Portage County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the U.S. state of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. As of th
2020 census
the population was 70,377. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

is Stevens Point. Portage County comprises the Stevens Point, WI Micropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Wausau-Stevens Point- Wisconsin Rapids, WI

Combined Statistical Area Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and ...

History

Portage County was created from the Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and organized in 1844. Like the city of

Portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

, Portage County is named for the portage between the Fox and Wisconsin rivers; Portage County originally included the portage and Portage but boundary changes detached the county from its namesake.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.7%) is water.

Major highways

Railroads

Canadian National The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN ...

Buses

* Stevens Point Transit * List of intercity bus stops in Wisconsin

Airport

* KSTE - Stevens Point Municipal Airport

Adjacent counties

Marathon County Marathon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 138,013. Marathon County's seat is Wausau. It was founded in 1850, created from a portion of Portage County. At that time the cou ...

- north *

Shawano County Shawano County (pronounced SHAW-no) (originally Shawanaw County) is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,881. Its county seat is Shawano. Shawano County is included in the Shawano, WI ...

- northeast * Waupaca County - east * Waushara County - southeast * Adams County - southwest * Wood County - west

Wildlife refuges

* Buena Vista Marsh * Dewey Marsh *

Mead Wildlife Area The Mead (George W.) Wildlife Area is a state wildlife area covering over in central Wisconsin. It includes portions of Marathon, Portage, and Wood counties. It is managed by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR). The Area is comm ...

Paul J. Olson Wildlife Area Paul may refer to: * Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, the population was 70,377. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was . There were 31,148 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.5%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 3.2% Asian, 1.3%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.4% Native American, 1.3% from other races, and 4.2% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 3.7%

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race.

2000 census

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2000, there were 67,182 people, 25,040 households, and 16,501 families residing in the county. The

was 83 people per square mile (32/km²). There were 26,589 housing units at an average density of 33 per square mile (13/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.73%

, 0.32%

, 0.36% Native American, 2.25% Asian, 0.04%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.43% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. 1.44% of the population were

or Latino of any race. 32.8% were of Polish, 31.6%

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, 5.4% Norwegian and 5.0% Irish ancestry. 93.9% spoke

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

, 1.7% Spanish, 1.6% Polish and 1.3% Hmong as their first language. There were 25,040 households, out of which 32.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.10% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...

living together, 7.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.10% were non-families. 24.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.07. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.10% under the age of 18, 16.20% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 21.10% from 45 to 64, and 10.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 99.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.80 males. In 2017, there were 674 births, giving a general fertility rate of 46.4 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the third lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties.

Communities

Amherst Speedway Four Cylinder race cars

City

* Stevens Point (county seat)

Villages

Almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...

Amherst Amherst may refer to: People * Amherst (surname), including a list of people with the name * Earl Amherst of Arracan in the East Indies, a title in the British Peerage; formerly ''Baron Amherst'' * Baron Amherst of Hackney of the City of London, ...

* Amherst Junction * Junction City * Milladore (mostly in Wood County) * Nelsonville * Park Ridge *

Plover Plovers ( , ) are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. Description There are about 66 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subf ...

* Rosholt * Whiting

Towns

* Alban *

* Belmont *

Buena Vista Buena Vista, meaning "good view" in Spanish, may refer to: Places Canada *Bonavista, Newfoundland and Labrador, with the name being originally derived from “Buena Vista” *Buena Vista, Saskatchewan * Buena Vista, Saskatoon, a neighborhood in ...

* Carson * Dewey * Eau Pleine * Grant *

Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...

* Lanark * Linwood * New Hope * Pine Grove *

* Sharon * Stockton

Census-designated places

* Bancroft * Polonia

Unincorporated communities

* Alban * Arnott * Badger * Blaine * Casimir *

Coddington Coddington may refer to: Places * Coddington, Cheshire, United Kingdom * Coddington, Derbyshire, United Kingdom * Coddington, Herefordshire, United Kingdom * Coddington, Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom * Coddington, Wisconsin, United States * Co ...

* Custer * Dopp * Ellis *

Esker An esker, eskar, eschar, or os, sometimes called an ''asar'', ''osar'', or ''serpent kame'', is a long, winding ridge of stratified sand and gravel, examples of which occur in glaciated and formerly glaciated regions of Europe and North Ame ...

* Fancher * Garfield * Heffron (partial) * Keene * Kellner (partial) * Little Waupon *

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

* Meehan * Mill Creek Community * New Hope *

North Star Polaris is a star in the northern circumpolar constellation of Ursa Minor. It is designated α Ursae Minoris ( Latinized to ''Alpha Ursae Minoris'') and is commonly called the North Star or Pole Star. With an apparent magnitude that ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

* Rocky Run * Stockton * Torun * West Almond * West Bancroft

Ghost town/neighborhood

* Lake Emily

Politics

Portage County has been reliably Democratic in presidential elections since Dwight Eisenhower's win in 1956. However, recent elections have suggested that the county is turning into a battleground area, with Donald Trump holding the margin in the county to within 5%.

References

External links

Portage County government website

Portage County map
from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
Portage County Business Council, Inc.

Portage County Historical Society
{{authority control 1844 establishments in Wisconsin Territory Populated places established in 1844