List of counties in Wisconsin Information
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counties_of_Wisconsin
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See also: List of United States counties and county-equivalents
Wisconsin counties (clickable map)
The U.S. state of Wisconsin is divided into 72 counties. The land that eventually became Wisconsin was transferred from British to American control with the 1783 signing of the Treaty of Paris. [1] It was an unorganized part of the Northwest Territory until 1802 when all of the land from St. Louis north to the Canadian border was organized as St. Clair County. [1] When Illinois was admitted to the union in 1818, Wisconsin became part of the Territory of Michigan and divided into two counties: Brown County in the northeast along Lake Michigan and Crawford County in the southwest along the Mississippi River. [1] Iowa County was formed in 1829 from the Crawford County land south of the Wisconsin River. [1] Brown County's southern portion was used to form Milwaukee County in 1834. [1] The state of Wisconsin was created from Wisconsin Territory on May 29, 1848, with 28 counties.
Counties in Wisconsin are governed by county boards, headed by a chairperson. Counties with a population of 500,000 or more must also have a county executive. Smaller counties may have either a county executive or a county administrator. [2] As of 2011, 13 counties had elected county executives: Brown, Chippewa, Dane, Fond du Lac, Kenosha, Manitowoc, Milwaukee, Outagamie, Portage, Racine, Sawyer, Waukesha, and Winnebago. 23 had an appointed county administrator, 34 had an appointed administrative coordinator, and 2 had neither an executive nor an administrator. Waukesha County had both an executive and an administrator. [3],
Each county has a county seat, often a populous or centrally located community, where the county's governmental offices are located. Some of the services provided by the county include: law enforcement, circuit courts, social services, vital records and deed registration, road maintenance, and snow removal. County officials include sheriffs, district attorneys, clerks, treasurers, coroners, surveyors, registers of deeds, and clerks of circuit court; these officers are elected for four-year terms. In most counties, elected coroners have been replaced by appointed medical examiners. State law permits counties to appoint a registered land surveyor in place of electing a surveyor.
The most populous county in the state is Milwaukee County at 947,735 people at the 2010 census. [4] Its population is bolstered by the city of Milwaukee's 594,833 people. [4] The county with the least population is Menominee County with 4,232 residents; the Menominee Indian Reservation is co-extensive with the county. [4] Pepin County is the smallest in area, with 231.98 square miles (600.8 km2); Marathon is the largest, having 1,544.91 square miles (4,001.3 km2). [4]
The Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) code, which is used by the United States government to uniquely identify states and counties, is provided with each entry. [5] Wisconsin's code is 55, which when combined with any county code would be written as 55XXX. The FIPS code for each county links to census data for that county. [6]
1 List of counties
2 Renamed and proposed counties
List of counties
FIPS code [6]
County seat [7]
Established [8]
Formed from [9]
Etymology [9]
Population [4] [7]
Area [4]
001 Friendship 1848 Portage County John Quincy Adams
(1767-1848),
(1825-29) 20,875 645.65 sq mi
(1,672 km2)
Ashland County
003 Ashland 1860 La Pointe County Ashland,
Henry Clay's
estate in
Kentucky 16,157 1,045.04 sq mi
Barron County
005 Barron 1859 Polk County Henry D. Barron,
state senator
and circuit court judge. 45,870 862.71 sq mi
Bayfield County
007 Washburn 1845 St. Croix County Henry Bayfield,
Royal naval officer and
first to survey
Great Lakes area 15,014 1,477.86 sq mi
009 Green Bay 1818 unorganized territory Major General Jacob Brown
