justin Weed House.
Geography
Kenosha is in southeastern Wisconsin, bordered by Lake Michigan to the east, the village of Somers to the north, the village of Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
to the west, and the village of Pleasant Prairie to the south. Kenosha's passenger train station is the last stop on Chicago's Union Pacific North Metra Line. Kenosha is 32 miles south of Milwaukee and 49 miles north of Chicago.
According to the United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water.
Neighborhoods
Kenosha is home to a mixture of blue
Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when ...
and white collar workers as well as students who attend the local universities. Kenosha consists of neighborhoods divided into three regions - Downtown, Uptown, and West of I-94 (referred to by locals at "West of the I" or simply "the county"). The city's northside is home to both UW-Parkside and Carthage College.
Downtown
Kenosha's downtown is located along the Lake Michigan shoreline and consists of government buildings, parks, beaches, restaurants, shops, museums, and entertainment venues. The neighborhood of HarborPark is both a residential and commercial area. Directly south of the Downtown area is the neighborhood of Allendale.
Uptown
Uptown Kenosha consists of a largely blue-collar population and is a mixture of locally owned businesses and residential areas. The neighborhood was heavily impacted by the damage caused during the August 2020 unrest but there are continued plans for ongoing development of the area. Prominent Uptown neighborhoods include Brass, Lincoln Park, and Wilson Heights.
Climate
Kenosha has a humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(Köppen Dfa, bordering on Dfb) with warm summers and cold winters. The record high is , set in July 2012. The record low is set in January 1985.
Demographics
2020 census
''Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.''
As of the census of 2020, the population was 99,986. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was . There were 41,641 housing units at an average density of . Ethnically, the population was 19.7% Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race. When grouping both Hispanic and non-Hispanic people together by race, the city was 67.9% White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 10.8% Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
or African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 1.9% Asian, 0.5% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 7.3% from other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 11.5% from two or more races.
The 2020 census population of the city included 592 people incarcerated in adult correctional facilities and 1,790 people in student housing.
24.6% of residents were under the age of 18, 13.3% were above of the age of 65, and the gender makeup was 48.7% male and 51.3% female. 9.0% of residents were foreign born. 88.4% of residents possessed a high school education and 25.7% had a bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
or higher. The medium household income was $56,113, with 15.6% of residents living below the poverty line.
2019 United States Census Bureau American Community Survey estimates
2010 census
As of the census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2010, there were 99,218 people, 37,376 households, and 24,090 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was . There were 40,643 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 77.1% White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 10.0% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.6% Native American, 1.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 6.8% from other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
people of any race were 16.3% of the population.
There were 37,376 households, of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.9% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.5% were non-families. 28.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.17.
The median age in the city was 33.5 years. 26.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.3% were from 25 to 44; 23.2% were from 45 to 64; and 10.8% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.1% male and 50.9% female.
The 2010 census reported that 51 percent of Kenosha residents moved in from other cities and states. The Chamber of Commerce attributed this to the city's museums, lakeshore attractions, cultural and work opportunities, its public-school system, transportation amenities, and relatively lower costs-of-living.
The importance of manufacturing jobs in Kenosha continues to diminish with only 11.7 percent or 7,769 of the total workforce of 66,362 area residents involved, a decline of 22 percent since 1990 and much lower than the statewide percentage of 16.4 percent.[Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development figures, 2017 as quoted in the Kenosha News,]
Factory town no more
by Deneen Smith, December 24, 2018
The biggest surge in Kenosha employment by percentage has been in the white-collar workforce. From 1990 to 2017, the percentage of Kenosha's workforce in business and professional services grew nearly fivefold from 3.2% of the workforce to 11%, while statewide the trend was slightly more than double. The growth has been both to due new office developments in the city, but also due to new suburban developments as Illinois workers seek more affordable housing.[
]
2000 census
As of the census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2000, there were 90,352 people, 34,411 households, and 22,539 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was . There were 36,004 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 83.6% White, 7.7% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.4% Native American, 1.0% Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
n, <0.1% Pacific Islander, 4.8% from other races and 2.4% from two or more races. 10.0% of the population were Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
of any race. 25.5% were of German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
, 11.5% Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
, 7.1% Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
and 6.6% Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
ancestry.
There were 34,411 households, out of which 34.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them: 47.1% were married couples living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present and 34.5% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the city, the population included 27.2% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 19.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.2 males.
