Blanchardville is a village in

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and Lafayette counties 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 so ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

. The population was 807 at the 2020 census. Of this, 613 were in Lafayette County, and 194 were in Iowa County. The Iowa County portion of Blanchardville is part of the

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The community was originally settled by members of the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints—usually distinguished with a parenthetical (Strangite)—is one of the several organizations that claim to be the legitimate continuation of the church founded by Joseph Smith on April 6, 1830. I ...

in the early 1840s, who named it Zarahemla. The Mormon settlers mined

lead ore Lead () is a chemical element; it has symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, lead ...

and farmed. Blanchardville's first mill was built in 1840. In 1856, Alvin Blanchard moved to the area from his farm near Dodgeville. He purchased the mill on the Pecatonica river from the Mormons, who mostly left the area. Along with Cyrus Newkirk, he platted the village which currently bears his name in 1857. The village received its first post office the next year. The

Yankee The term ''Yankee'' and its contracted form ''Yank'' have several interrelated meanings, all referring to people from the United States. Their various meanings depend on the context, and may refer to New Englanders, the Northeastern United Stat ...

settlers established a Methodist church in 1852. A Norwegian Lutheran congregation shared the church from 1864 until 1892 when their own separate church was built. The village's most prominent ethnic group is the Norwegians, as the village is between the large historic Blue Mounds and Wiota Norwegian settlements. Yankee, Irish, Swiss, and German settlers were in the village also and in 1898 the first Catholic church was built. Nearby rural churches in the area included Norwegian Lutheran congregations in York, Yellowstone, and Adams townships, and an Irish Catholic congregation in Yellowstone as well.Blanchardville, Welcome Home: 125 Years of History The village's main park, McKellar Park, was given to the village in 1930 by the wife of the most prominent village doctor, Dr. Archibald McKellar, after his death. Today the park is host to many activities including an annual car show and Fathers' Day Barbeque. The school district is Pecatonica Area Schools, formed after combining with the neighboring village of Hollandale in 1971. The school mascot is the

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

, in tribute to the strength of a Norwegian Heritage.

Geography

Blanchardville is located on the

East Branch Pecatonica River The East Branch Pecatonica River is a tributary of the Pecatonica River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed May 13, 2011 in southwest Wisconsin in the ...

. The community is served by

Wisconsin Highway 78 State Trunk Highway 78 (often called Highway 78, STH-78 or WIS 78) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs north–south in south central Wisconsin from the Illinois border near Gratiot to Portage. Route descriptio ...

and routes F and H. 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 village has a total area of , all of it land.

Demographics

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 825 people, 360 households, and 228 families living in the village. 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 396 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 98.9%

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 ...

, 0.1%

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 ...

, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 0.5% from two or more races.

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 were 1.2% of the population. There were 360 households, of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% 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, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 36.7% were non-families. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.86. The median age in the village was 40.8 years. 24.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.7% were from 25 to 44; 28.8% were from 45 to 64; and 14.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 50.4% male and 49.6% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 806 people, 346 households, and 206 families living in the village. The

was 1,837.4 people per square mile (707.3/km²). There were 376 housing units at an average density of 857.1 per square mile (329.9/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 99.38%

, 0.25% Asian, and 0.37% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.37% of the population. There were 346 households, out of which 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.9% were

living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.2% were non-families. 35.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 3.05. In the village, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 20.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.4 males. The median income for a household in the village was $40,313, and the median income for a family was $51,776. Males had a median income of $31,908 versus $26,208 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 village was $18,104. About 6.7% of families and 9.8% 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 9.6% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Blanchardville is served by the Pecatonica Area Schools, which includes Pecatonica High School, Pecatonica Middle School and Pecatonica Elementary School.

Sports and recreation

* The Yellowstone Lake State Park is near Blanchardville.

Notable people

* M. J. Cleary, State Representative and insurance executive * Oscar R. Olson, state senator

References

External links

*
Pecatonica Area Schools
{{authority control Villages in Wisconsin Villages in Iowa County, Wisconsin Villages in Lafayette County, Wisconsin Populated places established in 1840 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) Madison, Wisconsin, metropolitan statistical area 1840 establishments in Wisconsin Territory