commanding general of the
during the War of 1812 248,007 529.71 sq mi
Buffalo County
011 Alma 1853 Trempealeau County The Buffalo River,
which flows through the county. 13,587 671.64 sq mi
Burnett County
013 Siren 1856 Polk County Thomas P. Burnett,
state legislator 15,457 821.85 sq mi
Calumet County
015 Chilton 1836 Brown County, Wisconsin The French word for a Menominee
Ceremonial pipe. 48,971 318.24 sq mi
Chippewa County
017 Chippewa Falls 1845 Crawford County Chippewa Indians 62,415 1,008.37 sq mi
019 Neillsville 1853 Crawford County George Rogers Clark
Revolutionary War general 34,690 1,209.82 sq mi
021 Portage 1846 Portage County Christopher Columbus
navigator and explorer 56,833 765.53 sq mi
023 Prairie du Chien 1818 unorganized territory William Harris Crawford
United States Senator from Georgia
and Secretary of the Treasury
1816-25 16,644 570.66 sq mi
025 Madison 1836 Crawford, Iowa, and Milwaukee Countes Nathan Dane
delegate to the First Continental Congress
(1785-88) 488,073 1,197.24 sq mi
027 Juneau 1836 Brown and Milwaukee Counties Henry Dodge
Territorial Governor of Wisconsin
029 Sturgeon Bay 1851 Brown County A dangerous water passage near
Door Peninsula
known as
Porte des Morts or
"door of the dead"
in French 27,785 481.98 sq mi
031 Superior 1854 La Pointe County Stephen Douglas
(1813-61),
1847-61 44,159 1,304.14 sq mi
033 Menomonie 1854 Chippewa County Charles Dunn,
of Wisconsin Territory 43,857 850.11 sq mi
035 Eau Claire 1856 Chippewa County City of Eau Claire
French for
"clear water" 98,736 637.98 sq mi
Florence County
037 Florence 1881 Marinette and Oconto Counties Florence Julst,
the first white woman
to settle in the area 4,423 488.20 sq mi
039 Fond du Lac 1836 Brown County French for
"foot of the lake" 101,633 719.55 sq mi
Forest County
041 Crandon 1885 Langlade and Oconto Counties Forest which covered
the area when it was settled 9,304 1,014.07 sq mi
043 Lancaster 1837 Iowa County Probably a trader named Grant
who made contact with area natives in 1810
but about whom little
else is known 51,208 1,146.85 sq mi
045 Monroe 1837 Iowa County and unorganized territory Nathanael Greene
quartermaster general during
the American Revolutionary War 36,842 583.96 sq mi
Green Lake County
047 Green Lake 1858 Marquette County Green Lake
located within the county 19,051 349.44 sq mi
Iowa County
049 Dodgeville 1829 Crawford County Iowa tribe of
Indians 23,687 762.58 sq mi
Iron County
051 Hurley 1893 Ashland and Oneida Counties Local iron deposits 5,916 758.17 sq mi
053 Black River Falls 1853 La Crosse County Andrew Jackson
1829–37 20,449 987.72 sq mi
055 Jefferson 1836 Milwaukee County Thomas Jefferson
057 Mauston 1856 Adams County Solomon Juneau
founder of what would become
Milwaukee 26,664 766.93 sq mi
Kenosha County
059 Kenosha 1850 Racine County Indian word
meaning "place of the pike" 166,426 271.99 sq mi
Kewaunee County
061 Kewaunee 1852 Door County Either a Potawatomi
"river of the lost"
or an Ojibwe word meaning
" prairie hen"
"wild duck" or
"to go around" 20,574 342.52 sq mi
063 La Crosse 1851 Crawford County Indian
game of lacrosse 114,638 451.69 sq mi
Lafayette County
065 Darlington 1846 Iowa County Gilbert du Motier
marquis de La Fayette
a French general
in the American Revolutionary War 16,836 633.59 sq mi
Langlade County
067 Antigo 1879 Oconto County Charles de Langlade
(1729 – c.1800),
American Revolutionary War veteran
and United States Indian Agent
in Green Bay 19,977 870.64 sq mi
069 Merrill 1874 Marathon County Abraham Lincoln
Manitowoc County
071 Manitowoc 1836 Brown County Munedoo-owk, an Ojibwe word meaning "the place of the good spirit" 81,442 589.08 sq mi
Marathon County
073 Wausau 1850 Portage County Marathon, Greece 134,063 1,544.98 sq mi
Marinette County
075 Marinette 1879 Oconto County Marie Antoinette Chevalier, Indian wife of an early fur trapper 41,749 1,399.35 sq mi
077 Montello 1836 Brown County Father Pere Jacques Marquette
missionary and explorer 15,404 455.60 sq mi
078 Keshena 1959 Menominee Indian Reservation, Shawano, and Oconto Counties Menominee Indians 4,232 357.61 sq mi
