Kaukauna () is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in Outagamie and Calumet counties,

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 ...

, United States. It is situated on the Fox River, approximately north of

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

. The population was 17,089 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the

Appleton, Wisconsin Appleton () is the county seat of Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States, with small portions extending into Calumet County, Wisconsin, Calumet and Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Winnebago counties. Located on the Fox River (Green Bay tributary ...

Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

Kaukauna is a Native American word and in various languages means "portage", "long portage", "place where pickerel are caught", and "place of pike". This area was traditionally home to the

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

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. The first Europeans in the area were the French. The first Catholic missionary in the area, Fr. Claude Allouez, commented on the "apple trees and vine stalks in abundance" that he found the people of Kaukauna cultivating. Kaukauna became an outpost of trade in Green Bay and saw much intermarriage between French and Menominee people, leading to a

Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...

culture which produced local leaders such as Augustin Grignon. The first recorded land deed in Wisconsin was assigned to Dominique Ducharme in 1793. He obtained from the Menominee Indians for two barrels of rum and other gifts. These acres are the original site of the town of Kaukauna. The property was purchased by Charles A. Grignon (and recorded Dec. 18, 1828), who built a mansion on the river on Kaukauna's north side. The home, which bears Grignon's name, is operated as a museum by the Outagamie County Historical Society. In 1836, following years of negotiations about how to accommodate the Oneida, Stockbridge-Munsee, and Brothertown peoples who were removed from New York, the Menominee ceded over four million acres of land to the United States in the Treaty of the Cedars. Grignon of Kaukauna was one of the signatories of the treaty. Prior to 1880, and shortly afterwards, Kaukauna was known as "The Lion on the Fox". This nickname was changed to "The Electric City" upon the completion of the

hydroelectric plant Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and also mo ...

. When the city was incorporated in 1885, it was separated from the adjacent rural parts of the town.

Geography

Kaukauna is located in southeastern Outagamie County, with a small portion extending south into Calumet County along State Highway 55 (Friendship Drive).U.S. Census Bureau
TIGERweb map service
accessed Sept. 9, 2015 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. The city is divided into the North Side and South Side by the Fox River, which is spanned by four bridges.

Climate

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 15,462 people, 6,270 households, and 4,090 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 6,596 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 94.5%

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 ...

, 0.7%

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 ...

, 0.8% Native American, 1.3% Asian, 1.0% from other races, and 1.6% 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 2.6% of the population. There were 6,270 households, of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% 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, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.8% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.01. The median age in the city was 34.6 years. 25.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 29.5% were from 25 to 44; 24.2% were from 45 to 64; and 12.2% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.5% male and 50.5% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 12,983 people, 4,971 households, and 3,365 families living in the city. The

was 2,092.5 people per square mile (808.5/km²). There were 5,142 housing units at an average density of 320.2 persons/km² (828.8 persons/sq mi). The racial makeup of the city was 95.48% White, 0.27%

, 0.75% Native American, 2.22%

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

n, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.30% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. 0.79% of the population were

or Latino of any race. There were 4,971 households, out of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.0% were

living together, 8.7% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 32.3% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.16. In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.7% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males. The

median income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of unde ...

for a household in the city was $43,980, and the median income for a family was $50,187. Males had a median income of $38,880 versus $22,830 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 $18,748. 4.8% of the population and 2.6% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 4.6% are under the age of 18 and 10.4% are 65 or older.

Transportation

Kaukauna is located at the intersections of several major roads.

Interstate 41 Interstate 41 (I-41) is a north–south Interstate Highway connecting the interchange of I-94 and U.S. Route 41 (US 41), located about south of the Wisconsin–Illinois border at the end of the Tri-State Tollway in metropoli ...

, which forms the backbone of the

Fox Cities The Fox Cities of Northeastern Wisconsin are the cities, towns and villages along the Fox River as it flows from Lake Winnebago northward into Green Bay. The Fox Cities communities, as defined by its Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visit ...

