Alma is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Buffalo County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 716 at the 2020 census.

History

Alma was named in commemoration of the Battle of Alma, in the Crimean War.

Geography

Alma is located on State Route 35, about east of Wabasha, Minnesota. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which, are land and are covered by water.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Alma has a hot-summer humid continental climate, abbreviated "Dfa" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Alma was on June 11, 1956, while the coldest temperature recorded was on January 31, 1996.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, the population was 716. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was . There were 479 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.7%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.5% Native American, 0.6%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.3%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.1% Asian, 1.0% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 2.9%

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race.

2010 census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2010, there were 781 people, 386 households, and 202 families living in the city. The

was . There were 488 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.5%

, 0.1%

, 0.4% Native American, 0.1% Asian, and 0.9% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.6% of the population. There were 386 households, of which 17.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 47.7% were non-families. 41.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 21% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.95 and the average family size was 2.62. The median age in the city was 50.3 years. 15.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 21.3% were from 25 to 44; 30% were from 45 to 64; and 27.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 51.0% male and 49.0% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 942 people, 421 households, and 261 families living in the city. The

was 160.8 people per square mile (62.1/km²). There were 495 housing units at an average density of 84.5 per square mile (32.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.03%

, 0.21%

, 0.85% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 0.11%

, and 1.49% from two or more races. 0.85% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 421 households, out of which 23.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were

living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.8% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.74. In the city, the population was spread out, with 19.7% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 24.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.9 males. The median income for a household in the city was $34,250, and the median income for a family was $45,625. Males had a median income of $31,806 versus $21,250 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $21,885. About 5.6% of families and 8.9% 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 ...

, including 5.8% of those under age 18 and 14.5% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The Great Alma Fishing Float has been an attraction to tourists, and is particularly popular during the annual

walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the walleyed pike, yellow pike, yellow pikeperch or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern ...

run. It is located next to Lock & Dam Number 4 on the Mississippi River.

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

Lock and Dam No. 4, is a major nesting ground for the

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...

s that can be observed with great frequency from Alma's riverbank. Also located in Alma is Castlerock Museum, a collection of arms and armor from the times of the Romans to the Middle Ages.

Power stations

* Alma Generating Station * John P. Madgett Generating Station

Notable people

* Carol Bartz, CEO of

Yahoo! Yahoo (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web portal that provides the search engine Yahoo Search and related services including My Yahoo, Yahoo Mail, Yahoo News, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Sports, y!entertainment, yahoo!life, and its a ...

, former chairman of the board, president, and CEO of Autodesk, Inc. * John W. DeGroff, Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 24th district *

Arnold Gesell Arnold Lucius Gesell (21 June 1880 – 29 May 1961) was an American psychologist, pediatrician and professor at Yale University known for his research and contributions to the fields of child hygiene and child development.Harris, B. (2011). Arn ...

, psychologist * Edmund Hitt, Wisconsin state legislator * Guy LeRoy Hunner, Physician, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland. * John Hunner, Wisconsin State Treasurer * Doug Kane, Illinois legislator * Robert Lees, Wisconsin state legislator * James Arthur Mathieu, Canadian lumber king * Conrad Moser, Jr., Wisconsin state legislator * Peter Polin, Wisconsin politician and businessman * Frank Schaettle, Wisconsin state legislator * John Tester, businessman and Wisconsin state legislator * Kathleen Vinehout, Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 31st district

References

External links

Alma Wisconsin Tourism Commission

City of Alma

Alma Chamber of Commerce website
* Sanborn fire insurance maps
1889189419001910
{{authority control Cities in Wisconsin Cities in Buffalo County, Wisconsin County seats in Wisconsin Wisconsin populated places on the Mississippi River