Green Lake is a city in and county seat of

Green Lake County, Wisconsin Green Lake County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 19,018. Its county seat is Green Lake, Wisconsin, Green Lake. In 2020, the center ...

, United States. The city had a population of 1,001 in the 2020 census. It is located on the north side of Green Lake. The Town of Green Lake is located on the south side of Big Green Lake, opposite the city.

Geography

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, is land and is water. Green Lake is the second deepest inland lake overall in Wisconsin, second only to the man-made Wazee Lake near Black River Falls. Measuring 239 feet deep at its greatest depth, Green Lake is the deepest natural inland lake in the state of Wisconsin.

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 960 people, 491 households, and 254 families living in the city. 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 766 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 98.8%

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 ...

, 0.2%

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% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 0.4% 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 1.9% of the population. There were 491 households, of which 15.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.3% 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, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 48.3% were non-families. 43.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.88 and the average family size was 2.56. The median age in the city was 50.7 years. 14.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.5% were from 25 to 44; 35.1% were from 45 to 64; and 24.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 50.8% male and 49.2% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,100 people, 523 households, and 300 families living in the city. The

was 787.2 people per square mile (303.4/km²). There were 732 housing units at an average density of 523.8 per square mile (201.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 98.91%

, 0.18%

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 ...

, 0.09% Native American, 0.27% from other races, and 0.55% from two or more races. 0.91% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 523 households, out of which 20.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.8% were

living together, 7.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.6% were non-families. 38.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.04 and the average family size was 2.71. In the city, the population was spread out, with 18.5% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 22.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males. The median income for a household in the city was $35,435, and the median income for a family was $49,091. Males had a median income of $31,591 versus $23,917 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 $20,444. About 4.1% of families and 5.9% 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 8.5% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

Tourism

Green Lake is known for its fishing and recreational tourist community during the summer months. Area activities include camping, biking, fishing, hiking, golfing, swimming, and boating. Motorized water sports such as waterskiing, wakeboarding, and tubing are also prevalent. As are sports like sailing, canoeing, and kayaking. The small town has a number of shops and restaurants that serve Green Lake fish. One of the oldest businesses is the family-owned Wallenfangs of Green Lake, established in 1975 and nestled just north of downtown Green Lake on 24 acres of what was once the historic Thrasher farm. Since that humble beginning in 1975, the business has grown from the cheese haus, ice cream parlor, and antiques shop, to include a gallery loft of fine art and furniture. Green Lake is also home to several parks for public enjoyment. * Deacon Mills Park is located on South Lawson Drive at the Marina and has a band shell, picnic facilities, and ice skating in the winter. * Highknocker Park is located in downtown Green lake and had a baseball field and playground equipment. * Friday Club Park is also located downtown and has public tennis courts and a fishing area. * Hattie Sherwood Park is located on the north lakeshore and has a sand swimming beach, a pier, and a camping area. * Sunset Park is located on the east end of Green Lake and has a boat launch, swimming beach, picnic area and pier. Nearby is the Green Lake Conference Center, which was founded by the

American Baptist Churches USA The American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) is a mainline Protestant and Baptist Christian denomination. It is a reorganization from 1907 of the Triennial Convention. The Triennial Convention was renamed as the Northern Baptist Convention in ...

in 1943. Also near the conference center are the Golf Courses of Lawsonia, built on the former estate of Victor F. Lawson, the owner and publisher of the ''

Chicago Daily News The ''Chicago Daily News'' was an afternoon daily newspaper in the midwestern United States, published between 1875 and 1978 in Chicago, Illinois. History The ''Daily News'' was founded by Melville E. Stone, Percy Meggy, and William Dougherty ...

.'' The Dartford Cemetery, located in Green Lake, has been a focus of reported paranormal activity in the area. Some visitors to the cemetery claim to have been tripped by ghosts or "pushed off" the mausoleum when sitting or standing on it, even seeing apparitions of child victims who died of a disease (possibly

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

) or a Native American chief. These sightings and experiences have been featured in the episode "Legend Trippers" of the

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel, known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery, is an American cable channel that is best known for its ongoing reality television shows and promotion of pseudoscience. It init ...

's ''

A Haunting ''A Haunting'' is an American paranormal drama anthology television series that depicts eyewitness accounts of alleged possession, exorcism, and ghostly encounters. The program features narrations, interviews, and dramatic re-enactments based ...