Crime
The city's violent crime rate for 2018 was 338.18 per 100,000 people, a 15.94% decline from 2017. In 2019, there were 5 reported homicides and an overall 1,888 crimes per 100,000 people, 7.0% higher than the overall crime rate for Wisconsin but lower than the national average of 2,489 per 100,000 people.
On April 18, 2021, a shooting occurred at the Somers House bar, a popular venue for local college students. Six people were shot, three fatally. Police believe the shooting occurred as a result of a fight within the crowded bar, and one subject was arrested and criminally charged.
By October 2021, Kenosha recorded 12 homicides that year, nearly triple the city's annual average.
Economy
Kenosha was at one time a hub of manufacturing, and is now a bedroom community
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
because of the ease of access to the Chicago-Milwaukee corridor. According to county statistics, 49% of Kenosha's workforce commutes outside of Kenosha County to their positions. Many travel northward towards Milwaukee or south into the Chicago area. A 2016 study found that Kenosha's "out-commuters most likely work for positions in healthcare, manufacturing, professional/scientific and technical services. The majority of occupations included management, business/financial, and office/administrative support position", and 73 percent of out-commuters have a bachelor's degree or a higher level of education. During the 2010s and into the 2020s, Kenosha (and Wisconsin as a whole) saw large influxes of Illinois residents moving to the city due to cheaper housing costs and lower taxes.
Snap-on Tools world headquarters and Jockey International corporate headquarters are in Kenosha. Kenosha has a number of light industrial
Light industry are industries that usually are less capital-intensive than heavy industry and are more consumer-oriented than business-oriented, as they typically produce smaller consumer goods. Most light industry products are produced for ...
and distribution companies in outlying business park
A business park or office park is a designated area of land in which many office buildings are grouped together. These types of developments are often located in suburban areas where land and building costs are more affordable, and are typicall ...
s. Amazon
Amazon most often refers to:
* Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology
* Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin
* Amazon River, in South America
* Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
, Rustoleum, Uline
Uline is a privately held American company which offers shipping and other business supplies. It was founded in 1980 by Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein. It has more than 8,000 employees and is headquartered in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. It has ...
, Associated Wholesale Grocers
Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. (AWG) is the United States's largest cooperative food wholesaler to independently owned supermarkets and grocery stores. It serves more than 4,000 locations in 36 states and from 8 full-line wholesale divisions ...
, and others have warehouses and distribution centers located in Kenosha. In 2022, Square Roots farm opened a fully indoor hydroponic
Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions in aqueous solvents. Terrestrial or aquatic plant ...
facility within refurbished shipping containers in Kenosha. It is expected to be able to grow 2.4 million packages of fresh produce annually for distribution to the surrounding Chicago and Milwaukee metro areas.
Tourists spent an estimated $196.6 million in Kenosha County in 2015, with the county ranking fourth in the state in tourist money generated.
Downtown Kenosha sits along the Lake Michigan lakefront. In recent years, organizations such as Downtown Kenosha Inc. (DKI) manage the day-to-day economic development efforts, business support and promotional activities for the district. Downtown Kenosha is home to the Kenosha HarborMarket, a European-style farmer's market
A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or o ...
held mid-May through mid-October on 2nd Ave bisected by the 56th Street boulevard streetcar line. It hosts stalls with local food products and artisan creations. In addition, the downtown area has a collection of over 50 restaurants, bars, breweries, and shops of various kinds. Frank's Diner
Franks Diner is a Jerry O'Mahony Diner Company lunch car diner in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Notable features
The diner seats 55 patrons and is known for the numerous slogans posted on the walls, such as "Order what you want, eat what you get." The din ...
, which has been an attraction in downtown Kenosha since 1926, is the oldest diner in the United States and has been featured twice on Guy Fieri
Guy Ramsay Fieri (, ; ''né'' Ferry; born January 22, 1968) is an American restaurateur, author, and an Emmy Award winning television presenter. He co-owns three restaurants in California, licenses his name to restaurants in New York City, Las ...
's ''Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives
''Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives'' (often nicknamed ''Triple D'' and stylized as ''Diners, Drive-Ins, Dives'') is an American food reality television series that premiered on April 23, 2007, on the Food Network. It is hosted by Guy Fieri. The show o ...
'', once in 2007 and again in 2021. Residential developments have also provided added condominiums and apartments.
Near downtown, the Kenosha Public Museum System includes the main Kenosha Public Museum, the Dinosaur Discovery Museum in association with Carthage College and the Smithsonian, and the Kenosha Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
Museum. On Simmons Island, the Kenosha History Center and adjacent Maritime Museum offer memorabilia from the city's nautical past.
