Palmyra is a village in Jefferson County,

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, along the Scuppernong River. It was named after

Palmyra Palmyra ( ; Palmyrene dialect, Palmyrene: (), romanized: ''Tadmor''; ) is an ancient city in central Syria. It is located in the eastern part of the Levant, and archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first menti ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. The population was 1,719 at the 2020 census. The village is adjacent to the Town of Palmyra.

History

The Town of Palmyra was established in 1846. In 1876, part of the Town of Palmyra was incorporated as the village of Palmyra. Palmyra was known for its

mineral spring Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produce hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage un ...

s. The Palmyra Springs Sanitarium was established in 1870, situated on what is known today as Lower Spring Lake. The sanitarium was a substantially built four-story brick structure containing spacious halls, wide verandas, and modern health and wellness accessories. The building contained facilities for the administration of various forms of electro-shock massage. The rooms were spacious and luxuriously furnished, providing a variety of salt, shower, shampoo, natural mineral, Turkish, and Russian style baths. There was a large gymnasium, theater, music hall, billiard parlors, bowling alleys, archery and tennis courts. The surrounding forty-acre forest of native oaks was referred to as the Sanitarium Grove - today part of the Southern Kettle Moraine State Forest - which contained winding pedestrian paths and resting nooks. The sanitarium was one and half miles from a large spring known by name as the Aurelian Spring, the Great Geyser Spring, or the Big Blue Spring. It was 50 feet across, 38 feet deep, with a flow of clear crystal-blue water that was believed to have therapeutic remedial value. A dam and spillway was later built downstream of the Great Geyer Spring, forming what is today known as Blue Spring Lake. In 1924, the sanitarium became the Druggist's National Home, a home for aged and infirm druggists, but a few years later, interest in the therapeutic mineral treatments declined and the facility was closed. In the late 1950s, the building was razed and the land leveled.

Geography

Palmyra is located at (42.87721, -88.587117). 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 , of which is land and is water.

Demographics

As of 2000 the median income for a household in the village was $45,521, and the median income for a family was $50,192. Males had a median income of $37,150 versus $24,950 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 $19,849. About 3.4% of families and 5.4% 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 6.0% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

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 1,781 people, 704 households, and 469 families residing 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 769 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 94.7%

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 ...

, 0.6%

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 ...

, 0.5% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 3.2% from other races, and 0.8% 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 10.3% of the population. There were 704 households, of which 35.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.0% 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, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.4% were non-families. 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.04. The median age in the village was 37.2 years. 25.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.9% were from 25 to 44; 26% were from 45 to 64; and 12.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 49.9% male and 50.1% female.

Notable people

* Hiram J. Ball, farmer and Wisconsin state legislator * Justin Beaver, college football player for the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater * Gary Congdon, racing driver * Susan Hawk, Survivor, Season One, Borneo * Adoniram J. Holmes, congressman from

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 ...

Knute Nelson Knute Nelson (born Knud Evanger; February 2, 1843 – April 28, 1923) was a Norway, Norwegian-born United States, American attorney and politician active in Wisconsin and Minnesota. A Republican Party (United States), Republican, he served in sta ...

, U.S. senator from

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 ...

* Iva Bigelow Weaver, soprano and music educator based in Milwaukee *

Frederick L. Wieseman Frederick Leonard Wieseman (March 16, 1908 – August 15, 1994) was a highly decorated officer of the United States Marine Corps with the rank of lieutenant general. He was a veteran of the Pacific War and later served as commandant of the Marin ...

, U.S. Marine Lieutenant general

Images

File:Palmyra Wisconsin NE.jpg, Looking Northeast at 2nd & taft. file:Palmyra Wisconsin Downtown Looking West WIS59.jpg, Looking west at downtown Palmyra File:Palmyra Wisconsin Post Office.jpg, Post office File:Palmyra Wisconsin Welcome Sign WIS59.jpg, Welcome sign File:Powers Memorial Library Palmyra Wisconsin.jpg, Powers Memorial Library in Palmyra File:Lions Park Palmyra Wisconsin Overlooking Spring Lake.jpg, Lions Park File:Monroe McKenzie House.jpg, Monroe McKenzie House File:Palmyra Boy Scout Cabin from side.jpg, Palmyra Boy Scout Cabin

References

External links

Village of Palmyra official website

Palmyra Area Chamber of Commerce
* Sanborn fire insurance maps
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{{authority control Villages in Jefferson County, Wisconsin Villages in Wisconsin