Monroe 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, the population was 46,274. Its

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 ...

Sparta Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the Evrotas Valley, valley of Evrotas (river), Evrotas rive ...

Geography

According to the

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

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.8%) is water.

United States Army posts

* Fort McCoy, Wisconsin

Adjacent counties

* Jackson Countynorth * Juneau Countyeast * Vernon Countysouth * La Crosse Countywest

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, the population was 46,274. 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 19,769 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.2%

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 ...

, 1.4%

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 ...

, 1.3% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1%

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 ...

, 2.1% from other races, and 5.0% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 5.5%

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.

2000 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 2000, there were 40,899 people, 15,399 households, and 10,794 families residing in the county. The

was . There were 16,672 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.52%

, 0.46%

, 0.92% Native American, 0.48% Asian, 0.04%

, 0.85% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 1.81% of the population were

or Latino of any race. 45.5% were of

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 ...

, 13.4% Norwegian, 7.6% Irish, 6.3% American and 5.0% English ancestry. 92.9% spoke English, 3.1%

and 2.2%

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as their first language. There were 15,399 households, out of which 34.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.70% 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, 8.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.90% were non-families. 25.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.11. In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.10% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 101.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.60 males. In 2017, there were 534 births, giving a general fertility rate of 67.9 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 21st highest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties. Of these, 43 of the births occurred at home. Additionally, there were 21 reported induced abortions performed on women of Monroe County residence in 2017. In 2010, the reported adherence figures for the largest religious groups in Monroe County were Catholic at 9,250 adherents, Wisconsin Synod Lutheran at 3,102 adherents, ELCA Lutheran at 2,297 adherents, Amish at 1,627 adherents, LCMC Lutheran at 1,270 adherents, and United Methodist at 1,155 adherents.

Transportation

Major highways

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain states, Mountain West, Great Pla ...

Interstate 94 Interstate 94 (I-94) is an east–west Interstate Highway connecting the Great Lakes and northern Great Plains regions of the United States. Its western terminus is just east of Billings, Montana, at a junction with I-90; its eastern ter ...

* U.S. Highway 12 * Highway 16 (Wisconsin) * Highway 21 (Wisconsin) * Highway 27 (Wisconsin) * Highway 33 (Wisconsin) * Highway 71 (Wisconsin) * Highway 131 (Wisconsin) * Highway 162 (Wisconsin) * Highway 173 (Wisconsin)

Railroads

Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

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, ...

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

* Tomah station

Buses

Scenic Mississippi Regional Transit Scenic Mississippi Regional Transit or SMRT is a commuter bus system serving the Driftless Area of Wisconsin. It provides four routes which serve Crawford County, La Crosse County, Monroe County and Vernon County. It was recognized by Wisco ...

Airports

* Sparta/Fort McCoy Airport * Bloyer Field Airport (Y72)

Communities

Cities

(county seat) * Tomah

Villages

* Cashton * Kendall * Melvina * Norwalk * Oakdale * Warrens * Wilton * Wyeville

Towns

Adrian Adrian is a form of the Latin given name Adrianus or Hadrianus. Its ultimate origin is most likely via the former river Adria from the Venetic and Illyrian word ''adur'', meaning "sea" or "water". The Adria was until the 8th century BC the ma ...

* Angelo *

Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824) was an English poet. He is one of the major figures of the Romantic movement, and is regarded as being among the greatest poets of the United Kingdom. Among his best-kno ...

* Clifton * Glendale * Grant * Greenfield * Jefferson * La Grange * Lafayette * Leon * Lincoln * Little Falls * New Lyme * Oakdale * Portland * Ridgeville * Scott * Sheldon *

* Tomah *

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

* Wells * Wilton

Census-designated places

Cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens (anatomy), lens of the eye that leads to a visual impairment, decrease in vision of the eye. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colours, blurry or ...

* Tunnel City

Unincorporated communities

* Angelo * Clifton * Farmers Valley *

Four Corners Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. Most of the Four Corners regio ...

* Glendale *

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

Kirby Kirby may refer to: Buildings * Kirby Building, a skyscraper in Dallas, Texas, United States * Kirby Lofts, a building in Houston, Texas, United States * Kirby Hall, an Elizabethan country house near Corby, Northamptonshire, England * Kirby Ho ...

* Leon * Norway Ridge * Oil City * Portland * Raymore * Ridgeville * St. Mary's * Scotts Junction * Shennington * Spring Bank Park * Valley Junction

Economy

Largest employers

#Tomah VA Medical Center # Dept. of Defense #

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

distribution center #

Toro Toro may refer to: Places *Toro, Molise, a ''comune'' in the Province of Campobasso, Italy *Toro, Nigeria, a Local Government Area of Bauchi State, Nigeria *Toro, Shizuoka, an archaeological site in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan *Toro, Zamora, a ''m ...

#County of Monroe #Northern Engraving #Century Foods #Cardinal Glass Industries #Wal-Mart stores #Tomah Memorial Hospital

Politics

For most of its existence, Monroe County has favored the Republican Party. Since 1936, only four Democrats have won the county in presidential races.

Education

School districts include:
Text list
/ref> * Bangor School District * Black River Falls School District * Cashton School District * Hillsboro School District * Melrose-Mindoro School District * New Lisbon School District * Norwalk-Ontario-Wilton School District * Royall School District * Sparta Area School District * Tomah Area School District * Westby Area School District

References

External links

Monroe County government website

Monroe County map
from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation {{Authority control 1854 establishments in Wisconsin