In February 2020, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers
Anthony Steven Evers (born November 5, 1951) is an American educator and politician serving as the 46th governor of Wisconsin since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as Wisconsin's Superintendent of Public Instruction from 2009 ...
announced $10 million in state funding toward the proposed Kenosha STEM Innovation Center within the Kenosha Innovation Neighborhood (KIN), which is a currently planned 60,000 sq. ft. building to be constructed on the empty 107 acre site of the former Chrysler factory. It will serve as a multi-purpose building dedicated to education, workforce development, and entrepreneurial opportunities. In December 2020, the city announced a plan for the KIN. In July 2021, the federal government awarded Kenosha $4.9 million in federal CARES Act
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, is a $2.2trillion Stimulus (economics), economic stimulus bill passed by the 116th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 27, ...
funds toward the neighborhood, and in November, Mayor John Antaramian announced that Lakeview Technology Academy
LakeView Technology Academy is a vocational high school in the Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD) in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. It serves students grades 9 to 12 from all across KUSD with a focus on STEM education. LakeView opened in the fa ...
would relocate to the KIN. In March 2022, Evers officially announced $15 million in funding toward the KIN, which is expected to take 8–10 years to be fully completed and will include the collaboration of UW-Parkside, Carthage College, Gateway Technical College, and Herzing University.
Arts and culture
Kenosha's four downtown museums, the Kenosha Public Museum, the Civil War Museum and the Dinosaur Discovery Museum, and the Kenosha Historical Center are Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
affiliates.
Completed in 2001, the Kenosha Public Museum is on the Lake Michigan shoreline. Its main exhibit is a prehistoric woolly mammoth
The woolly mammoth (''Mammuthus primigenius'') is an extinct species of mammoth that lived during the Pleistocene until its extinction in the Holocene epoch. It was one of the last in a line of mammoth species, beginning with '' Mammuthus s ...
skeleton uncovered in western Kenosha in 1992. Cut-marks on its bones indicate that the animals were butchered by humans using stone tools. Carbon dating indicates their age to be 12,500 radiocarbon
Carbon-14, C-14, or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic materials is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and c ...
years old or 14,500 calendar years old, one thousand radiocarbon years earlier than the previously-accepted presence of humans in the Americas. The museum also displays other ice age
An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...
and fine art exhibits. A second permanent exhibit on local ecosystems and the history of museums and science opened in 2019.
The Kenosha History Center is adjacent to the 1917 city water treatment plant on Simmons Island adjoining the 1866 Kenosha Light Station. It showcases the history of Kenosha from the time of Native American settlements and the first European settlements to the present day. The 1906 Kenosha North Pier Light
The Kenosha North Pier lighthouse or Kenosha Light is a lighthouse located near Kenosha in Kenosha County, Wisconsin. "A typical 'Lake Michigan red tower'", sits just east.
Kenosha's Civil War Museum opened on June 13, 2008. The main exhibit, "The Fiery Trial", opened September 15, 2008. It is a exhibit offering an interactive experience of the role of six Midwestern
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...
states before, during, and after the American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
.
The Dinosaur Discovery Museum, designated a federal repository, opened in August 2006 in the historic Old Post Office adjoining the 56th Street streetcar line at Tenth Avenue, and includes an on-site paleontology
Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...
laboratory operated through the Carthage College Institute of Paleontology.
A maritime museum is located within the restored 1866 Southport Light and Lighthouse Keeper's cottage on Simmons Island.
Cuisine
Kenosha's cuisine mirrors common food culture
The sociology of food is the study of food as it relates to the history, progression, and future development of society, encompassing its production, preparation, consumption, and distribution, its medical, ritual, spiritual, ethical and cultura ...
throughout Wisconsin. It is home to a variety of restaurants including multiple supper club
A supper club is a traditional dining establishment that also functions as a social club. The term may describe different establishments depending on the region, but in general, supper clubs tend to present themselves as having a high-class image ...
s and German-American venues. Additionally, the city is home to two award winning drive-in
A drive-in is a facility (such as a restaurant or movie theater) where one can drive in with an automobile for service. At a drive-in restaurant, for example, customers park their vehicles and are usually served by staff who walk or rollerskat ...
burger stands, The Spot and Big Star. Mars Cheese Castle
Mars Cheese Castle is a specialty food store, delicatessen, and taproom which sells a variety of consumable products in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Located along Interstate 94, the shop is popular among Wisconsin visitors and has been called a "cheese land ...
