Adams County

History

The founders of Adams County were from upstate New York. These people were "Yankee" settlers, that is to say they were largely descended from the English Separatists who settled New England in the 1600s. They were part of a wave of New England farmers who headed west into what was then the wilds of the Northwest Territory during the early 1800s. Most of them arrived as a result of the completion of the Erie Canal and the end of the Black Hawk War. They got to what is now Adams County by sailing up the Wisconsin River from the Mississippi River on small barges which they constructed themselves out of materials obtained from the surrounding woodlands. When they arrived in what is now Adams County, there was nothing but dense virgin forest, the "Yankee" New Englanders laid out farms, constructed roads, erected government buildings, and established post routes. They brought with them many of their Yankee New England values, such as a passion for education, establishing many schools as well as staunch support for abolitionism. They were mostly members of the Congregationalist Church though some were Episcopalian. Due to the second Great Awakening, some of them had converted to Methodism and some became Baptist before moving to what is now Adams County. Adams County, like much of Wisconsin, would be culturally very continuous with early New England culture for most of its early history.

In the late 1880s, German immigrants began to settle in Adams County, making up less than one out of thirty settlers in the county before this date. Generally there was little conflict between them and the "Yankee" settlers, however when conflict did arise it focused around the issue of prohibition of alcohol. On this issue the Yankees were divided and the Germans almost unanimously were opposed to it, tipping the balance in favor of opposition to prohibition. Later the two communities would be divided on the issue of World War I in which, once again, the Yankee community would be divided and the Germans were unanimously opposed to American entry into the war. The Yankee community was generally pro-British, however many of the Yankees also did not want America to enter the war themselves. The Germans were sympathetic to Germany and did not want the United States to enter into a war against Germany, but the Germans were not anti-British. Prior to World War I, many German community leaders in Wisconsin spoke openly and enthusiastically about how much better America was than Germany, due primarily (in their eyes) to the presence of English law and the English political culture the Americans had inherited from the colonial era, which they contrasted with the turmoil and oppression in Germany which they had so recently fled.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 689 square miles (1,780 km2), of which 646 square miles (1,670 km2) is land and 43 square miles (110 km2) (6.2%) is water.

Major highways

Highway 13 (Wisconsin)

Highway 21 (Wisconsin)

Highway 23 (Wisconsin)

Highway 73 (Wisconsin)

Highway 82 (Wisconsin)

Railroads

Union Pacific

Airport

63C - Adams County Airport serves the county and surrounding communities.

Adjacent counties

Wood County – northwest

Portage County – northeast

Waushara County – east

Marquette County – east

Columbia County – southeast

Sauk County – southwest

Juneau County – west

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 20,654. The population density was 32.0 inhabitants per square mile (12.4/km2). There were 16,692 housing units at an average density of 25.9 per square mile (10.0/km2).

The median age was 53.8 years. 14.6% of residents were under the age of 18 and 28.8% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 116.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 119.5 males age 18 and over.

There were 9,049 households in the county, of which 17.1% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.1% were married-couple households, 22.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 19.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Of the 16,692 housing units, 45.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 83.2% were owner-occupied and 16.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.1%.

The racial makeup of the county was 90.7% White, 2.9% Black or African American, 1.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.1% from some other race, and 3.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.9% of the population.

<0.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 18,643 people, 7,900 households, and 5,466 families residing in the county. The population density was 29 people per square mile (11 people/km2). There were 14,123 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile (8.5/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.63% White, 0.27% Black or African American, 0.59% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.33% from other races, and 0.83% from two or more races. 1.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 39.3% were of German, 14.8% American, 9.2% Polish, 8.3% Norwegian, 8.0% Irish and 6.0% English ancestry. 96.1% spoke English, 1.8% Spanish and 1.1% German as their first language.

There were 7,900 households, out of which 23.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.50% were married couples living together, 6.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.80% were non-families. 25.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.76.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 20.80% under the age of 18, 5.60% from 18 to 24, 24.30% from 25 to 44, 28.40% from 45 to 64, and 20.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 102.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.30 males.

In 2017, there were 131 births, giving a general fertility rate of 57.1 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 17th lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties. 51 of the births were to unmarried mothers, 80 were to married mothers. In 2017, 12.2% of the babies had a low birthweight, up from 7.8% in 2016 and the highest by percent in the state for 2017. In 71.0% of cases, prenatal care was deemed to be adequate, the 13th lowest in the state. Additionally, there were 10 induced abortions performed on women of Adams County residence in 2017.

Communities

Bracketed number refers to location on map, right

Cities

Adams (7)

Wisconsin Dells (also in Columbia County, Juneau County, and Sauk County) (9)

Village

Friendship (6) (county seat)

Census-designated places

Arkdale (4)

Dellwood (5)

Grand Marsh (8)

Lake Arrowhead (1)

Lake Camelot (3)

Lake Sherwood (2)

Education

School districts include: