Portage County, Wisconsin

Portage County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Stevens Point
Year Organized: 1836
Square Miles: 806

Court House:

1516 Church Street
City-County Building
Stevens Point, WI 54481-3501

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Originally named for the Fox-Wisconsin portage, then within its boundaries -- a prominent landmark in early Wisconsin history. The gradual change in the boundaries of this; county (described ante) left the name of the county without significance, save that therein is found Plover portage, an insignificant carrying-place between the waters of Wolf and Wisconsin rivers - Wis. Hist. Colls., i, pp. 113, 118.

[Source: Kellogg, Louise Phelps. "Derivation of County Names" in Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin for 1909, pages 219-231. ]

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

History

Portage County, created in 1836 as a territorial county, is named for the overland carry between the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers. Located in central Wisconsin, the county seat is Stevens Point.

Description from John W. Hunt's 1853 Wisconsin Gazetteer: "PORTAGE, County, is bounded on the north by Marathon, on the east by Waupacea, on the south by Waushara and Adams, and on the west by La Crosse, and is 30 miles north and south, by 54 miles east and west. It was set off from Brown, Dec. 7, 1836, at which time it embraced about the present county of Columbia. By an act of the legislature, approved March 14, 1841, the territory forming the present counties of Adams, Portage and Marathon was annexed to Portage county, which was organized for county purposes, the judicial connection being with Dane. The countv seat was established at the Wisconsin Portage, and the county was fully organized Jan. 31, 1844; as now organized, it does not contain any of its original limits. The eastern boundary of the county was extended one range February 27, 1851. Plover, a little east of the centre of the county, is the seat of justice. The Wisconsin river passes about centrally through the county from the north, and with its branches afford many good water powers which are, at present, chiefly used for working up pine timber, with forests of which the country is covered. The population, as organized in 1840, was 1,623; 1842, 646; 1846, 931; 1847, 1,504; 1850, 1,267. At the last date, including Marathon, there were 13 farms, 30 manufactories, and 280 dwellings."

PORTAGE.
From: Handbook of Wisconsin by S. Silas, 1855
pg. 95-96

Portage County lies on the Wisconsin River and its branches, and is almost exclusively engaged in lumbering, its whole supplies, till within a year or two, being drawn from below.--Settlers have gone in during 1854 and '5, who have selected farms, and will soon bring their produce to market. For many years, the business at the lumbering depots will make a ready market for all the produce of the County. The land is not as good for agriculture as most of the other Counties, though there are locations for farms which cannot be surpassed. The Wisconsin Pinery is one of the oldest in the State, it having been surveyed, and timber cut for about ten years, yet the population has probably doubled during the last year.

For the past year the attention of settlers has been directed to lands on the numerous streams entering the Wisconsin River, and a very large accession has been made to the population, of enterprising farmers, who are sure speedily to meet their reward.

Stevens Point, is the largest place, having a population in June, of 833. It is well situated on the Wisconsin River, and will probably always be the center of the lumber trade for that region. The Land Offices for this district are located here.

Plover, seven miles from Stevens Point is the County Seat, having about 300 inhabitants.

Conant's Rapids is a thriving village.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 823 square miles (2,131 km²), of which, 806 square miles (2,088 km²) of it is land and 16 square miles (43 km²) of it (2.00%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Marathon County - north
Shawano County - northeast
Waupaca County - east
Waushara County - southeast
Adams County - southwest
Wood County - west

Cities and Towns:

- Alban	town
- Almond	village	Incorporated Area
- Amherst	village	Incorporated Area
- Amherst Junction	village	Incorporated Area
- Buena Vista	town
- Carson	town
- Dewey	town
- Eau Pleine	town
- Grant	town
- Hull	town
- Jordan	town
- Junction City	village	Incorporated Area
- Lanark	town
- Linwood	town
- Nelsonville	village	Incorporated Area
- New Hope	town
- Park Ridge	village	Incorporated Area
- Pine Grove	town
- Plover	village	Incorporated Area
- Rosholt	village	Incorporated Area
- Stevens Point (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Stockton	town
- Whiting	village	Incorporated Area

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resource Guide

Counties: US Map

The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of our country!"

But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.

Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally, act locally."

Custom Search

Wisconsin State...

Wisconsin

Wisconsin Counties