079 Milwaukee 1834 Brown County Mahnawaukee-Seepe,
an Indian word meaning
"gathering place by the river" 947,735 241.40 sq mi
081 Sparta 1854 La Crosse County James Monroe
Oconto County
083 Oconto 1851 Brown County An Indian settlement and the Oconto River, whose name means "plentiful with fish" 37,660 997.99 sq mi
085 Rhinelander 1885 Lincoln County Oneida Indians 35,998 1,112.97 sq mi
087 Appleton 1851 Brown County Outagamie Indians 176,695 637.52 sq mi
089 Port Washington 1853 Washington County The Ojibwe word for the Sauk nation 86,395 233.08 sq mi
Pepin County
091 Durand 1858 Dunn County Pierre and Jean Pepin du Chardonnets, explorers 7,469 231.98 sq mi
093 Ellsworth 1853 Saint Croix County Franklin Pierce (1804-69), President of the United States (1853-57) 41,019 573.75 sq mi
095 Balsam Lake 1853 Saint Croix County James Polk
097 Stevens Point 1836 Brown, Crawford, Iowa, and Milwaukee Counties Passage between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers 70,019 800.68 sq mi
Price County
099 Phillips 1879 Chippewa and Lincoln Counties William T. Price
United States Congressman
(1883-86) 14,159 1,254.38 sq mi
Racine County
101 Racine 1836 Milwaukee County Racine, the French word for "root", after the Root River, which flows through the county 195,408 332.5 sq mi
Richland County
103 Richland Center 1842 Iowa County The rich soil of the area 18,021 586.15 sq mi
105 Janesville 1836 Milwaukee County Rock River, which flows through the county 160,331 718.14 sq mi
107 Ladysmith 1901 Chippewa County Jeremiah McLain Rusk (1830-93), Governor of Wisconsin 1882-89 14,755 913.59 sq mi
111 Baraboo 1840 Crawford, Dane and Portage Counties Sauk Indians 61,976 830.9 sq mi
Sawyer County
113 Hayward 1883 Ashland and Chippewa Counties Philetus Sawyer
United States Representative
and Senator
from Wisconsin 16,557 1,257.31 sq mi
Shawano County
115 Shawano 1853 Oconto County An Ojibwe word meaning "southern" 41,949 893.06 sq mi
Sheboygan County
117 Sheboygan 1836 Brown County Shawb-wa-way-kun, an Indian word meaning "great noise underground" 115,507 511.27 sq mi
109 Hudson 1840 Crawford County, and unorganized territory An early French explorer named St. Croix, about whom little is known 84,345 722.33 sq mi
119 Medford 1875 Clark, Lincoln, Marathon and Chippewa Counties William Robert Taylor (1820-1909), Governor of Wisconsin 1874-76 20,689 974.88 sq mi
121 Whitehall 1854 Crawford and La Crosse Counties Trempealeau Mountain (from the French for "mountain with its foot in the water"), a bluff located in a bend of the Trempealeau River, [10] which flows through the county 28,816 732.97 sq mi
123 Viroqua 1851 Richland and Crawford Counties Mount Vernon, home of George Washington 29,773 791.58 sq mi
Vilas County
125 Eagle River 1893 Oneida County William Vilas (1840-1908),
officer in the Civil War
United States Postmaster General
United States Secretary of the Interior
and Senator from Wisconsin
127 Elkhorn 1836 Milwaukee County Reuben Hyde Walworth
jurist from New York 102,228 555.13 sq mi
Washburn County
129 Shell Lake 1883 Burnett County Cadwallader Washburn
Governor of Wisconsin
and Representative from Wisconsin
(1867–71) 15,911 797.11 sq mi
131 West Bend 1836 Brown and Milwaukee Counties George Washington
American Revolutionary War leader
and first President of the United States
(1789–97) 131,887 430.70 sq mi
133 Waukesha 1846 Milwaukee County Waugooshance,
a Pottawatomi word meaning
"little foxes" 389,891 549.57 sq mi
135 Waupaca 1851 Brown and Winnebago Counties wau-pa-ka-ho-nak,
a Menominee word
meaning "white sand bottom" or
"brave young hero" 52,410 747.71 sq mi
137 Wautoma 1851 Marquette County An Indian
"good earth" 24,496 626.15 sq mi
139 Oshkosh 1840 Brown, Calumet, and Fond du Lac Counties Winnebago Indians 166,994 434.49 sq mi
141 Wisconsin Rapids 1856 Portage County Joseph Wood
state legislator
Renamed and proposed counties
Five counties in Wisconsin have been renamed and two have been proposed.
