Polk County, Wisconsin

County in Wisconsin, United States

U.S. county in Wisconsin

Polk County

U.S. county

Polk County Highway Department in Balsam Lake

Location within the U.S. state of Wisconsin

Wisconsin's location within the U.S.

Country|  United States
State|  Wisconsin
Founded| 1853
Named for| James K. Polk[1]
Seat| Balsam Lake
Largest city| Amery
Area

• Total| 956 sq mi (2,480 km2)
• Land| 914 sq mi (2,370 km2)
• Water| 42 sq mi (110 km2)  4.4%%
Population

(2020)[2]

• Total| 44,977
• Density| 49.2/sq mi (19.0/km2)
Time zone| UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)| UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district| 7th
Website| www.co.polk.wi.us

Polk County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 44,977.[2] Its county seat is Balsam Lake.[3] The county was created in 1853.[4]

## Contents

* 1 Geography
* 1.1 Adjacent counties
* 1.2 Major highways
* 1.3 Railroads
* 1.4 Buses
* 1.5 Airports
* 1.6 National protected area
* 2 Demographics
* 2.1 2020 census
* 2.2 2000 census
* 3 Education
* 4 Communities
* 4.1 Cities
* 4.2 Villages
* 4.3 Towns
* 4.4 Census-designated place
* 4.5 Unincorporated communities
* 5 Notable residents
* 6 Politics
* 7 See also
* 8 References
* 9 Further reading
* 10 External links

## Geography

[edit | edit source]

Soils of Polk County[5]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 956 square miles (2,480 km2), of which 914 square miles (2,370 km2) is land and 42 square miles (110 km2) (4.4%) is water.[6]

### Adjacent counties

[edit | edit source]

* Burnett County \- north
* Barron County \- east
* Dunn County \- southeast
* St. Croix County \- south
* Washington County, Minnesota \- southwest
* Chisago County, Minnesota \- west

### Major highways

[edit | edit source]

* U.S. Highway 8
* U.S. Highway 63
* Highway 35 (Wisconsin)
* Highway 46 (Wisconsin)
* Highway 48 (Wisconsin)

* Highway 64 (Wisconsin)
* Highway 65 (Wisconsin)
* Highway 87 (Wisconsin)
* Highway 243 (Wisconsin)

|

### Railroads

[edit | edit source]

* Canadian National
* Minnesota Transportation Museum

### Buses

[edit | edit source]

* List of intercity bus stops in Wisconsin

### Airports

[edit | edit source]

* Amery Municipal Airport (KAHH) serves the county and surrounding communities.
* L.O. Simenstad Municipal Airport (KOEO).

### National protected area

[edit | edit source]

* Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (part)

## Demographics

[edit | edit source]

Historical population

Census | Pop. |  | %±
1860| 1,400| | —
1870| 3,422| | 144.4%
1880| 10,018| | 192.8%
1890| 12,968| | 29.4%
1900| 17,801| | 37.3%
1910| 21,367| | 20.0%
1920| 26,870| | 25.8%
1930| 26,567| | −1.1%
1940| 26,197| | −1.4%
1950| 24,944| | −4.8%
1960| 24,968| | 0.1%
1970| 26,666| | 6.8%
1980| 32,351| | 21.3%
1990| 34,773| | 7.5%
2000| 41,319| | 18.8%
2010| 44,205| | 7.0%
2020| 44,977| | 1.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9]
1990–2000[10] 2010[11] 2020[2]

### 2020 census

[edit | edit source]

As of the census of 2020,[2] the population was 44,977. The population density was 49.2 inhabitants per square mile (19.0/km2). There were 24,129 housing units at an average density of 26.4 per square mile (10.2/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.5% White, 0.9% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.4% Black or African American, 0.8% from other races, and 3.9% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 2.1% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

### 2000 census

[edit | edit source]

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Polk County

As of the 2000 census,[12] there were 41,319 people, 16,254 households, and 11,329 families residing in the county. The population density was 45 people per square mile (17/km2). There were 21,129 housing units at an average density of 23 per square mile (9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.64% White, 0.15% Black or African American, 1.06% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 0.80% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 31.4% were of German, 18.6% Norwegian, 11.3% Swedish, 5.5% Irish and 5.3% American ancestry.

There were 16,254 households, out of which 32.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.20% were married couples living together, 7.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.30% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 24.30% from 45 to 64, and 15.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 99.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.50 males.

In 2017, there were 400 births, giving a general fertility rate of 56.0 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 14th lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties.[13]

## Education

[edit | edit source]

* Amery School District
* Clayton School District
* Clear Lake School District
* Frederic School District

* Luck School District
* Osceola School District
* St. Croix Falls School District
* Unity School District

|

## Communities

[edit | edit source]

The sign for Polk County while entering Wisconsin on US8

### Cities

[edit | edit source]

* Amery
* St. Croix Falls

### Villages

[edit | edit source]

* Balsam Lake (county seat)
* Centuria
* Clayton
* Clear Lake
* Dresser
* Frederic
* Luck
* Milltown
* Osceola
* Turtle Lake (mostly in Barron County)

### Towns

[edit | edit source]

* Alden
* Apple River
* Balsam Lake
* Beaver
* Black Brook
* Bone Lake
* Clam Falls
* Clayton
* Clear Lake
* Eureka
* Farmington
* Garfield
* Georgetown
* Johnstown
* Laketown
* Lincoln
* Lorain
* Luck
* McKinley
* Milltown
* Osceola
* St. Croix Falls
* Sterling
* West Sweden

### Census-designated place

[edit | edit source]

* Lewis

### Unincorporated communities

[edit | edit source]

* Atlas
* Bunyan
* Clam Falls
* Cushing
* Deronda
* East Farmington
* Eureka Center
* Fox Creek
* Horse Creek
* Indian Creek
* Joel
* Lamar
* Little Falls
* Lykens
* McKinley
* Nye
* Pole Cat Crossing (partial)
* Range
* Richardson
* Sand Lake
* Ubet
* Wanderoos
* West Denmark
* West Sweden
* Wolf Creek

## Notable residents

[edit | edit source]

* Arnold Franz Brasz (1888–1966), a prominent painter, sculptor, and printmaker was born in Polk County on July 19, 1888
* George A. Nelson (1873–1962), the 1936 Socialist Party of America nominee for vice president of the United States, was born in rural Polk County and was a dairy farmer there.

## Politics

[edit | edit source]

United States presidential election results for Polk County, Wisconsin[14] Year  | Republican | Democratic | Third party

|
|
|

No. | % | No. | % | No. | %
2020 | 16,611  | 62.99% | 9,370  | 35.53%  | 390  | 1.48%
2016 | 13,810  | 60.72% | 7,565  | 33.26%  | 1,370  | 6.02%
2012 | 12,094  | 53.58% | 10,073  | 44.62%  | 406  | 1.80%
2008 | 11,282  | 49.83% | 10,876  | 48.03%  | 485  | 2.14%
2004 | 12,095  | 51.46% | 11,173  | 47.54%  | 235  | 1.00%
2000 | 9,557  | 48.36% | 8,961  | 45.34%  | 1,244  | 6.29%
1996 | 5,387  | 32.82%  | 8,334  | 50.78% | 2,692  | 16.40%
1992 | 5,446  | 30.14%  | 7,746  | 42.86% | 4,879  | 27.00%
1988 | 6,866  | 42.98%  | 8,981  | 56.22% | 128  | 0.80%
1984 | 8,106  | 49.82% | 8,034  | 49.38%  | 129  | 0.79%
1980 | 7,207  | 44.23%  | 7,607  | 46.68% | 1,482  | 9.09%
1976 | 6,159  | 41.27%  | 8,485  | 56.85% | 280  | 1.88%
1972 | 6,567  | 52.40% | 5,738  | 45.78%  | 228  | 1.82%
1968 | 5,583  | 48.83% | 5,179  | 45.30%  | 671  | 5.87%
1964 | 3,754  | 34.12%  | 7,215  | 65.57% | 34  | 0.31%
1960 | 6,387  | 55.23% | 5,148  | 44.51%  | 30  | 0.26%
1956 | 5,894  | 54.04% | 4,985  | 45.71%  | 27  | 0.25%
1952 | 6,966  | 61.74% | 4,274  | 37.88%  | 42  | 0.37%
1948 | 3,974  | 41.52%  | 5,330  | 55.68% | 268  | 2.80%
1944 | 5,329  | 53.58% | 4,489  | 45.14%  | 127  | 1.28%
1940 | 6,031  | 53.62% | 4,979  | 44.27%  | 238  | 2.12%
1936 | 3,596  | 34.25%  | 5,618  | 53.51% | 1,285  | 12.24%
1932 | 3,425  | 37.10%  | 5,421  | 58.72% | 386  | 4.18%
1928 | 6,905  | 75.14% | 2,177  | 23.69%  | 108  | 1.18%
1924 | 2,793  | 37.57%  | 317  | 4.26%  | 4,324  | 58.17%
1920 | 4,796  | 80.47% | 752  | 12.62%  | 412  | 6.91%
1916 | 2,080  | 51.21% | 1,713  | 42.17%  | 269  | 6.62%
1912 | 848  | 27.14%  | 830  | 26.56%  | 1,447  | 46.30%
1908 | 2,788  | 72.02% | 816  | 21.08%  | 267  | 6.90%
1904 | 2,985  | 85.55% | 296  | 8.48%  | 208  | 5.96%
1900 | 2,735  | 77.48% | 694  | 19.66%  | 101  | 2.86%
1896 | 2,861  | 74.56% | 891  | 23.22%  | 85  | 2.22%
1892 | 1,477  | 60.33% | 585  | 23.90%  | 386  | 15.77%

## See also

[edit | edit source]

* National Register of Historic Places listings in Polk County, Wisconsin

## References

[edit | edit source]

1. ^ Chicago and North Western Railway Company (1908). A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways. p. 163.
2. ^ a b c d "2020 Decennial Census: Polk County, Wisconsin". data.census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
4. ^ "Wisconsin: Individual County Chronologies". Wisconsin Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. The Newberry Library. 2007. Archived from the original on April 14, 2017. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
5. ^ Nelson, Steven (2011). Savanna Soils of Minnesota. Minnesota: Self. pp. 61 - 64. ISBN 978-0-615-50320-2.
6. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
7. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
8. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
9. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
10. ^ "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 8, 2015.
11. ^ "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. Retrieved January 23, 2014.
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 20, 2019.
14. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved February 8, 2021.

## Further reading

[edit | edit source]

* Prentice, Worthy A. Reminiscences of Early Pioneer Days in Polk County. Balsam Lake, Wis,: Polk County Ledger, n.d..

## External links

[edit | edit source]

* Polk County website
* Polk County map from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
* Polk County Economic Development Corporation
* Polk County Tourism

Places adjacent to Polk County, Wisconsin

|  | Burnett County |

|
|

|  |
Chisago County, Minnesota |

Polk County, Wisconsin

| Barron County
|  |
Washington County, Minnesota | St. Croix County | Dunn County

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of Polk County, Wisconsin, United States

County seat: Balsam Lake

Cities|

* Amery
* St. Croix Falls

Villages|

* Balsam Lake
* Centuria
* Clayton
* Clear Lake
* Dresser
* Frederic
* Luck
* Milltown
* Osceola
* Turtle Lake‡

Towns|

* Alden
* Apple River
* Balsam Lake
* Beaver
* Black Brook
* Bone Lake
* Clam Falls
* Clayton
* Clear Lake
* Eureka
* Farmington
* Garfield
* Georgetown
* Johnstown
* Laketown
* Lincoln
* Lorain
* Luck
* McKinley
* Milltown
* Osceola
* St. Croix Falls
* Sterling
* West Sweden

