Washington County, Wisconsin

Washington County, Wisconsin
Washington County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 136,761. Its county seat is West Bend. The county was created from Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and organized in 1845. It was named after President George Washington.
Washington County is part of the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Washington County was created on December 7, 1836, by the Wisconsin Territory Legislature, with Port Washington designated as the county seat. It was run administratively from Milwaukee County until 1840, when an Act of Organization allowed the county self-governance, and the county seat was moved to Grafton, then called Hamburg. This solution was not satisfactory, as at that time four cities were vying to become the county seat: Port Washington, Grafton, Cedarburg, and West Bend. At least four inconclusive elections were held between 1848 and 1852, but the results were unusable due to accusations of foul play and serious irregularities.
In 1852, the state Legislature attempted to split the county into a northern and southern half, with the northern half retaining the name and the southern half becoming Tuskola County. Voters refused this decision, so in 1853 the Legislature again split the county, this time into a western and eastern portion. The western portion remained Washington County, with West Bend as its county seat, while the eastern portion became Ozaukee County, with Port Washington as its county seat.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.2%) is water. It is the fifth-smallest county in Wisconsin by total area.
Major highways
Interstate 41
U.S. Highway 41
U.S. Highway 45
Highway 28 (Wisconsin)
Highway 33 (Wisconsin)
Highway 60 (Wisconsin)
Highway 83 (Wisconsin)
Highway 144 (Wisconsin)
Highway 145 (Wisconsin)
Highway 164 (Wisconsin)
Highway 167 (Wisconsin)
Highway 175 (Wisconsin)
Railroads
Canadian National
Wisconsin and Southern Railroad
Buses
Washington County Commuter Express
List of intercity bus stops in Wisconsin
Airports
Hartford Municipal Airport (KHXF) and West Bend Municipal Airport (KETB) serve the county and surrounding communities.
Adjacent counties
Fond du Lac County - northwest
Sheboygan County - northeast
Ozaukee County - east
Milwaukee County - southeast
Waukesha County - south
Dodge County - west
Protected areas
Ackerman's Grove County Park
Allenton Marsh State Wildlife Area
Goeden County Park
Heritage Trails County Park
Isadore and Lorraine Spaeth County Park
Jackson Marsh State Wildlife Area
Kettle Moraine State Forest (part)
Leonard J. Yahr County Park
Lizard Mound State Park
Pike Lake State Park
Sandy Knoll County Park
Theresa Marsh State Wildlife Area (part)
Demographics
2020 census
As of the census of 2020, the population was 136,761. The population density was . There were 58,311 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 91.7% White, 1.4% Asian, 1.3% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.1% from other races, and 4.2% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 3.5% Hispanic or Latino of any race.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 117,493 people, 43,842 households, and 32,749 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 45,808 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.69% White, 0.40% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.40% from other races, and 0.66% from two or more races. 1.30% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 59.9% were of German, 6.3% Polish and 5.5% Irish ancestry. 95.5% spoke English, 2.0% German and 1.7% Spanish as their first language.
There were 43,842 households, out of which 36.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.20% were married couples living together, 7.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.30% were non-families. 20.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.70% under the age of 18, 7.20% from 18 to 24, 31.50% from 25 to 44, 23.40% from 45 to 64, and 11.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 99.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.00 males.
Communities
Cities
Hartford (partly in Dodge County)
Milwaukee (mostly in Milwaukee County and Waukesha County)
West Bend (county seat)
Villages
Germantown
Jackson
Kewaskum (partly in Fond du Lac County)
Newburg (partly in Ozaukee County)
Richfield
Slinger
Towns
Addison
Barton
Erin
Farmington
Germantown
Hartford
Jackson
Kewaskum
Polk
Trenton
Wayne
West Bend
Census-designated place
Allenton
Unincorporated communities
Ackerville
Addison
Aurora
Boltonville
Cedar Creek
Cedar Lake
Cheeseville
Colgate
Diefenbach Corners
Fillmore
Hubertus
Kirchhayn
Kohlsville
Mayfield
Myra
Nenno
Nabob
Orchard Grove
Pike Lake
Pleasant Hill
Rockfield
Rugby Junction
Saint Anthony
Saint Lawrence
Saint Michaels
Thompson
Toland's Prairie
Victory Center
Wayne
Young America
Public High Schools
East High School
Germantown High School
Hartford Union High School
Kewaskum High School
Slinger High School
West High School
The East High School and West High Schools share the same building but are separated.
The Slinger High School's Owls and the Hartford Union High School's Orioles have a rivalry, playing every year at the Coaches vs Cancer Game. Despite their rivalry they have a joint swim team.
Government
The County Executive is Josh Schoemann, a Republican who is the 1st County Executive, with the office having been established in 2020.
Politics
Like most other suburban counties surrounding Milwaukee (the "WOW counties"), Washington County is a Republican stronghold. Since 1940, the county has been won by the Republican presidential candidate in every election except 1964, as is the case in neighboring Ozaukee and Waukesha counties. Additionally, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and Jimmy Carter are the only Democratic presidential candidates since the 1936 election to have crossed the 40 percent mark. In 2008, while Barack Obama won Wisconsin by 14 points, Washington County, one of the 13 out of 72 counties to vote for his Republican rival John McCain was his weakest county in the state, as McCain won it by almost 30 points; and other WOW counties were the only three counties where Obama did not win 40 percent of the vote.
See also
National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Wisconsin
References
Further reading
History of Washington and Ozaukee Counties, Wisconsin. Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1881.
Quickert, Carl. The Story of Washington County. West Bend, Wis.: Author, 1923.
Quickert, Carl (ed.). Washington County, Wisconsin: Past and Present. Chicago: S. J. Clarke, 1912.
External links
Washington County website
Washington County map at the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
Washington County Convention & Visitors Bureau
1845 establishments in Wisconsin Territory
Populated places established in 1845