, a "cheese landmark", is also located in Kenosha. The city has the highest concentration of Italian-Americans in Wisconsin, and as such is rife with Italian-American cuisine, including many pizza restaurants and perhaps the most well-known Italian grocery and delicatessen
Traditionally, a delicatessen or deli is a retail establishment that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessen originated in Germany (original: ) during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the m ...
in Wisconsin, Tenuta's.
In recent years, Kenosha became home to multiple craft breweries, and in 2021 hosted the ''Great Lakes Brew Fest''.
Music
Summer band performances have been performed by Kenosha Pops Concert Band at Kenosha's Sesquicentennial Bandshell in Pennoyer Park since 1988.
The Music of the Stars radio program originated in Kenosha in 1992.
The Kenosha Symphony Orchestra performs concerts in the Reuther Central Auditorium at Walter Reuther Central High School
Walter Reuther Central High School is an alternative high school in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Part of the Kenosha Unified School District, the school serves 382 students in grades 9-12.
History
The classic limestone structure that houses Reuther High ...
in downtown Kenosha.
Since 2002, the outdoor Peanut Butter and Jam Concert Series has been held every Thursday in July and August at Veterans Memorial Park.
Lincoln Park Live! concerts began in 2005 at Lincoln Park. A number of outdoor jazz events are performed throughout the summer such as HarborPark Jazz.
Bands that have originated in Kenosha include Electric Hellfire Club, Lazarus A.D., Jungle Rot
Jungle Rot is an American death metal band from Kenosha, Wisconsin, formed in 1992.
History
Jungle Rot was founded in 1992 as a side project by Jim Harte and Joe Thomas, members of the Illinois thrash metal act, Prisoner. The band's name ref ...
, and Product of Hate.
Festivals
Kenosha is home to a number of summer festivals including the Outta Sight Kite Flight, Taste of Wisconsin, Pike River Rendezvous (a historical reenactment
Historical reenactment (or re-enactment) is an educational or entertainment activity in which mainly amateur hobbyists and history enthusiasts dress in historic uniforms or costumes and follow a plan to recreate aspects of a historical event or ...
), the Kenosha Classic Cruise-In Car Show, Celebrate America (Fourth of July
Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States ...
event), Food Folks & Spokes (a cycling
Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from t ...
event), Cheese-A-Palooza, and the Border War Beer Fest (brewers from Wisconsin and Illinois competing for best beer).
Since 2017, Kenosha has been the host of Tribute Island, a three-day music festival located at Simmons Island. It features many of the top tribute band
A tribute act, tribute band or tribute group is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act. Tribute acts include individual performers who mimic the songs and style of an artist, such as ...
s from the Midwest, over 50 bands in total performing on five stages.
Libraries
The Kenosha Public Library, which is part of the Kenosha County Library System, operates in four locations throughout the city: Northside Neighborhood Library, Southwest Neighborhood Library, Uptown Neighborhood Library, and Simmons Neighborhood Library. Daniel H. Burnham designed the 1900 Beaux-Arts Gilbert M. Simmons Memorial Library
The Gilbert M. Simmons Memorial Library is located in Kenosha, Wisconsin, United States, and is a location of the Kenosha Public Library (KPL). KPL consists of 4 locations, an Outreach department, and is a member of both the Kenosha County Library ...
, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sports
The city's oldest sporting club, the Kenosha Yacht Club, was established in 1912.
Kenosha was home to the short lived Kenosha Maroons
The Kenosha Maroons were a National Football League American football, football team in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Officially, the club only played in the league during the 1924 NFL season, 1924 season, dissolving after posting no wins in five games.
Hi ...
NFL franchise in 1924. They folded after going 0–4–1. It was also the home of the Kenosha Cardinals, a semi-professional football team between 1937 and 1941 which played at Lake Front Stadium at 58th Street and Third Avenue. Today, Kenosha is home to one semi-professional football team formed in 2007, the Kenosha Cougars. They play in the Northern Lights Football League (NLFL). The Bradford High School Red Devils won a state football championship in 2011.
Several baseball teams have played at Simmons Field on the city's south side, including the Kenosha Comets
Based in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Kenosha Comets were a women's professional baseball team that played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The team played their home games at Kenosha's Lake Front Stadium, but l ...
, charter members of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League who played in the league from 1943 to 1951. Kenosha was also home to the Frontier League's Kenosha Mammoths in 2003, and the Single-A Kenosha Twins from 1984 to 1992. It is currently home to the Kenosha Kingfish, a collegiate baseball team in the Northwoods League
The Northwoods League is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league. All players in the league must have NCAA eligibility remaining in order to participate. The league is amateur, and players are not paid, so as to maintain their college el ...
