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Stoughton ( ) is a city in
Dane County, Wisconsin Dane County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 561,504, making it the second-most populous county in Wisconsin after Milwaukee County. Dane County is the fastest growing county in Wisconsin. ...
, United States. It straddles the Yahara River about southeast of the state capital, Madison. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,173. Stoughton is part of the Madison metropolitan area. Known for its Norwegian heritage, Stoughton hosts a citywide celebration of Syttende Mai, the Norwegian constitution day. Part of the city's celebration of its Norwegian heritage is the Stoughton Norwegian Dancers dance group, sponsored by Stoughton High School, as well as Norwegian flags and memorabilia displayed throughout the town.


History

Stoughton was founded in 1847 by Luke Stoughton, an Englishman from Vermont. Many Norwegian immigrants settled in the town from 1865 through the early 1900s. Stoughton claims to be the birthplace of the "coffee break", and hosts a small yearly parade to celebrate the distinction. For much of its history, Stoughton has been Dane County's second-largest and economically important city, after Madison. In 1919, the Stoughton Wagon Company began putting custom wagon bodies on Model T chassis; by 1929 Ford was by far the biggest seller of station wagons. On August 18, 2005, an F3 tornado cut a 10-mile path across rural subdivisions and farms north of Stoughton, killing one person and damaging hundreds of homes.


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.


Climate


Demographics


2020 census

As of the census of 2020 there were 13,173 people, 5,262 households, and 3,296 families residing in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 96.6%
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 ...
, 0.9%
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 ...
, 0.1% Native American, 0.0% Asian, and 1.7% 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 people of any race were 1.9% of the population. The age and gender makeup of the city was 6.8% under the age of 5, 26.5% under 18, 17.5% over the age of 65 and 52.0% female. Of the total population, 601 were veterans.


2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 12,611 people, 5,133 households, and 3,296 families residing 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 5,419 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.1%
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%
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, 1.3% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.5% 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 people of any race were 1.8% of the population. There were 5,133 households, of which 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% 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, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.8% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.99. The median age in the city was 39.2 years. 25.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.6% were from 25 to 44; 26.2% were from 45 to 64; and 14.6% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.2% male and 52.8% female.


2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 12,354 people, 4,734 households, and 3,185 families residing 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 3,116.6 people per square mile (1,204.5/km2). There were 4,890 housing units at an average density of 1,233.6 per square mile (476.8/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 96.66%
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 ...
, 0.92%
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 ...
, 0.29% Native American, 0.70% Asian, 0.02%
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 ...
, 0.36% from other races, and 1.05% 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 people of any race were 1.24% of the population. 32.0% 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 ...
, 28.9% Norwegian, 8.5% Irish and 5.3% English ancestry. There were 4,734 households, out of which 37.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% 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, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.7% were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.06. In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.3% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 18.4% from 45 to 64, and 14.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $47,633, and the median income for a family was $58,543. Males had a median income of $37,956 versus $26,187 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 $21,037. About 3.1% of families and 5.0% 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 5.9% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.


Economy

The corporate headquarters and
semi-trailer A semi-trailer is a trailer (vehicle), trailer without a front axle. The combination of a semi-trailer and a tractor truck is called a ''semi-trailer truck'' (also known simply as a "semi-trailer", "tractor trailer", or "semi" in the United Sta ...
manufacturing facility for Stoughton Trailers are located in Stoughton, where the company has been locally owned and operated for more than 50 years. The 680,000 sq. ft. Stoughton plant houses everything from fabrication of subassemblies to final assembly of all Stoughton dry vans. Stoughton Trailers is one of the largest truck trailer manufacturing companies in
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
, and is the only American company still manufacturing 53-foot-long "intermodal" freight containers used to ship goods internationally. Another large employer in the city is Uniroyal Engineered Products, makers of
Naugahyde Naugahyde is an American brand of artificial leather. Naugahyde is a composite knit fabric backing and expanded polyvinyl chloride (PVC) coating. It was developed by Byron A. Hunter, a senior chemist at the United States Rubber Company, and is no ...
. Stoughton and its environs are also home to printers, and manufacturers of foodstuffs, chemicals, and sundry other products. North American Fur Auctions' US offices are based in Stoughton. Stoughton Utilities, a municipally-owned utility, provides electrical, water and sewer service to the city.


Arts and culture

The
coffee break A break at work (or work-break) is a period of time during a shift in which an employee is allowed to take time off from their job. It is a type of downtime. There are different types of breaks, and depending on the length and the employer's p ...
is said to have originated in Stoughton, when immigrant men became employed en masse at T. G. Mandt's wagon factory, leaving their wives to fill the shortages at the tobacco warehouses. They agreed to work under the condition that they were allowed to go home every morning and afternoon to tend to chores and, of course, drink coffee. The city of Stoughton celebrates the coffee break every summer with the Stoughton Coffee Break Festival. The first weekend in December marks Stoughton's Victorian Holiday Weekend, celebrating the city's Victorian homes and commercial buildings. Events include a Victorian Holiday Ball with period dances, a production of the Nutcracker Ballet or
A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...
(alternates each year), carriage rides, a silent decorated fire truck parade, a children's parade. The weekend closest to May 17,
Norwegian Constitution Day Constitution Day is the national day of Norway and is an official public holiday observed on 17 May each year. Among Norwegians, the day is referred to as ''Syttende mai'' ("Seventeenth of May"), ''Nasjonaldagen'' ("National Day"), or ''Grunnl ...
, marks Stoughton's Syttende Mai festival. The celebration includes parades, an art fair, Norwegian dance performances, races, and other events. The Stoughton Chamber of Commerce has planned the festival every year since 1967. In 2004, a Norwegian TV crew traveled to the Midwest to witness modern manifestations of ''Norsky'' culture in the US. They visited Stoughton,
Mount Horeb Mount Horeb (; Hebrew: ''Har Ḥōrēḇ''; Greek in the Septuagint: , ''Chōrēb''; Latin in the Vulgate: ') is the mountain at which the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God, according to the Book of Deuteronomy in the Hebrew Bible. I ...
and
Decorah, Iowa Decorah is the largest city in and county seat of Winneshiek County, Iowa, Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 7,587 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Decorah is located at the intersection of Iowa ...
. Their documentary ''Ja, de elsker'' (''Yes, they love'', a reference to the Norwegian national anthem) was aired on
NRK1 NRK1 (pronounced as ''"NRK en"'' or ''"- ein"'') is the main television channel of the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK). History Test broadcasts started on 12 January 1954, regular test broadcasts began on 13 April 1958, and regular bro ...
on May 16 and 17, 2006.