' transit network, runs along the northern edge of the city and intersects Wisconsin Highway 55, Wisconsin Highway 96, and two county roads that serve as major thoroughfares in the city. US 10 is just to the south of Kaukauna, and Wisconsin Highway 441 is just to the west. Kaukauna is a member of Valley Transit, which provides

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a motor vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but fewer than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used ...

service. Kaukauna is served by

Appleton International Airport Appleton International Airport , formerly Outagamie County Regional Airport, is an airport located in Greenville, Wisconsin, Greenville, Wisconsin, United States, west of Appleton, Wisconsin, Appleton. It is included in the Federal Aviation Ad ...

for airport service.

Economy

The city has diverse industrial and manufacturing businesses, including the Oscar Thilmany Paper Mill, constructed in 1883. The name dropped off the mill when it was purchased by HammerMill in 1969, which was in turn bought by

International Paper The International Paper Company is an American pulp and paper company, the largest such company in the world. It has approximately 39,000 employees, and is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee. History The company was incorporated January 31 ...

in 1986. In 2005,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

-based equity firm Kohlberg & Company bought the mill, changed the name back to Thilmany, and created a company of the same name. It is now owned by

KPS Capital Partners KPS Capital Partners is an American investment company that manages KPS Special Situation Funds, a family of investment funds. KPS specifically invests out of two funds raised in October 2019: KPS Special Situations Fund V ($6.12 billion) and KPS ...

, and was renamed Expera Specialty Solutions in 2013. In 2018, it was sold to Ahlstrom-Munksjo. Kaukauna cheese, once made in the city, is now manufactured by the Bel/Kaukauna corporation in the neighboring

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

of Little Chute.

Education

Kaukauna is served by the Kaukauna Area School District, whose enrollment totals almost 4,000 students between kindergarten and 12th grade. There are four public elementary schools: one middle school, and Kaukauna High School. Two

parochial Parochial is an adjective which may refer to: * Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a ...

schools for children through the eighth grade exist in Kaukauna: St. Ignatius Catholic school and Trinity Lutheran School. One parochial high school exists in Kaukauna, affiliated with St Ignatius Catholic school: St Ignatius Chesterton Academy.

National Register of Historic Places

Locations in Kaukauna that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: * Capt. Matthew J. Meade House * Charles A. Grignon House * Charles W. Stribley House * Fargo's Furniture Store * Former United States Post Office * Frank St. Andrews House * Free Public Library of Kaukauna * Holy Cross Church * Julius J. Martens Company Building * Kaukauna Locks Historic District * Klein Dairy Farmhouse * Kuehn Blacksmith Shop-Hardware Store * Lindauer and Rupert Block * Merritt Black House * Nicolet Public School * Norman Brokaw House * St. Mary's Catholic Church

Notable people

* Thomas Armstrong, Wisconsin State Representative * Steve Badger, professional poker player *

Annastasia Batikis Annastasia Batikis 'Stash''(March 15, 1927 – March 12, 2016) was an American center fielder who played for the Racine Belles of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League during the season. Listed at , 125 lb., she batted and ...

, baseball player *

Mark Belling Mark Belling (born July 4, 1956) is an American former conservative talk radio host for 1130 WISN in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is also a local newspaper columnist, former television host, and was a frequent guest host for Rush Limbaugh in the e ...

, conservative talk-show host * Thomas Cane, Chief Judge of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals * Eugene DeBruin, American pilot, MIA in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

* William J. Gantter, Wisconsin State Representative * Augustin Grignon, fur trader and businessman * Norbert Hayes, NFL player * Ric Killian, North Carolina politician * Jordan McCabe, Athlete & Internet Personality * Lee Meyerhofer, Wisconsin State Representative * Gordon Myse, Judge of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals * Arnold C. Otto, Wisconsin State Representative * Peter Philipps, Wisconsin State Representative * Gary J. Schmidt, Wisconsin State Representative * Red Smith, NFL and

MLB Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player * William N. Vander Loop, Wisconsin State Representative * David Viaene, NFL player

References

External links

City of Kaukauna
* {{authority control Cities in Wisconsin Cities in Outagamie County, Wisconsin Populated places established in 1793 1793 establishments in the Northwest Territory Cities in Calumet County, Wisconsin Appleton–Fox Cities metropolitan area