, which played its first game on May 31, 2014, and in 2015 won their first championship. In 2020, it was also home to the K-Town Bobbers, featured in a 26-game "Kenosha Series" against the Kenosha Kingfish in July 2020 as part of the NWL “Pod” system of play adopted for 2020.
In 2022, Kenosha became the home of the Kenosha United F.C. Premier Arena Soccer League
The Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL) is an indoor soccer league with mostly semi-professional teams; along with a number of amateur teams across North America. The PASL was previously known as the Federation of Sports Arenas (FSA). The PASL logo ...
. They play their home games in nearby Sturtevant, Wisconsin.
Parks and recreation
Kenosha has of Lake Michigan shoreline frontage, nearly all of which is public. The city has 74 municipal parks, totaling .
Kenosha's Washington Park includes the oldest operating velodrome
A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement ...
in the United States (opened in 1927) at Washington Bowl. The Kenosha Velodrome Association sponsors American Track Cycling
Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles.
History
Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it ...
sanctioned races and training sessions at the "Bowl" throughout the summer. Races are held on Tuesday evenings from mid-May through August. Free seating is available on the inside of the track, and on important race days concessions are available.
Library Park is home to a statue of Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
by Charles Henry Niehaus
Charles Henry Niehaus (January 24, 1855 — June 19, 1935), was an American sculptor.
Education
Niehaus was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, to German parents. He began working as a marble and wood carver, and then gained entrance to the McMicken ...
as well as a veterans-memorial statue ("Winged Victory") by the Italian sculptor Decco.
Petrifying Springs Park is located on the northside of Kenosha, with parts extending into the neighboring village of Somers. Developed within a northern hardwood forest
The northern hardwood forest is a general type of North American forest ecosystem found over much of southeastern and south-central Canada, Ontario, and Quebec, extending south into the United States in northern New England, New York, and Pennsyl ...
, the 350-acre park includes hiking trails, an 18-hole golf course, and a Biergarten
A beer garden (German: ''Biergarten'') is an outdoor area in which beer and food are served, typically at shared tables shaded by trees.
Beer gardens originated in Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital city, in the 19th century, and remain co ...
.
Kenosha has been a Tree City USA
The Arbor Day Foundation is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees. The Arbor Day Foundation has more than one million members and has planted more than 350 million trees in neighborhoods, communities ...
since 1982.
Beaches
*Simmons Island Park and Beach,
*Alford Park and Beach (three sections: North, East, and West),
*Eichelman Park and Beach,
*Pennoyer Park and Beach,
*Southport Park and Beach,
Golf
The Washington Park Golf Course was dedicated on February 18, 1922, and its 1937 English-cottage clubhouse is a city landmark. Most recently, new private courses have opened, including The Club at Strawberry Creek.
Cycling
Kenosha's Library Park is the home of Food Folks and Spokes, a festival with food booths, entertainment, and a bicycle race that is the first leg of the Tour of America's Dairyland. It was formerly part of the International Cycling Classic's "Superweek". Kenosha is home to the Washington Park Velodrome, the longest-operating 333-meter track; it opened in 1927.
Government
Mayor
Kenosha has an elected mayor, who is the chief executive, and an appointed city administrator, who is the chief operating officer. The mayor is elected every four years. The city's Common Council consists of 17 aldermen from Kenosha's 17 districts (each district having several wards), elected for two-year terms in even-numbered years. The current mayor of Kenosha is John Antaramian
John Martin Antaramian (born September 21, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 50th mayor of Kenosha, Wisconsin. Prior to his re-election in 2016, Antaramian had served as the 48th mayor of Kenosha for 16 years and befor ...
, the longest-serving chief executive in the city's history from 1992 to 2008 and from 2016 to the present.
Politics
The city has historically favored the Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
, with the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election
The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
being the first time since 1972 that a Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
candidate, Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
, has won in Kenosha County. During the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election
The 2020 United States presidential election was the 59th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and the junior U.S. senator from California Kamala Ha ...
, Trump lost Wisconsin but won in Kenosha County for the second time.
Kenosha is represented by Bryan Steil
Bryan George Steil ( ; born March 3, 1981) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Early life and education
Stei ...
(R) in the United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
, and by Ron Johnson
Ronald Harold Johnson (born April 8, 1955) is an American accountant, businessman, and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Wisconsin, a seat he has held since 2011. A Republican, Johnson was first elected to the U.S. S ...
