Clark County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, its population was 34,659. 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 ...

is Neillsville.

History

By the early 1800s, the land and streams that are now Clark County were the hunting grounds of the Chippewa, Dakota,

Ho-Chunk The Ho-Chunk, also known as Hocąk, Hoocągra, or Winnebago are a Siouan languages, Siouan-speaking Native Americans in the United States, Native American people whose historic territory includes parts of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois ...

, and possibly

Menominee The Menominee ( ; 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 recognized tribe of Na ...

peoples. In 1836, these Indigenous groups were joined by a party of French-Canadian fur traders who established a temporary post for the

American Fur Company The American Fur Company (AFC) was a prominent American company that sold furs, skins, and buffalo robes. It was founded in 1808 by John Jacob Astor, a German Americans, German immigrant to the United States. During its heyday in the early 19th c ...

on the East Fork of the Black River. The next European-American arrivals were likely

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...

loggers in 1844, who came to harvest pine logs from the forests along the Black River. They floated the logs downstream to a sawmill at Black River Falls, where the lumber was processed and transported further downriver for use in constructing the Mormon temple in

Nauvoo, Illinois Nauvoo ( ; from the ) is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States, on the Mississippi River near Fort Madison, Iowa. The population of Nauvoo was 950 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Nauvoo attracts visitors for its h ...

. The Mormons established logging camps along the river at sites including Mormon Riffle (about a mile below Neillsville), near Weston's Rapids, and south of Greenwood. This logging operation likely ended by 1846, when most of the Mormons left the area following the murder of Joseph Smith. In June 1845, James and Henry O'Neill led a party overland from Black River Falls, cutting a road through the brush. They used oxen to pull a wagon carrying tools and supplies. Upon arriving, they built a cabin on O'Neill Creek, followed by a sawmill. Lumber from the mill was rafted down the Black River to Black River Falls and then transported to Alexander O'Neill in

Burlington, Iowa Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of, Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 23,982 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in 2000 United States Census, 2000. Burlington ...

. However, a storm in June 1847 caused severe flooding of the Black River, destroying all the existing sawmills. Despite this setback, the settlers rebuilt. Clark County Wisconsin fairgrounds grandstands

Clark County Wisconsin fairgrounds grandstands

Clark County was founded in 1853 and officially organized the following year. The county's name origin is uncertain—it was either named for A. W. Clark, an early settler, or for General

George Rogers Clark George Rogers Clark (November 19, 1752 – February 13, 1818) was an American military officer and surveyor from Virginia who became the highest-ranking Patriot (American Revolution), Patriot military officer on the American frontier, nort ...

. Electricity became available in some towns and villages around 1900 through private power plants. For example, in 1902, the Paulsen mill began supplying electricity to the village of Withee. However, rural farms remained without electricity until the late 1930s. In 1937, the newly formed Clark Electric Cooperative, funded by a loan from the

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

's Rural Electrification Administration, began installing power lines to serve the county's rural areas. In 1920, construction began on the Clark County Asylum, located two miles east of Owen. It was the last in a network of 35 county mental hospitals established in Wisconsin, designed to provide long-term care for patients unlikely to recover. Twelve patients from the Wausau asylum assisted with construction and became the facility’s first residents. The asylum operated a farm to keep patients engaged while supplying food for the institution. By 1924, patients cultivated 60 acres of corn, 25 acres of potatoes, 16 acres of

barley Barley (), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains; it was domesticated in the Fertile Crescent around 9000 BC, giving it nonshattering spikele ...

, 40 acres of oats, 6 acres of

buckwheat Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum'') or common buckwheat is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. Buckwheat originated around the 6th millennium BCE in the region of what ...

, and 3 acres of

millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most millets belong to the tribe Paniceae. Millets are important crops in the Semi-arid climate, ...

. A dairy herd was later introduced, along with hog farming and a slaughterhouse by 1948. Over time, the institution's mission shifted from a "custodial asylum" to a "treatment hospital" and eventually to a skilled nursing facility. Today, it is known as the Clark County Rehab and Living Center.

Geography

Farmland in Hendren Clark County Wisconsin

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 ...

, Clark County has a total area of , of which is land and (0.7%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Taylor County – north * Marathon County – east * Wood County – southeast * Jackson County – south * Eau Claire County – west * Chippewa County – northwest

Major highways

Railroads

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...

Watco Watco Companies, L.L.C. (Watco) Watco is an American transportation and logistics company based in Pittsburg, Kansas. The company’s core services are freight transportation, material handling and storage, logistics, railcar repair and maintena ...

* Canadian National

Buses

Airport

* KVIQ – Neillsville Municipal Airport

Climate

Demographics and religion statistics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the population of Clark County was 34,659. 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 14,755 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was: * 92.2% White * 0.5% Native American * 0.3% Black or African American * 0.3% Asian * 3.4% from other races * 3.2% from two or more races Additionally, 6.1% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, Clark County had a population of 33,557, with 12,047 households and 8,673 families residing in the county. The

was . There were 13,531 housing units at an average density of . The racial composition of the county was: * 98.05% White * 0.13% Black or African American * 0.48% Native American * 0.30% Asian * 0.01% Pacific Islander * 0.56% from other races * 0.47% from two or more races Additionally, 1.20% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino of any race. The most common ancestries reported were: * 54.0%

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

* 9.0% Polish * 6.2% Norwegian * 6.1% American In terms of language, 6.62% of residents spoke

Pennsylvania Dutch The Pennsylvania Dutch (), also referred to as Pennsylvania Germans, are an ethnic group in Pennsylvania in the United States, Ontario in Canada, and other regions of both nations. They largely originate from the Palatinate (region), Palatina ...

