Rusk County, Wisconsin

Rusk County, Wisconsin
Location in the state of Wisconsin
Wisconsin's location in the U.S.
Founded	1901
Seat	Ladysmith
Largest city	Ladysmith
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	931 sq mi (2,411 km²) 913 sq mi (2,365 km²) 18 sq mi (46 km²), 1.91%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	15,347 17/sq mi (6/km²)
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.ruskcounty.org

Rusk County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 15,347. Its county seat is Ladysmith. Founded in 1901, Rusk County was originally named "Gates" County. It was formed out of the northern portion of Chippewa County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 931 square miles (2,410 km²), of which 913 square miles (2,360 km²) is land and 18 square miles (47 km²) (1.91%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Sawyer County - north
• Price County - east
• Taylor County - southeast
• Chippewa County - south
• Barron County - west
• Washburn County - northwest

Major highways

U.S. Highway 8 Highway 27 (Wisconsin) Highway 40 (Wisconsin) Highway 73 (Wisconsin)

Demographics

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Rusk County.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1910	11,160		—
1920	16,403		47.0%
1930	16,081		−2.0%
1940	17,737		10.3%
1950	16,790		−5.3%
1960	14,794		−11.9%
1970	14,238		−3.8%
1980	15,589		9.5%
1990	15,079		−3.3%
2000	15,347		1.8%
2010	14,755		−3.9%
WI Counties 1900-1990

As of the census of 2000, there were 15,347 people, 6,095 households, and 4,156 families residing in the county. The population density was 17 people per square mile (6/km²). There were 7,609 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.69% White, 0.51% Black or African American, 0.42% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 0.35% from other races, and 0.66% from two or more races. 0.76% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 32.7% were of German, 13.6% Polish, 9.0% Norwegian, 6.8% Irish, 6.2% American and 5.6% English ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 6,095 households out of which 28.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.90% were married couples living together, 7.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.80% were non-families. 27.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.97.

In the county, the population was spread out with 24.80% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 18.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 98.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.40 males.

Cities, villages, and towns

Cities and Villages		Towns				Unincorporated Communities		Ghost Towns
Bruce Conrath Glen Flora Hawkins Ingram Ladysmith Sheldon Tony Weyerhaeuser		Atlanta Big Bend Big Falls Cedar Rapids Dewey Flambeau Grant Grow	Hawkins Hubbard Lawrence Marshall Murry Richland Rusk South Fork	Strickland Stubbs Thornapple True Washington Wilkinson Willard Wilson		Apollonia Bear Lake Imalone Island Lake Murry Port Arthur South Fork Strickland Thornapple		Atlanta Big Bend Crane Egypt Flambeau Horseman (Varner) † Jerome Kalish Mandowish (Manedowish) Poplar / Beldonville	Pre Bram Shaws Farm Teresita Tibbets Vallee View / Walrath West Ingram Wilson Center / Dogville (Starez)

† Horseman was mainly in Rusk County, but extended into Barron County.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Rusk County, Wisconsin

External links

• Rusk County
• Wisconsin DOT map of Rusk County