(R) and Tammy Baldwin
Tammy Suzanne Green Baldwin (born February 11, 1962) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Wisconsin since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, she served three terms in the Wisconsin St ...
(D) in the United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
. Robert Wirch (D) represents Kenosha in the Wisconsin State Senate
The Wisconsin Senate is the upper house of the Wisconsin State Legislature. Together with the larger Wisconsin State Assembly they constitute the legislative branch of the state of Wisconsin. The powers of the Wisconsin Senate are modeled after t ...
, and Tip McGuire
Thaddeus P. "Tip" McGuire (born July 1987) is an American attorney and Democratic politician from Kenosha County, Wisconsin. He is a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the 64th Assembly district since May 2019. He previously ...
(D) and Tod Ohnstad
Tod Ohnstad (born May 21, 1952) is an American politician, retired machinist, and former union representative. A Democrat, he is a current member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the Kenosha-based 65th assembly district since 2013 ...
(D) represent Kenosha in the Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin.
Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...
.
Education
Public schools
The Kenosha Unified School District
Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD) serves the city of Kenosha, the Town of Somers and the village of Pleasant Prairie. KUSD is overseen by a school board of seven elected members whose president is Dan Wade. The superintendent of KUSD is DR ...
operates 23 public elementary schools, five middle schools, seven charter schools, and six high schools: Mary D. Bradford High School, George Nelson Tremper High School
George Nelson Tremper High School is a high school located in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Part of the Kenosha Unified School District, it was named after George Nelson Tremper, the principal of Kenosha High School from 1911 to 1944. The mascot of Trempe ...
, Indian Trail High School and Academy
Indian Trail High School and Academy is a public high school in Kenosha, Wisconsin, part of the Kenosha Unified School District. Unlike the other high schools in the district, ITHS/A houses a comprehensive high school and an alternative school u ...
, LakeView Technology Academy
LakeView Technology Academy is a vocational high school in the Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD) in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. It serves students grades 9 to 12 from all across KUSD with a focus on STEM education. LakeView opened in the fa ...
, Reuther Central High School, and Harborside Academy, the latter a research school that uses the Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound model; it was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was ...
.
Private schools
Kenosha's private schools include St. Joseph Catholic Academy
St. Joseph Catholic Academy is a Catholic elementary and secondary parochial school in Kenosha, Wisconsin, created on July 1, 2010 as a result of the merging of St. Mark Elementary School, St. Joseph Interparish Junior High School, and St. Joseph ...
, All Saints Catholic School, Bethany Lutheran School, Friedens Lutheran School, Christ Lutheran Academy, Kenosha Montessori
The Montessori method of education involves children's natural interests and activities rather than formal teaching methods. A Montessori classroom places an emphasis on hands-on learning and developing real-world skills. It emphasizes indepen ...
School, Shoreland Lutheran High School, and Christian Life School. At the beginning of the 2011–2012 school year, St. Mary's and Our Lady of the Holy Rosary of Pompeii schools became campuses of All Saints Catholic School. Both campuses operate as the same school with the same principal. St. Mark's and St. Joseph High School have also conjoined into Saint Joseph Catholic Academy.
Higher education
Kenosha is home to the University of Wisconsin-Parkside with over 4,000 students, Carthage College with over 2,500 students, and the Kenosha campus of Gateway Technical College
Gateway Technical College is a public technical college in southeastern Wisconsin. It is one of the largest members of the state-run Wisconsin Technical College System, serving Kenosha, Racine, and Walworth counties.
With over 20,000 students, ...
.
Concordia University Wisconsin
Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) is a private Lutheran university in Mequon, Wisconsin. It is part of the eight-member Concordia University System operated by the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS).
The university is a coeducational in ...
, Cardinal Stritch University
, mottoeng = To value the better things
, established = 1937 ( years ago)
, type = Private university
, religious_affiliation = Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi (Roman Catholic)
, endowment ...
, National-Louis University
National Louis University (NLU) is a private university with its main campus in Chicago, Illinois. NLU enrolls undergraduate and graduate students in more than 60 programs across its four colleges. It has locations throughout the Chicago metropo ...
, and Herzing University
Herzing University is a private university with its headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and several locations throughout the United States. The university offers degrees in professions including nursing, technology, business, and healthcare.
H ...
maintain campuses in Kenosha. Journey Ministry College, a cohort of SUM Bible College and Seminary, was established in 2011.