, or Dutch at home, while an additional 1.34% spoke Spanish. There were 12,047 households, of which: * 35.0% had children under 18 living with them * 61.2% were

married 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 ...

couples living together * 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present * 28.0% were non-families Additionally, 23.8% of all households consisted of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years or older. The average household size was 2.73, while the average family size was 3.27. The county’s population was distributed as follows: * 29.9% under the age of 18 * 7.7% from 18 to 24 * 26.2% from 25 to 44 * 20.2% from 45 to 64 * 16.0% aged 65 or older The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.5 males. Among adults 18 and older, there were 98.7 males per 100 females. In 2017, there were 554 births in the county, resulting in a general fertility rate of 99.2 births per 1,000 women aged 15–44—the second-highest rate among Wisconsin’s 72 counties. Of these, 184 births occurred at home, more than in any other county in the state.

Religion

In 2010, the largest religious groups by reported number of adherents in Clark County were: * Catholicism: 9,535 adherents * Missouri Synod Lutheranism: 2,459 adherents * ELCA Lutheranism: 2,281 adherents * Amish: 1,986 adherents * United Church of Christ: 959 adherents * Wisconsin Synod Lutheran: 891 adherents * United Methodist: 577 adherents.

Communities

Cities

* Abbotsford (partly in Marathon County) * Colby (partly in Marathon County) * Greenwood * Loyal * Neillsville (county seat) *

Owen Owen may refer to: People and fictional characters * Owen (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Places United States * Owen, Missouri, a ghost town * Owen, Wisconsin * Owen County, Indiana ...

* Thorp *

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

(mostly in Chippewa County)

Villages

* Curtiss * Dorchester (partly in Marathon County) * Granton * Unity (mostly in Marathon County) * Withee

Towns

Beaver Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...

* Colby * Dewhurst * Eaton * Foster * Fremont * Grant * Green Grove * Hendren * Hewett * Hixon *

Hoard A hoard or "wealth deposit" is an archaeological term for a collection of valuable objects or artifacts, sometimes purposely buried in the ground, in which case it is sometimes also known as a cache. This would usually be with the intention of ...

* Levis * Longwood * Loyal * Lynn * Mayville *

Mead Mead (), also called honey wine, and hydromel (particularly when low in alcohol content), is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alco ...

Mentor Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...

* Pine Valley * Reseburg * Seif * Sherman * Sherwood * Thorp * Unity * Warner * Washburn *

Weston Weston may refer to: Places Australia * Weston, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Weston, New South Wales * Weston Creek, a residential district of Canberra * Weston Park, Canberra, a park Canada * Weston, Nova Scotia * W ...

* Withee * Worden *

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

Census-designated places

* Chili * Humbird

Unincorporated communities

* Atwood * Bright * Christie * Clark * Columbia * Eadsville * Eidsvold *

Globe A globe is a spherical Earth, spherical Model#Physical model, model of Earth, of some other astronomical object, celestial body, or of the celestial sphere. Globes serve purposes similar to maps, but, unlike maps, they do not distort the surface ...

* Hemlock * Junction * Lombard * Longwood * Lynn * Nevins * Reseburg * Riplinger * Sherwood * Shortville * Tioga * Sidney * Spokeville * Veefkind * Willard

Ghost towns/neighborhoods

* Kurth * Maple Works * Romeo *

Trow A trow was a type of cargo boat found in the past on the rivers River Severn, Severn and River Wye, Wye in Great Britain and used to transport goods. Features The Mast (sailing), mast could be taken down so that the trow could go under bridg ...

* Worden

In 2013, there were 16

Amish The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church fellowships with Swiss people, Swiss and Alsace, Alsatian origins. As they ...

church districts in Clark County.

Politics

Clark County has leaned Republican for much of its history, but it has voted for Democrats 6 times since 1950. The last Democrat to win the county was

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

in 2008, and since then it has trended strongly Republican in every election. In 2020 and 2024,

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

won the highest share of the vote for a Republican since

Dwight Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

's 1952 landslide.

Education

School districts include:
Text list
/ref> * Abbotsford School District * Alma Center School District * Colby School District * Granton Area School District * Greenwood School District * Loyal School District * Marshfield School District * Neillsville School District * Osseo-Fairchild School District * Owen-Withee School District * Pittsville School District * Spencer School District * Stanley-Boyd Area School District * Thorp School District

References

External links

Clark County government website

Clark County Economic Development Corporation
* Old county maps
18731880189319061914ca 1920

Clark County map
from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation {{authority control 1854 establishments in Wisconsin Populated places established in 1854