Walworth is a town in Walworth 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 ...

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. The population was 1,565 at the 2020 census. The Village of Walworth is located within the town. The unincorporated communities of Big Foot Prairie and Delavan Lake are also located partially in the town.

History

The first

town meeting Town meeting, also known as an "open town meeting", is a form of local government in which eligible town residents can directly participate in an assembly which determines the governance of their town. Unlike representative town meeting where ...

was held for what was originally called "Fontana" (later renamed "Walworth"), in a schoolhouse on Big Foot Prairie on April 4, 1843. George H. Lown was elected as Chairman of the "Supervisors". Also elected were two assistants to Lown (listed as Supervisors, but also as "assistants"); a

Clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include Records managem ...

; a

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; three School Commissioners; three

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Commissioners; an Assessor; a Collector; three

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...

s; and a Moderator. The meeting voted to raise for incidental expenses, $60; for relief of the poor, $20; for the support of schools, $100; and for the relief of poor citizens named in the records, a special tax of $30.75.

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 town has a total area of 29.5 square miles (76.4 km²), of which, 28.9 square miles (74.9 km²) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²) of it (2.07%) is water.

Demographics

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 1,676 people, 529 households, and 433 families residing in the town. 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 58.0 people per square mile (22.4/km²). There were 586 housing units at an average density of 20.3 per square mile (7.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.39%

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 ...

, 0.24%

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 ...

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, 0.06% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 0.54% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. 2.51% of the population were

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. There were 529 households, out of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.4% 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, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.1% were non-families. 14.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.86 and the average family size was 3.14. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.6% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $56,250, and the median income for a family was $60,938. Males had a median income of $39,438 versus $24,934 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 town was $24,817. About 3.3% of families and 8.0% 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 4.4% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Leonard C. Church, farmer, businessman, and Wisconsin State Representative was born on a farm in the town * Carlos L. Douglass, farmer, businessman, and Wisconsin State Representative, lived in town * Phipps W. Lake, Free Will Baptist minister and Wisconsin State Representative, lived in the town in Big Foot Prairie *

Frank E. Lawson Frank E. Lawson (born August 9, 1868, in Delavan, Wisconsin) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two con ...

, Wisconsin State Representative, was town clerk of the town * Joseph S. Maxon, Wisconsin State Representative, lived in the town * Alvin S. Trow, Wisconsin State Representative, was born in what would become the town

References

External links

Town of Walworth, Wisconsin website
{{authority control Towns in Walworth County, Wisconsin Towns in Wisconsin