Iron County, Wisconsin

Iron County
U.S. county
The Old Iron County Courthouse (now the Iron County Historical Museum) in Hurley, Wisconsin.
Location within the U.S. state of Wisconsin
Wisconsin's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 46°20′N90°16′W / 46.33°N 90.26°W / 46.33; -90.26
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
Founded	1893
Named for	Iron ore
Seat	Hurley
Largest city	Hurley
Area
• Total	919 sq mi (2,380 km2)
• Land	758 sq mi (1,960 km2)
• Water	161 sq mi (420 km2)  18%
Population  (2020) [1]
• Total	6,137
• Density	8.1/sq mi (3.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th
Website	www.co.iron.wi.gov

Iron County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,137, ^[1] making it the third-least populous county in Wisconsin. Its county seat is Hurley. ^[2] It was named for the valuable iron ore found within its borders. ^{[3] [4]} The county overlaps with small parts of the Bad River and Lac du Flambeau Indian reservations.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 919 square miles (2,380 km²), of which 758 square miles (1,960 km²) is land and 161 square miles (420 km²) (18%) is water. ^[5]

Adjacent counties

• Vilas County - east, southeast
• Price County - southwest
• Ashland County - west
• Gogebic County, Michigan - northeast

Major highways

U.S. Highway 2 U.S. Highway 51 Highway 47 (Wisconsin) Highway 77 (Wisconsin)

Highway 122 (Wisconsin) Highway 169 (Wisconsin) Highway 182 (Wisconsin)

County Highways

• CTH-A
• CTH-B
• CTH-C
• CTH-CC
• CTH-D
• CTH-FF
• CTH-G
• CTH-H
• CTH-J

Railroads

• Watco

Buses

• List of intercity bus stops in Wisconsin

Airport

• KIWD - Gogebic-Iron County Airport – Commercial air service is available.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1900	6,616		—
1910	8,306		25.5%
1920	10,261		23.5%
1930	9,933		−3.2%
1940	10,049		1.2%
1950	8,714		−13.3%
1960	7,830		−10.1%
1970	6,533		−16.6%
1980	6,730		3.0%
1990	6,153		−8.6%
2000	6,861		11.5%
2010	5,916		−13.8%
2020	6,137		3.7%
U.S. Decennial Census [6] 1790–1960 [7] 1900–1990 [8] 1990–2000 [9] 2010 [10] 2020 [1]

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, ^[1] the population was 6,137. The population density was 8.1 inhabitants per square mile (3.1/km²). There were 5,523 housing units at an average density of 7.3 per square mile (2.8/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.0% White, 1.1% Native American, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 0.7% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 1.2% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 5,916 people living in the county. 97.9% were White, 0.6% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% Black or African American, 0.2% of some other race and 0.9% of two or more races. 0.6% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). 22.9% were of German, 13.7% Italian, 12.6% Finnish, 8.2% Polish, 6.6% American and 5.4% Irish ancestry. ^[11]

2000 census

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Iron County.

As of the census ^[12] of 2000, there were 6,861 people, 3,083 households, and 1,960 families living in the county. The population density was 9 people per square mile (4/km²). There were 5,706 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.28% White, 0.09% Black or African American, 0.60% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.06% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. 0.66% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.9% were of German, 18.6% Italian, 15.2% Finnish, 9.3% Polish and 6.4% Irish ancestry. 97.1% spoke English as their first language.

There were 3,083 households, out of which 22.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.00% were married couples living together, 7.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.40% were non-families. 32.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.74.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 19.40% under the age of 18, 5.90% from 18 to 24, 24.70% from 25 to 44, 26.80% from 45 to 64, and 23.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.80 males.

In 2017, there were 34 births, giving a general fertility rate of 46.1 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 2nd lowest rate out of 72 Wisconsin counties. 13 of the births were to unmarried mothers, 21 were to married mothers. ^[13] Additionally, there were no reported induced abortions performed on women of Iron County residence in 2017. ^[14]

Communities

Entrance sign on US 51

Cities

• Hurley (county seat)
• Montreal

Towns

• Anderson
• Carey
• Gurney
• Kimball
• Knight
• Mercer
• Oma
• Pence
• Saxon
• Sherman

Census-designated places

• Iron Belt
• Mercer
• Pence
• Saxon

Unincorporated communities

• Carter
• Cedar
• Germania
• Gurney
• Hoyt
• Kimball
• Manitowish
• Pine Lake
• Orva
• Powell
• Rouse
• Springstead
• Tyler Forks
• Upson
• Van Buskirk

Historical sites

The National Register of Historic Places lists the following historic sites in Iron County: ^{[15] [16] [17] [18] [19]}

