Douglas County, Wisconsin

History

Douglas County, named after Illinois Senator Stephen A. Douglas, was established on February 8, 1854, from the larger La Pointe County, Wisconsin, and the City of Superior was immediately selected as the county seat.

In Wisconsin's 1952 U.S. Senate primary, Douglas County was one of two counties (out of 71 in the state at the time) that Sen. Joe McCarthy did not carry.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 1480 sqmi, of which 1304 sqmi is land and 176 sqmi (12%) is water.

Part of the Fond du Lac Indian Reservation is in Douglas County.

Adjacent counties

• Bayfield County – east
• Sawyer County – southeast
• Washburn County – south
• Burnett County – southwest
• Pine County, Minnesota – southwest
• Carlton County, Minnesota – west
• Saint Louis County, Minnesota – northwest
• Lake County, Minnesota - northeast

Major highways

Railroads

• BNSF
• Canadian National
• Canadian Pacific
• Union Pacific

Buses

• Duluth Transit Authority
• Indian Trails

Airports

• Solon Springs Municipal Airport (KOLG) serves the county and surrounding communities.
• Richard I. Bong Airport (KSUW)

National protected area

• Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (part)

Demographics

|align-fn=center 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2020 2020 census

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 44,295. The median age was 42.1 years. 19.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 100.0 males age 18 and over.

The population density was 34.0 /mi2. There were 22,906 housing units at an average density of 17.6 /mi2.

The racial makeup of the county was 89.7% White, 1.3% Black or African American, 1.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian,

61.4% of residents lived in urban areas, while 38.6% lived in rural areas.

There were 19,219 households in the county, of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 42.9% were married-couple households, 22.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Of the 22,906 housing units, 16.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 67.2% were owner-occupied and 32.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.7%.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 44,159 people living in the county. 93.2% were White, 2.0% Native American, 1.1% Black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.2% of some other race and 2.7% of two or more races. 1.1% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). 20.7% were of German, 11.2% Norwegian, 9.7% Swedish, 7.8% Irish, 6.4% Finnish and 6.1% Polish ancestry.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 43,287 people, 17,808 households, and 11,272 families living in the county. The population density was 33 /mi2. There were 20,356 housing units at an average density of 16 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 95.35% White, 0.57% Black or African American, 1.82% Native American, 0.63% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 1.41% from two or more races. 0.73% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.8% had German, 13.5% Norwegian, 11.5% Swedish, 8.5% Irish, 8.2% Finnish, 6.8% Polish and 5.1% United States or American ancestry. 96.7% spoke English and 1.2% Spanish as their first language.

There were 17,808 households, out of which 29.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.10% were married couples living together, 10.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.70% were non-families. 29.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.60% under the age of 18, 10.30% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 14.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 97.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.40 males.

In 2017, there were 413 births, giving a general fertility rate of 50.8 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the seventh lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties. Additionally, there were no reported induced abortions performed on women of Douglas County residence in 2017.

Communities

City

• Superior (county seat)

Villages

• Lake Nebagamon
• Oliver
• Poplar
• Solon Springs
• Superior

Towns

• Amnicon
• Bennett
• Brule
• Cloverland
• Dairyland
• Gordon
• Hawthorne
• Highland
• Lakeside
• Maple
• Oakland
• Parkland
• Solon Springs
• Summit
• Superior
• Wascott

Census-designated places

• Brule
• Gordon

Unincorporated communities

• Ambridge
• Amnicon Falls
• Anton
• Beebe
• Bellwood
• Bennett
• Black River
• Blueberry
• Borea
• Boylston
• Boylston Junction
• Carnegie
• Chaffey
• Cloverland
• Cozy Corner
• Cutter
• Dairyland
• Dedham
• Dewey
• Dobie
• Four Corners
• Foxboro
• Hawthorne
• Hillcrest
• Hines
• Maple
• Middle River
• Moose Junction
• Parkland
• Patzau
• Peyton
• Pokegama
• Riverview
• Rockmont
• Saunders
• Sauntry
• South Itasca
• South Range
• Sunnyside
• Waino
• Wascott
• Wentworth
• Winneboujou

Ghost towns

• Merriam
• Millcrest
• Morrison (Allouez) (annexed by the City of Superior)
• New Bristol (Martinson)
• Nutt
• Pokegama Junction
• Steele
• Troy
• Walbridge
• Way
• Wiehe

Politics

Douglas County has one of the longest Democratic voting streaks in the nation in presidential elections; the last Republican presidential candidate to win Douglas County was Herbert Hoover in 1928. But in 2024, Donald Trump received the highest percentage of Douglas County's vote for a Republican since the county's Democratic streak began, signaling a new competitiveness in the county. In every presidential election between 1984 and 2000, the county was always the second-most Democratic in the state (behind only Native American-dominated Menominee County), before being surpassed by Dane County in 2004, and several others since 2008.

Douglas County also regularly supports Democratic candidates at the state level.

References

References

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2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties.
3. Gannett, Henry. (1905). "The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States". Govt. Print. Off..
4. (June 16, 1932). "Here's How Iron Got Its Name". The Rhinelander Daily News.
5. [http://www.douglascuntywi.org/generalinfo-hours/countyhistory/countyhistory.htm Douglas County: County History]{{dead link. (December 2016)
6. [https://web.archive.org/web/20121021153432/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,822454-1,00.html "The Wisconsin Primary," Time, September 22, 1952]
7. (August 22, 2012). "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau.
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13. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau.
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15. (2021). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)".
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17. (2023). "2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)".
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21. [https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p45360-17.pdf Reported Induced Abortions in Wisconsin], Office of Health Informatics, Division of Public Health, Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Section: Trend Information, 2013-2017, Table 18, pages 17-18
22. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections".