Richland County

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 589 square miles (1,530 km2), of which 586 square miles (1,520 km2) is land and 3.1 square miles (8.0 km2) (0.5%) is water.

Airport

Richland Airport (93C) serves the county and surrounding communities.

Adjacent counties

Vernon County – north

Sauk County – east

Iowa County – southeast

Grant County – southwest

Crawford County – west

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 17,304, the median age was 45.4 years, 22.7% of residents were under the age of 18, 23.4% were 65 years of age or older, and there were 104.5 males for every 100 females (102.4 per 100 females age 18 and over).

The population density was 29.5 people per square mile (11.4 people/km2) with 8,475 housing units at an average density of 14.5 units per square mile (5.6 units/km2).

The racial makeup of the county was 93.4% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.2% from some other race, and 4.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.0% of the population.

28.5% of residents lived in urban areas, while 71.5% lived in rural areas.

There were 7,141 households in the county, of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 49.1% were married-couple households, 21.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Of those housing units, 15.7% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.4% were owner-occupied and 25.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.1%.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 17,924 people, 7,118 households, and 4,833 families residing in the county. The population density was 31 people per square mile (12 people/km2). There were 8,164 housing units at an average density of 14 units per square mile (5.4 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.39% White, 0.15% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.28% from other races, and 0.68% from two or more races. 0.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 37.7% were of German, 12.5% Norwegian, 10.3% Irish, 9.5% English and 8.8% American ancestry. 97.1% spoke English, 1.1% German, and 1.1% Spanish as their first language.

There were 7,118 households, out of which 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.30% were married couples living together, 7.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.10% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.20% under the age of 18, 8.40% from 18 to 24, 25.50% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 17.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.90 males.

Communities

City

Richland Center (county seat)

Villages

Boaz

Cazenovia (partly in Sauk County)

Lone Rock

Viola (partly in Vernon County)

Yuba

Census-designated places

Gotham

Sextonville

Ghost towns/neighborhoods

Ashford

Corwin

Henrietta

McGrew

Mill Creek

Politics

Richland County has been a Republican-leaning county for most of its existence, only backing Democratic candidates six times and never giving them a vote share of more than 60%.