Menasha was a
town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
in
Winnebago County,
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 ...
, United States, west of the
Fox River across from the city of
Menasha, Wisconsin
Menasha () is a city in Calumet and Winnebago counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 18,268 at the 2020 census. Of this, 15,144 were in Winnebago County, and 2,209 were in Calumet County. The city is located mostly in Win ...
. The population was 18,498 at the 2010 census,
making it the second most populous town in the state of Wisconsin at the time of its dissolution.
The unincorporated community of
Waverly Beach was located partially in the town. In an April 2016 referendum, the portion of the town west of
Little Lake Butte des Morts
Little Lake Butte des Morts is a lake in the US state of Wisconsin, eight miles north of Lake Butte des Morts. It is part of the Fox–Wisconsin Waterway and receives its inflow from a short segment of the Fox River which drains from the north ...
voted to become the village of
Fox Crossing.
The remaining portions of the town were annexed to Fox Crossing on September 22, 2016, effectively ending the existence of the town.
History
The Town of Menasha was officially organized on April 3, 1855, in part from land formerly belonging to the neighboring town of Neenah.
Village incorporation
Discussion of the Town of Menasha being incorporated into a village began as early as 1979, when the name ''Bridgeview'' was proposed. A referendum on the matter was brought to residents in 2002 (again with the proposed village name of Bridgeview), which was defeated.
In December 2014, a petition was circulated to incorporate the west side of the town as the Village of Fox Crossing. It needed 50 signatures to file the petition in Winnebago County court; it had received over 200 by March 2015.
Town leaders estimate that it would cost $85000 to incorporate and possibly $75000 in legal fees to defend against challenges.
An incorporation committee suggested incorporating 10600 residents west of the Fox River followed later by annexing the 7900 residents east of the river.
Incorporation of Fox Crossing as a village, comprising the land west of Little Lake Butte des Morts became final on April 20, 2016. This roughly reduced the area of the Town of Menasha by half.
The long term plan after this was finalized was to fold the remaining portions of the Town of Menasha into the new village, assuming there were no objections from remaining town residents.
On August 17, 2016, an agreement was reached between the Village of Fox Crossing and the remaining Town of Menasha to annex all remaining Town of Menasha lands to Fox Crossing. When completed, this would effectively end the existence of the Town of Menasha, on a timeline "on or as soon after the (agreement) as practical". There were no petitions filed by town residents objecting to this. On September 22, 2016, the Town of Menasha ceased when remaining parts of the town were annexed into Fox Crossing.
Geography
The town was located in the northeast corner of Winnebago County and partially surrounds the city of Menasha. It was located at the north end of
Lake Winnebago
Lake Winnebago ( mez, Wenepekōw Nepēhsæh, oj, Wiinibiigoo-zaaga'igan, one, kanyataláheleˀ) is a shallow freshwater lake in the north central United States, located in east central Wisconsin. At 137,700 acres it is the largest lake entire ...
, the outlet of which, the
Fox River, flowed through the middle of the town as
Little Lake Butte des Morts
Little Lake Butte des Morts is a lake in the US state of Wisconsin, eight miles north of Lake Butte des Morts. It is part of the Fox–Wisconsin Waterway and receives its inflow from a short segment of the Fox River which drains from the north ...
.
The city of
Neenah
Neenah () is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, in the north central United States. It is situated on the banks of Lake Winnebago, Little Lake Butte des Morts, and the Fox River, approximately forty miles (60 km) southwest of Green ...
bordered the town to the south, and the town of
Clayton lay to the west. To the north and east was
Outagamie County, with the city of
Appleton to the northeast, and the towns of
Grand Chute and
Greenville to the north.
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 town had a total area of , of which was land and , or 12.50%, was water.
Demographics
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 15,858 people, 6,298 households, and 4,320 families residing in the town. 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 1,277.9 people per square mile (493.4/km
2). There were 6,521 housing units at an average density of 525.5 per square mile (202.9/km
2). The racial makeup of the town was 95.44%
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 ...
, 0.39%
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 ...
, 0.45%
Native American, 1.66%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.04%
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 ...
, 1.19% 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 0.83% 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 ...
of any race were 3.11% of the population.
There were 6,298 households, out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.6% were
married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.4% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the town the population was spread out, with 24.2% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.7 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $50,887, and the median income for a family was $60,097. Males had a median income of $41,093 versus $27,313 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the town was $24,393. About 3.3% of families and 4.4% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 5.0% of those under age 18 and 3.1% of those age 65 or over.
Notable people
*
William P. Grimes, businessman, farmer, and politician, lived in the town; Grimes served as chairman of the town board.
*
Helen F. Thompson, businesswoman, teacher, and politician, was born in the town.
*
Esther K. Walling, businesswoman and politician. lived in the town; Walling served as chair of the town board.
['Wisconsin Blue Book 1987.' Biographical Sketch of Esther K. Walling, pg. 59]
Gallery
File:TownOfMenashaWisconsinWaterTower.jpg, Watertower
File:TownOfMenashaWisconsinSign.jpg, Road sign
File:TownOfMenashaWisconsinWatertower.jpg, Watertower near University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley
References
External links
Town of Menasha official website
{{authority control
Former populated places in Wisconsin