Site	Area of significance	Year added
Annala Round Barn	Architecture, agriculture	1979
Montreal Company Location Historic District	Landscape architecture, community planning and development, industry	1980
Old Iron County Courthouse	Politics/government, architecture	1977
Plummer Mine Headframe	Engineering, industry	1997
Springstead	Architecture, exploration/settlement	1997

Politics

From 1928 to 1996, Iron County voted Democratic in presidential elections, the only exception being Richard Nixon's landslide in 1972. In 2000, George W. Bush became only the second Republican since 1920 to carry Iron County despite narrowly losing the national popular vote, and the county remained a competitive county for the next three elections, narrowly voting for Kerry in 2004 and for Romney in 2012. Recent elections have seen the county trend solidly Republican however; in 2016, Trump won the county with 59.2% (the first time a Republican had won an outright majority in the county since 1920), and in 2020, he increased his vote share to 60.8%.

United States presidential election results for Iron County, Wisconsin ^[20]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	2,438	60.80%	1,533	38.23%	39	0.97%
2016	2,081	59.24%	1,275	36.29%	157	4.47%
2012	1,790	49.28%	1,784	49.12%	58	1.60%
2008	1,464	42.66%	1,914	55.77%	54	1.57%
2004	1,884	48.57%	1,956	50.43%	39	1.01%
2000	1,734	49.44%	1,620	46.19%	153	4.36%
1996	1,260	35.68%	1,725	48.85%	546	15.46%
1992	1,273	32.72%	1,762	45.28%	856	22.00%
1988	1,599	43.04%	2,090	56.26%	26	0.70%
1984	1,667	45.63%	1,967	53.85%	19	0.52%
1980	1,811	45.04%	1,941	48.27%	269	6.69%
1976	1,340	35.26%	2,399	63.13%	61	1.61%
1972	1,723	49.93%	1,648	47.75%	80	2.32%
1968	1,137	34.30%	1,913	57.71%	265	7.99%
1964	963	27.67%	2,514	72.24%	3	0.09%
1960	1,290	30.94%	2,873	68.90%	7	0.17%
1956	1,930	46.22%	2,226	53.30%	20	0.48%
1952	1,733	39.24%	2,662	60.28%	21	0.48%
1948	1,281	30.43%	2,665	63.32%	263	6.25%
1944	1,345	31.51%	2,894	67.81%	29	0.68%
1940	1,672	31.73%	3,525	66.90%	72	1.37%
1936	902	20.78%	3,319	76.46%	120	2.76%
1932	891	25.29%	2,338	66.36%	294	8.35%
1928	1,274	40.68%	1,724	55.04%	134	4.28%
1924	1,058	40.17%	84	3.19%	1,492	56.64%
1920	1,714	77.70%	268	12.15%	224	10.15%
1916	672	54.63%	475	38.62%	83	6.75%
1912	473	39.98%	347	29.33%	363	30.68%
1908	1,134	73.92%	314	20.47%	86	5.61%
1904	1,250	81.12%	246	15.96%	45	2.92%
1900	1,318	76.81%	356	20.75%	42	2.45%
1896	1,288	72.04%	472	26.40%	28	1.57%

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Iron County, Wisconsin

References

1. "2020 Decennial Census: Iron County, Wisconsin". data.census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
3. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. pp.  166.
4. "Here's How Iron Got Its Name". The Rhinelander Daily News. June 16, 1932. p. 2. Retrieved August 24, 2014– via Newspapers.com.
5. "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
6. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
7. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
8. Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
9. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
10. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
11. ""American FactFinder"". Archived from the original on January 8, 2015. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
12. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
13. "Annual Wisconsin Birth and Infant Mortality Report, 2017 P-01161-19 (June 2019): Detailed Tables". Archived from the original on June 19, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
14. 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
15. "STH 77 | National or State Registers Record". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 1, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
16. "National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet". NPGallery. April 17, 1997. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
17. "S of Hurley | National or State Registers Record". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 1, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
18. American Association for State and Local History. United States. National Park Service, issuing body. National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers. National Register of Historic Places, 1966-1994 : cumulative list through January 1, 1994. ISBN   0-89133-254-5. OCLC   40135121.
19. "0.25 mi. W of jct. of Plummer Mine Rd. and STH 77 | National or State Registers Record". Wisconsin Historical Society. January 1, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
20. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved November 9, 2020.

Further reading

• History of Iron County . Hurley, Wis.: Iron County WPA Historical Project, 1937–1938.

External links

• Iron County government website
• Iron County map from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
• Iron County Economic Development
• Historic Bridges of Iron County

Coordinates: 46°20′N90°16′W / 46.33°N 90.26°W / 46.33; -90.26