Media
The primary newspaper of Kenosha County is the ''Kenosha News
The ''Kenosha News'' is a daily newspaper published in Kenosha, Wisconsin, United States. With a circulation of 18,000 daily and 22,000 Sunday, the morning paper serves southeastern Wisconsin and northeastern Illinois. It was the original and fla ...
,'' a broadsheet with circulation of around 23,000 copies. Happenings Magazine is an ad-supported entertainment publication distributed at local businesses since 1978. They also publish ''The Smart Reader'', ''Homes Plus'', and other seasonal event-orientated magazines.
Kenosha is considered as part of the Milwaukee television market by A.C. Nielsen. However, due to the large number of commuters to Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, Charter Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors ...
's Kenosha system carries both Milwaukee and Chicago stations. Arbitron classifies Kenosha as part of the Chicago radio market. Five major radio stations broadcast from Kenosha: WLIP
WLIP (1050 AM) is a radio station located in Kenosha, Wisconsin, United States, serving the Chicago-Milwaukee metropolitan region along the west shore of Lake Michigan with 250 watts, and also streaming worldwide at www.wlip.com. The station is ...
( CBS Radio) 1050 AM, Gateway Technical College
Gateway Technical College is a public technical college in southeastern Wisconsin. It is one of the largest members of the state-run Wisconsin Technical College System, serving Kenosha, Racine, and Walworth counties.
With over 20,000 students, ...
's WGTD
WGTD (91.1 FM) is a radio station licensed to Kenosha, Wisconsin, serving the Racine/Kenosha area. Owned by Gateway Technical College, the station affiliates with Wisconsin Public Radio, and airs WPR's "NPR News and Classical Network", consistin ...
(91.1 FM), a member station of the Wisconsin Public Radio
Wisconsin Public Radio (WPR) is a network of 34 public radio stations in the state of Wisconsin. WPR's network is divided into two distinct analog services, the ''Ideas Network'' and the '' NPR News & Music Network,'' as well as the ''All Classic ...
News & Classical Music Network, rock WIIL (95.1 FM) and classic hits WWDV
WWDV (96.9 FM) is a radio station in Zion, Illinois, known as "The Drive". The station is currently owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, and is a full-time simulcast of Chicago-licensed WDRV (97.1 FM), serving the Kenosha, Wisconsin-Waukegan, Illin ...
(96.9 FM), which simulcast
Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simulta ...
s Chicago-based WDRV
WDRV (97.1 FM, "The Drive") is a commercial radio station licensed to serve Chicago, Illinois. The station is owned by Hubbard Radio and broadcasts a classic rock format. Its studios were originally located in the John Hancock Center. On May 11, ...
(97.1 FM). The Kenosha Convention and Visitors Bureau operates WPUR937 (1180 AM), a low-power tourist information
A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center, tourist information center, is a physical location that provides tourist information to visitors.
Types of visitor center
A visi ...
station. Most of the AM and FM radio stations from Milwaukee and Chicago are clearly audible in Kenosha.
WPXE (Channel 55), the Ion Television
Ion Television is an American broadcast television network owned by the Katz Broadcasting subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. The network first began broadcasting on August 31, 1998, as Pax TV, focusing primarily on family-oriented en ...
owned-and-operated station for the Milwaukee market, is Kenosha's only locally-licensed
A license (or licence) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit).
A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another party (licensee) as an element of an agreeme ...
television station, though in reality it only mentions Kenosha in its legal IDs. Its transmitter is located with the Milwaukee PBS
Milwaukee PBS is the collective brand for two Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS) member television stations licensed to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States: WMVS (channel 10) and WMVT (channel 36). Both stations are owned and operated by the Mi ...
tower on Milwaukee's north side, and its studios are based in suburban Glendale, thus it serves the entire Milwaukee television market.
Infrastructure
Transportation
According to Walk Score
Walk Score, a subsidiary of Redfin, provides walkability analysis and apartment search tools. Its flagship product is a large-scale, public access walkability index that assigns a numerical walkability score to any address in the United States, U ...
, Kenosha is a largely "car dependent" city, with an overall walk score of 45/100 and has "minimal biking infrastructure", with an overall bike score of 49/100, though its downtown central business district has much higher scores, 84/100 and 72/100 respectively.
Major highways
Railroad
Kenosha has been served by rail service to and from Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
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since May 19, 1855, when the predecessors to the Chicago and North Western Railway
The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...