CDP|

* Lewis

Unincorporated
communities|

* Atlas
* Bunyan
* Clam Falls
* Cushing
* Deronda
* East Farmington
* Eureka Center
* Fox Creek
* Horse Creek
* Indian Creek
* Joel
* Lamar
* Little Falls
* Lykens
* McKinley
* Nye
* Pole Cat Crossing‡
* Range
* Richardson
* Sand Lake
* Ubet
* Wanderoos
* West Denmark
* West Sweden
* Wolf Creek

Indian
reservations|

* St. Croix‡

Footnotes|

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

* United States portal

* v
* t
* e

State of Wisconsin

Madison (capital)

Topics|

* Outline
* Agriculture
* Dairy industry
* Geography
* Islands
* Lakes
* Governors
* Delegations
* History
* People
* Sports
* Symbols
* Tourist attractions

Society|

* Administrative divisions
* Crime
* Culture
* Demographics
* Economy
* Education
* Politics

Regions|

* Apostle Islands
* Central Plain
* Chippewa Valley
* Door Peninsula
* Driftless Area
* Eastern Ridges and Lowlands
* Fox River Valley
* Great River Road
* Lake Superior Lowland
* Northern Highland
* Western Upland

Major metropolitan areas
(pop. over 500,000)|

* Chicago metropolitan area
* Madison metropolitan area
* Milwaukee metropolitan area
* Twin Cities metropolitan area

Largest cities
(pop. over 50,000)|

* Appleton
* Eau Claire
* Green Bay
* Janesville
* Kenosha
* La Crosse
* Madison
* Milwaukee
* Oshkosh
* Racine
* Waukesha
* West Allis

Smaller cities
(pop. 15,000 to 50,000)|

* Beaver Dam
* Beloit
* Brookfield
* Cudahy
* De Pere
* Fitchburg
* Fond du Lac
* Franklin
* Greenfield
* Hartford
* Hudson
* Kaukauna
* Manitowoc
* Marshfield
* Menasha
* Menomonie
* Mequon
* Middleton
* Muskego
* Neenah
* New Berlin
* Oak Creek
* Oconomowoc
* Onalaska
* River Falls
* Sheboygan
* South Milwaukee
* Stevens Point
* Sun Prairie
* Superior
* Watertown
* Wausau
* Wauwatosa
* West Bend
* Wisconsin Rapids

Largest villages
(pop. over 15,000)|

* Ashwaubenon
* Bellevue
* Caledonia
* Fox Crossing
* Germantown
* Howard
* Menomonee Falls
* Mount Pleasant
* Pleasant Prairie

Counties|

* Adams
* Ashland
* Barron
* Bayfield
* Brown
* Buffalo
* Burnett
* Calumet
* Chippewa
* Clark
* Columbia
* Crawford
* Dane
* Dodge
* Door
* Douglas
* Dunn
* Eau Claire
* Florence
* Fond du Lac
* Forest
* Grant
* Green
* Green Lake
* Iowa
* Iron
* Jackson
* Jefferson
* Juneau
* Kenosha
* Kewaunee
* La Crosse
* Lafayette
* Langlade
* Lincoln
* Manitowoc
* Marathon
* Marinette
* Marquette
* Menominee
* Milwaukee
* Monroe
* Oconto
* Oneida
* Outagamie
* Ozaukee
* Pepin
* Pierce
* Polk
* Portage
* Price
* Racine
* Richland
* Rock
* Rusk
* Sauk
* Sawyer
* Shawano
* Sheboygan
* St. Croix
* Taylor
* Trempealeau
* Vernon
* Vilas
* Walworth
* Washburn
* Washington
* Waukesha
* Waupaca
* Waushara
* Winnebago
* Wood

Coordinates: 45°28′N 92°26′W﻿ / ﻿45.46°N 92.44°W﻿ / 45.46; -92.44
*[Pop.]: Population
*[%±]: Percent change
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template