Greenville, Wisconsin

Greenville
Village
Greenville Show map of Wisconsin Greenville Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 44°17′15″N88°31′33″W / 44.28750°N 88.52583°W / 44.28750; -88.52583
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
Counties	Outagamie
Surrounding towns	Clayton, Dale, Ellington, Grand Chute, Hortonia, Menasha
Settled	1848
Government
•  Village President	Jack Anderson
Area
• Total	93 km2 (35.8 sq mi)
• Land	93 km2 (35.8 sq mi)
• Water	0.1 km2 (0.04 sq mi)  0.06%
Elevation	252 m (827 ft)
Population  (2018)
• Total	12,264
• Density	73.8/km2 (191.2/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Code	54913, 54942, 54944
Area code	274 & 920
FIPS code	55-31550 [1]
GNIS feature ID	2829852 [2]
Website	greenvillewi.gov

Greenville is a village in Outagamie County, Wisconsin. It is one of 18 communities that form the basis of the Fox Cities, the third largest metropolitan area in Wisconsin. The population was 12,619 in 2020. ^[1]

History

The town was founded in 1848 as Greenville Station, and changed its name to Becker in 1879 (named after the first postmaster). Its name was changed to Greenville in 1896. ^[3]

After having an initial incorporation attempt denied by the Wisconsin Incorporation Review Board, the town was able to secure a referendum for a partial incorporation in November 2020. ^[4] The eastern half of the community incorporated as a village in January 2021, and successfully annexed the remnant western half of the original township in June 2021. This makes it one of the largest villages in the State of Wisconsin by area and population. ^[5]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 35.8 square miles (92.7 km²), of which, 35.8 square miles (92.7 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.06%) is water.

The former unincorporated community of Greenville and the ghost town of Wakefield are located in the village.

Demographics

Greenville is a part of the Appleton, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Appleton-Oshkosh-Neenah, Wisconsin Combined Statistical Area.

As of the census ^[1] of 2000, there were 6,844 people, 2,301 households, and 1,937 families residing in the town. The population density was 191.2 people per square mile (73.8/km²). There were 2,353 housing units at an average density of 65.7 per square mile (25.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.25% White, 0.22% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 0.39% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.59% of the population.

There were 2,301 households, out of which 48.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 75.4% were married couples living together, 5.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 15.8% were non-families. 11.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 32.5% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 36.2% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 5.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $61,381, and the median income for a family was $65,706. Males had a median income of $45,594 versus $29,360 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,164. About 1.4% of families and 2.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 0.9% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Appleton International Airport is the economic engine for the community. Many of the village's largest employers are located in business parks surrounding the airport. Air Wisconsin, the largest privately owned regional airline in the country, is headquartered in Greenville. ^{[6] [7]} Other businesses include School Specialty, the village's largest employer; Amazon; Federal Express; Gulfstream Aerospace; VF Corporation; Miller Electric; Plexus; Oshkosh Corporation; Badger Plug; Valley Bakers Cooperative; Sonoco Products; Asten Johnson; and Zebra Technologies. ^{[8] [9]}

Government

Local

Greenville is governed by an elected five-member village board consisting of a president, vice president, and three trustees. The village is represented on the Outagamie County Board with officials from Districts 32 & 33.

State

Official	Party	Took office	Representing:
State Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara	Republican	2023	19th State Senate District
Rep. David Murphy	Republican	2013	56th Assembly District

Federal

The town lies within the boundaries of Wisconsin's 8th Congressional District. This district has a cook PVI of R+10 and is safely Republican at the federal level. ^[10]

Official	Party	Took office	Representing:
Sen. Tammy Baldwin	Democratic	2013	State of Wisconsin
Sen. Ron Johnson	Republican	2011	State of Wisconsin
Vacant	Wisconsin's 8th District

Education

Public instruction is provided by the Hortonville Area School District. ^[11] The district maintains three elementary schools, two middle schools, a high school, and an independent learning center. Parochial schools include Immanuel Lutheran School and St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Catholic School. ^[12]

Public schools

• Greenville Elementary School – located at W6822 Greenridge Drive, has 733 students, and carries grades Pre-K–4.
• North Greenville Elementary School – located at N2468 Learning Way, carries grades Pre-K–4, and was constructed to alleviate the overcrowding in the other elementary schools.
• Greenville Middle School – located at N1450 Fawnridge Drive, has 555 students, and carries grades 5–8.

Private schools

• Immanuel Lutheran School – located at W7265 School Road, has 238 students, and carries grades Pre-K–8. ^[12]
• St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Catholic School – located at N2387 Municipal Drive (WIS 76), has 161 students, and carries grades Pre-K–8.

The Fox Valley Technical College Public Safety Training Center is located in Greenville and provides training for law enforcement, firefighters, and emergency medical services personnel.

Religion

Churches in Greenville include:

• Christus Lutheran Church
• Faith Community United Methodist Church
• Immanuel Lutheran Church (WELS)
• Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church
• St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception Catholic Parish

Transportation

Appleton International Airport is located in Greenville. ^[6] The airport is the headquarters for regional airline carrier, Air Wisconsin, and is the original home of Midwest Airlines, which grew out of a subsidiary of Kimberly-Clark, K-C Aviation.

	WIS 15 (Greenville Drive) travels east to Grand Chute and west to Hortonville and New London.
	WIS 76 (Municipal Drive) travels south to Oshkosh and north to Shiocton.
	WIS 96 (Wisconsin Avenue) travels east to Grand Chute and Appleton and west to Fremont.
	County BB (Prospect Avenue and Winnegamie Drive) travels east to Appleton.
	County CA (College Avenue) travels east to Grand Chute where it becomes WIS 125.
	County CB (West Side Arterial) travels south to Fox Crossing and Neenah.
	County JJ (Broadway Drive) travels east to Kaukauna and west to Hortonville.

Greenville is located 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Interstate 41 and 1.8 miles (2.9 km) north of U.S. Route 10

The Yellowstone Trail National Historic Automobile Route also passes through Greenville.

Parks and recreation

The Village maintains approximately 210 acres (0.85 km²) of parkland at 10 facilities located throughout the community. These include:

• Amber Woods – a 7.6-acre (31,000 m²) undeveloped woodland site; a trail system is planned for this area in the future.
• Appletree Square – a 2-acre (8,100 m²) mini-park that includes a crab apple tree arboretum, access to the Greenville Trail System, and a connection to Jennerjohn Park.
• Community Park – a 20-acre (81,000 m²) community park that is the village's primary site for recreational activities. It includes four ball diamonds, bleachers, a pavilion, kitchen facilities, two restroom buildings, a concessions building, play equipment, a tennis court, two half-court basketball courts, and access to the Greenville Trail System.
• Field of Dreams – a 75-acre (300,000 m²) undeveloped parcel whose master plan calls for five ball diamonds, a heritage garden, soccer fields, tennis courts, basketball courts, picnic shelters, and a natural area with trails.
• Glen Valley Park – a 2.2-acre (8,900 m²) park with a play equipment. It is not connected to the Greenville Trail System.
• Elder Brook Park (previously Glen Valley Park) – a 8.5-acre (34,000 m²) neighborhood park with a pond and a trail system
• Jennerjohn Park – a 25-acre (100,000 m²) neighborhood park with a baseball diamond, play equipment, two tennis courts, a heritage fountain, a sledding hill and ice rink, and access to the Greenville Trail System. It is also connected to Appletree Square.
• Kimberly Court Park – a 0.75-acre (3,000 m²) mini-park that includes a conifer arboretum and access to the Greenville Trail System
• Lions Park – a 57-acre (230,000 m²) community park that includes a pond, nature trails, four shelters, a 10,000-seat amphitheater, a playground, and access to the Greenville Trail System
• Memorial Square – a mini-park located in front of the Greenville Public Safety Building that has memorials dedicated to area veterans, firefighters, and police officers
• Pebble Ridge Park – a 13-acre (53,000 m²) neighborhood park that includes a mature woodland, pond, and walking trails

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources-managed Heath Van Handel Memorial Forest is located in Greenville. The 39-acre forest was previously a nursery, test area, and arboretum for the Institute of Paper Chemistry. ^[13]

Greenville events include:

• Annual catfish races ^[14]

Roblox Game

A popular game on the Roblox platform is based on Greenville, and as of May 2024, has 950,000,000+ visits. The game was first created in June 2017 by Roblox user milk74l8O, and has since grown into a roleplay and driving game. The game currently has over 400+ cars and over 2300+ different trim models, but has suffered from brand copyright claims by the DMCA, leading to many car brands getting removed since November 2023. There are several roleplay communities that offer a more realistic driving experience, and many content creators on Youtube have played Greenville, leading to global success.

Points of interest

• Appleton International Airport
• Chaska Golf Course
• Fox West YMCA
• Homestead Meadows Farm
• Special Memories Zoo
• Yellowstone Trail National Historic Automobile Route

Images

• 
  An aerial photo of Greenville, WI looking southeast down Hwy 15
• 
  Airport Water Tower, since repainted
• 
  Airport Water Tower but in the game
• 
  An example of a car in Greenville, Wisconsin; the 2022 Wolfsburg Pitch GTE (Mk8 Golf)

References

1. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved January 31, 2008.
2. "Village of Greenville". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. May 22, 2023.
3. Gard, Robert E. (September 9, 2015). The Romance of Wisconsin Place Names. Wisconsin Historical Society. ISBN   978-0-87020-708-2.
4. Behnke, Duke (August 25, 2020). "Greenville finalizes Nov. 3 referendum on whether to incorporate its urbanized east half as a village". Appleton Post-Crescent. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
5. Behnke, Duke. "Back together: Town and village of Greenville reunify as one 36-square-mile community". The Post-Crescent. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
6. Town of Greenville. Welcome to the Town of Greenville. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
7. "Contact Air Wisconsin Archived 2011-06-04 at the Wayback Machine ." Air Wisconsin. Retrieved on May 19, 2009.
8. "Ch_6_Economic%20Development.pdf" (PDF). East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 19, 2012. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
9. "Amazon coming to Fox Valley". WLUK. July 2, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
10. https://www.cookpolitical.com/cook-pvi/2022-partisan-voting-index/district-map-and-list
11. Hortonville Area School District
12. "Immanuel Lutheran School".
13. "Memorial forest to be dedicated in memory of DNR pilot - Weekly News Article - Wisconsin DNR". Archived from the original on August 29, 2014. Retrieved September 17, 2015.
14. Greenville Lions Catfish Races

External links

• Town of Greenville Comprehensive Plan
• Hortonville Area School District