Dates [11]
Bad Ax(e) County 1851–1862 The Bad Axe River, Battle of Bad Axe
(County variably named with 'Ax' or 'Axe' depending on source) Renamed Vernon County in 1862. [12]
Century County 2011 Proposed in 1997 for creation after the year 2000; the name was selected to represent "a new county for a new century". [13] Because of issues with delivery of services by the county government, some residents of Marshfield proposed a new county to be created from several towns in Clark, Marathon, and Wood Counties, the city of Marshfield, and the village of Spencer. [13]
Dallas County 1859–1869 George M. Dallas
(1845–49) Renamed Barron County in 1869. [14]
Gates County 1901–1905 Milwaukee land speculator James L. Gates [15] Renamed Rusk County in 1905. [16]
La Pointe County 1845–1866 Renamed Bayfield County in 1866. [17]
New County 1879–1880 A new county formed from part of Oconto County Renamed Langlade County in 1880 [18]
Tuskola County 1850 proposed county to come from Washington County in 1850 [9] Within modern Washington and Ozaukee counties [1]
Political subdivisions of Wisconsin
List of cities in Wisconsin
List of villages in Wisconsin
List of towns in Wisconsin
^ a b c d e Curtiss-Wedge, Franklyn (1919). History of Buffalo and Pepin Counties, Wisconsin, Volume 1. Higginson Book Company. pp. 3–4.
^ Wisconsin Legislative Reference Bureau. State of Wisconsin 2011-2012 Blue Book. Madison: Joint Committee on Legislative Organization, 2011, p. 736.
^ a b c d e f "Wisconsin QuickFacts". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2013-03-03. Retrieved 2013-03-04. (2010 Census)
^ "FIPS Publish 6-4". National Institute of Standards and Technology. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
^ a b "EPA County FIPS Code Listing". US Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
^ a b "NACo - Find a county". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
^ a b c Carver, Jonathon (1910). Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin at its Fifty-Seventh Annual Meeting (1st ed.). Madison WI: Democrat Printing Company. (WV County Founding Dates and Etymology). Other editions available at ISBN 1130567257 and Google Books
^ Elkins, Winston (1985). Trempealeau and the Mississippi River Dam. Trempealeau County, WI: Trempealeau County Historical Society.
^ "Interactive Map of Wisconsin County Formation History". mapgeeks.org. Retrieved 2014-09-15.
^ History of Vernon County, Wisconsin. Viroqua, WI: Union Publishing. 1884. p. 132. (Bad Ax County). Other editions available: ISBN 1178120341 and Google Books
^ a b "New county only solution to poor service, some say". The Journal Times. September 28, 1997. Retrieved 2017-01-09.
^ "Dictionary of Wisconsin History". Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p. 135.
^ Rusk County Museum Archived 2013-10-22 at the Wayback Machine
^ Wisconsin Historical Society-La Pointe County, Wisconsin (obsolete)
^ 'History of Langlade County, Wisconsin from U.S. Government Survey to Present Time, With Biographical Sketches,' Robert Dessueran, Bernier Bros Publishing Co., Antigo, Wisconsin: 1922, History of Langlade County, Chapter V: Organization of Langlade County, pg. 12
Wisconsin historical county boundaries map from Atlas of Historical County Boundaries at Newberry Library website
Lists of United States counties and county equivalents
Federal district
Insular areas
Madison (capital)
Apostle Islands
Central Plain
Driftless Area
Great River Road
Lake Superior Lowland
Northern Highland
Western Upland
Major metropolitan areas
(pop. over 500,000)
Madison metropolitan area
Milwaukee metropolitan area
Twin Cities metropolitan area
(pop. over 50,000)
Smaller cities
(pop. 15,000 to 50,000)
Largest villages
Ozaukee
Sauk
Waushara
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Lists of counties of the United States by state
Wisconsin geography-related lists
COUNTIES OF WISCONSIN