Government

Stoughton is incorporated as a city, with an elected mayor and a 12-member city council. Aldermen from four districts are elected to three-year terms, with the terms staggered so one seat is up for election in each district each spring. The Stoughton Area School District serves the city, and is overseen by an elected board of education.


Education

Stoughton is served by the Stoughton Area School District, which covers most of southeastern Dane County as well as a small portion of Rock County. SASD operates three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. There is no higher education in the city, but a UW science lab operates in rural Stoughton on Schneider Road.


Media

The weekly ''Stoughton Courier-Hub'' newspaper, founded in 1969, is published on Thursdays. WSTO TV is a
public, educational, and government access Public-access television (sometimes called community-access television) is traditionally a form of non-commercial mass media where the general public can create content television programming which is narrowcast through cable television special ...
(PEG)
cable TV Cable television is a system of delivering television broadcast programming, programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This ...
channel operated by The City of Stoughton's Information Technology/Media Services Department. The 495-seat Stoughton Opera House features about 30 traveling musical, comedy and other acts each year.


Transportation

Stoughton is served by
Interstate 39 Interstate 39 (I-39) is a north–south Interstate Highway in Illinois and Wisconsin that runs from an interchange at I-55 in Normal, Illinois, to State Trunk Highway 29 (WIS 29) approximately south of Wausau, Wisconsin. In to ...
(I-39) and
I-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 ...
, which run concurrently and have two exits north (Exit 147) and west (Exit 156) of the city. US Highway 51 comes from Madison and goes along the west side of town, then turns east through downtown towards the Interstates. US Highway 14 has an exit for Stoughton at Wisconsin Highway 138 6 miles west of the city in the village of Oregon. WIS-138 heads west at US-14 from
Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...
into Stoughton, then goes south towards the unincorporated Cooksville. A small general aviation airport is located east of the city. Commercial air service is provided by
Dane County Regional Airport Dane County Regional Airport (DCRA) , also known as Truax Field, is a civil-military airport located northeast of downtown Madison, Wisconsin. In the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2025� ...
.


Notable people

* Ole Amundsen Buslett, author * John Edward Erickson,
Governor of Montana A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...
, born in Stoughton * Jerry Frei, head coach of the
Oregon Ducks football The Oregon Ducks football program is a college football team for the University of Oregon, located in the U.S. state of Oregon. The team competes at the NCAA Division I level in the Football Bowl Subdivision, FBS and is a member of the Big Ten Co ...
team, NFL assistant coach * Gale Gillingham, Green Bay Packer Hall of Fame * Russell Hellickson, silver medalist in freestyle
wrestling at the 1976 Summer Olympics At the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, 20 Amateur wrestling, wrestling events were contested, all for men only. There were 10 weight classes in each of the freestyle wrestling and Greco-Roman wrestling disciplines. Medal summary Freestyle Gr ...
* Bob Homme, star of the Canadian television series '' The Friendly Giant'' *
Henry Huber Henry Allen Huber (November 6, 1869January 31, 1933) was an American lawyer and progressive Republican politician from Stoughton, Wisconsin. He was the 25th lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, serving from 1925 through 1933. He also served 12 y ...
, Lieutenant Governor of
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 ...
* Justin Jacobs, 2014
PECASE The Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) is the highest honor bestowed by the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government on outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages ...
winner,
Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...
statistician * Ole C. Lee, Wisconsin State Representative * Thomas A. Loftus, United States ambassador to
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
, Wisconsin politician * Louis K. Luse, Wisconsin State Representative and lawyer * Per Lysne, artist * Alonzo J. Mathison, Wisconsin State Representative * John McCarthy, Nebraska politician and member of the United States House of Representatives, born in Stoughton * John E. McCoy, U.S. Air National Guard general * Henry Everett McNeil, writer * William P. Murphy,
Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...
laureate *
Truman O. Olson Truman O. Olson (October 13, 1917 – January 31, 1944) was a United States Army sergeant who was posthumously awarded the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in World War II. Olson was born on October ...
,
Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...
recipient * Andrew Rein, silver medal in freestyle wrestling (lightweight class) at the
1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...
* Ole K. Roe, Wisconsin State Representative * Christopher J. Rollis, Wisconsin State Representative and newspaper editor * Rudy Silbaugh, Wisconsin State Representative * Carl W. Thompson, Wisconsin State Senator * Charles D. Wells, Wisconsin State Representative * Norman Wengert, political scientist * Wayne W. Wood, Wisconsin State Representative * Ralph Wise Zwicker, U.S. Army Major General


References


External links


City of Stoughton

Stoughton Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Cities in Wisconsin Norwegian-American culture in Wisconsin Cities in Dane County, Wisconsin Populated places established in 1847 1847 establishments in Wisconsin Territory