, the Milwaukee and Chicago Railway Company (originally the Illinois Parallel Railroad) and the original "Lake Shore Railroad" (later the Green Bay, Milwaukee and Chicago Railway) were officially joined with great ceremony just south of today's 52nd Street. Today, the former C&NW line is operated by the Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
while the former Milwaukee Road line is operated by the Soo Line Railroad, a division of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Mass transit
Kenosha has the only Metra
Metra is the commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 242 stations on 11 rail lines. ...
station in Wisconsin, with nine inbound and nine outbound trains each weekday. Passenger ridership on the Kenosha line was up by a slight 0.06% in 2009, while elsewhere on the 11-route Metra system, passenger counts dropped by 5.2 percent. Not all Union Pacific/North Line
The Union Pacific North Line (UP-N) is a Metra line in the Chicago metropolitan area. It runs between Ogilvie Transportation Center and Kenosha, Wisconsin; however, most trains terminate in Waukegan, Illinois. Although Metra owns the rolling st ...
trains terminate and originate in Kenosha; most terminate at Waukegan, Illinois
''(Fortress or Trading Post)''
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, image_seal =
, blank_emblem_size = 150
, blank_emblem_type = Logo
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_type1 = State
, subdivisi ...
, to the south of Kenosha.
Since June 2000, a streetcar
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport a ...
line has served the downtown area and HarborPark, connecting the Metra station with downtown and several area parks. Kenosha is one of the smallest cities in America with any type of streetcar system today.
In addition to its streetcar line, Kenosha has a city bus network with eight routes. Kenosha was the first city to color-code transit routes (with the Blue, Green, Red, and Orange Lines), and also the first city to use electric trolley buses in full transit service, both occurring on February 14, 1932.
Kenosha Regional Airport (KENW) serves the city and surrounding communities. The city is located approximately 52 miles north of O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, IL and 33 miles south of General Mitchell International Airport
Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport is a civil–military airport south of downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States., effective May 21, 2020. It is included in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Air ...
in Milwaukee.
Health care
Kenosha has two hospitals: the Froedtert South Kenosha Medical Center Campus downtown and the Aurora Medical Center at the extreme western edge of the city limits. Just outside of the city limits in neighboring Pleasant Prairie is the St. Catherine's Medical Center Campus, which opened in 2002 and has a heart institute named in honor of cardiac surgeon Michael E. DeBakey.
Public safety
The Kenosha Police Department is responsible for the law enforcement in Kenosha since 1850, and is housed in the Kenosha Public Safety building. The Kenosha County Courthouse and Jail
The Kenosha County Courthouse and Jail is located in Kenosha, Wisconsin in the United States. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Description
The first Kenosha County Courthouse was built in 1850 when Kenosha C ...
were added to the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1982. The jail and a separate facility, the Kenosha County Detention Center (KCDC), are operated by the sheriff's department. The Kenosha Correctional Center, a minimum security state prison
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...
, is also located in Kenosha and is under the operation of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections
The Wisconsin Department of Corrections (WIDOC) is an administrative department in the executive branch of the state of Wisconsin responsible for corrections in Wisconsin, including state prisons and community supervision. The secretary is a cab ...
.
In August 2020, during the Kenosha unrest, a probation and parole building utilized by the Division of Community Corrections was burned down by rioters.
Notable people
Sister cities
Kenosha's sister cities are:
* Cosenza, Italy (since 1979)
* Douai
Douai (, , ,; pcd, Doï; nl, Dowaai; formerly spelled Douay or Doway in English) is a city in the Nord département in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Located on the river Scarpe some from Lille and from Arras, Dou ...
, France (since 1981)
* Quezon City
Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,960,048 people. It was fou ...
, Philippines (since 1986)
* Wolfenbüttel
Wolfenbüttel (; nds, Wulfenbüddel) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District. It is best known as the location of the internationally renowned Herzog August Library and for having the largest ...
, Germany (since 1970)
See also
*List of mayors of Kenosha, Wisconsin
This is a list of mayors of Kenosha, Wisconsin, also known as the Village of "Southport" until 1850.
Village presidents (1841–1850)
The City of Kenosha was incorporated from the area previously known as the Village of Southport in 1850.
...
* Kenosha unrest
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
Visit Kenosha
Kenosha Area Chamber of Commerce
* Sanborn fire insurance maps
1886189018941900190519111918
*
{{Authority control
Chicago metropolitan area
Cities in Kenosha County, Wisconsin
Cities in Wisconsin
County seats in Wisconsin
Wisconsin populated places on Lake Michigan
Pre-Clovis archaeological sites in the Americas
Populated places established in 1835