'' series.

Education

Education is administered by the Green Lake School District. Green Lake Elementary School and Green Lake Secondary School are both located in the same building in Green Lake. The district is the only 4k-12

International Baccalaureate World School The International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), more commonly known as the International Baccalaureate (IB), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB ...

in Wisconsin. Peace Lutheran School is a K-8 Christian school of the

Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), also referred to simply as the Wisconsin Synod, is an American Confessional Lutheran denomination of Christianity. Characterized as Christian theology, theologically conservative, it was founded ...

(WELS) in Green Lake.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Green Lake is served by the state highways of

WIS 23 State Trunk Highway 23 (often called Highway 23, STH-23 or WIS 23) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The highway's route is signed as a north–south route from Shullsburg to Wisconsin Dells and as an east–west ro ...

and

WIS 49 State Trunk Highway 49 (often called Highway 49, STH-49 or WIS 49) is a state highway (US), state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs north–south in central and southeast Wisconsin from Wittenberg, Wisconsin, Wittenberg to Lom ...

as well as Business 23. Business 23 runs through town while Wis 23 bypasses Green Lake on the north side. Wis 23 heads west to

Princeton Princeton University is a private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the Unit ...

. Wis 49 heads north to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. Wis 23 East and Wis 49 South head to

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Within the boundaries of the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, the ...

. Green Lake County Hwy A also enters town.

Notable people

* Elda Emma Anderson, physicist * Halbert W. Brooks, Wisconsin State Representative *

Adrian Karsten Adrian Kennedy Karsten (March 13, 1960 – September 2, 2005) was an American sports reporter, best known for his work as a college football sideline reporter for ESPN. He was also known for wearing his trademark suspenders. Reporting career ...

, sports television reporter *

Samuel Owens Samuel Owens (April 23, 1856 – January 15, 1921) was an American architect, builder, and politician. Born in Cambria, Wisconsin, Owens was an architect and builder in Green Lake, Wisconsin. He served as Green Lake County, Wisconsin clerk ...

, Wisconsin State Representative and architect * L. E. Potter,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

State Senator * Janika Vandervelde, composer * Shannon Whirry, Actress

Popular culture

* A season 4 episode of the

series ''

'', called ''Legend Trippers'', takes place in Green Lake and the nearby town of Montello. * In the

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury ( ; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of genres, including fantasy, science fiction, Horror fiction, horr ...

story "

Mars is Heaven! "Mars Is Heaven!" is a science fiction short story by American writer Ray Bradbury, originally published in 1948 in ''Planet Stories''. "Mars Is Heaven!" was among the stories selected in 1970 by the Science Fiction Writers of America as one of ...

," which aired on the 07/07/1950 episode of the radio program Dimension X, the illusory town created by Martians to deceive the astronauts is referred to as Green Lake, Wisconsin.

Gallery

File:Green Lake Shoreline.jpg, The shoreline of Green Lake along Lone Tree Point File:GreenLakeVillageHallWisconsin.jpg, Green Lake Village Hall File:GreenLakeWisconsinPanarama.jpg, Panorama over Green Lake just off Business 23 File:GreenLakeWisconsinCourthouseNovember2010.jpg, Green Lake County Courthouse in downtown Green Lake File:GreenLakeWI.JPG, Green Lake, Wisconsin from the west end File:GreenLakeWisconsinCityWelcomeSign.jpg, City welcome sign File:GreenLakeWisconsinDowntownEast.jpg, Looking east in downtown Green Lake File:GreenLakeWisconsinWelcomeSign.jpg, West side welcome sign on Business 23 File:Ice on Green Lake.jpg, Pancake ice along the south shoreline of Green Lake, taken at Tuleta Hill File:Iceboats on Green Lake.jpg, A line of Nite iceboats on Green Lake File:Sailing on Green Lake.jpg, Sailing Lasers on Green Lake File:Thrasher's Opera House 1.jpg File:ThrashersOperaHouseGreenLakeWisconsin.jpg, Thrasher's Opera House File:Winnebago Trail, Green Lake.jpg, Taken from the Winnebago Trail on the east side of Norwegian Bay

References

External links

*
City of Green LakeGreen Lake Chamber of Commerce website
{{authority control Cities in Wisconsin Cities in Green Lake County, Wisconsin County seats in Wisconsin