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Waukesha, Wisconsin
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Waukesha, Wisconsin | |
 |
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| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| County | Waukesha |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Larry Nelson (D) |
| Area | |
| - Total | 70.4 km² (27.2 sq mi) |
| - Water | 0.2 km² (0.1 sq mi) 0.26% |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 64,825 |
| - Density | 2,399.5/km² (6,214.3/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Central (UTC-6) |
| - Summer (DST) | Central (UTC-5) |
| Website: http://www.ci.waukesha.wi.us | |
Waukesha [ˈwɑkəˌʃɑ] is a city in and the county seat of Waukesha CountyGR6, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2000 census, Waukesha had a total population of 64,826. The city is located adjacent to the Town of Waukesha.
In 2006, Money ranked Waukesha 36th on its list of the 100 best places to live in the United States.[1]
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The area that the city now encompasses was first inhabited in 1834. By 1846, the area was incorporated as the Village of Prairieville.[2] On February 8, 1847, it changed its name to Waukesha.[3] And in 1896, Waukesha incorporated as a city.[4]
Waukesha was known for its extremely clean and good-tasting spring water and was called a spa town. This earned the city the nicknames "Spring City" and "Saratoga of the West". However, emissions have since ruined these springs, and a number have gone dry. But during this particular era in the late 1800s and early 1900s, many celebrities of their day came to reside there for a while, such as Mary Todd Lincoln after her husband's death.[5]
During the Cold War Waukesha County hosted three Nike Missile batteries, which were located in the city of Waukesha as well as nearby Muskego and Lannon. In the city of Waukesha the US Army and later the Wisconsin National Guard operated the command and control center from 1956-70 at what is now Hillcrest Park on Davidson Road. The missile pits existed near the corner of Cleveland Ave and Hwy 164- first holding Ajax missiles with conventional warheads and later the nuclear equipped Hercules. The Hercules warhead provided a similar nuclear capability as that of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki in WWII. The Midwest Chapter of the Cold War Museum has promoted the preservation of the Hillcrest Park site as a local Cold War museum, honoring Cold War veterans and commemorating America's longest and costliest conflict. [1]
In 2006, Waukesha had a non-partisan election for mayor. Local pundits, however, labeled Ann Nischke as the Republicans' candidate and Larry Nelson as the Democrats' candidate. Larry Nelson won the election, which may show a change of politics in historically conservative Waukesha County.[2] Nelson is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[6] a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The name of the city means "fox" or "foxes," either from the Ojibwe word Waagoshag or the Potawatomi word Wauk-tsha. [7] Teens also call it "the sha", "Shaw Town" or simply the shaw.[8]
Waukesha is located near the center of Waukesha County in southeastern Wisconsin, 18 miles west of Milwaukee. Waukesha is also located 59 miles east of Madison. The city shares borders with City of Brookfield, Town of Brookfield, Genesee, New Berlin, City of Pewaukee, and Town of Waukesha.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.7 square miles (56.2 km²).About 21.6 square miles (55.9 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.32%) is water.
The city is located on the banks of the Fox River, which starts near Menomonee Falls and flows into the Illinois River.
| Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures | ||||||||||||
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rec High °F | 58 | 66 | 82 | 91 | 93 | 100 | 109 | 101 | 101 | 88 | 77 | 68 |
| Norm High °F | 27 | 33 | 44 | 57 | 70 | 80 | 84 | 82 | 73 | 61 | 45 | 33 |
| Norm Low °F | 11 | 17 | 27 | 38 | 49 | 58 | 63 | 62 | 53 | 42 | 30 | 18 |
| Rec Low °F | -27 | -28 | -14 | 7 | 26 | 34 | 42 | 39 | 28 | 17 | -9 | -23 |
| Precip (in) | 1.48 | 1.31 | 2.28 | 3.53 | 3.02 | 3.78 | 3.83 | 4.77 | 3.52 | 2.62 | 2.63 | 1.87 |
| Source: Weather.com[9] | ||||||||||||
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1860 | 1,456 |
|
|
| 1870 | 2,633 | 80.8% | |
| 1880 | 2,969 | 12.8% | |
| 1890 | 6,321 | 112.9% | |
| 1900 | 7,419 | 17.4% | |
| 1910 | 8,740 | 17.8% | |
| 1920 | 12,558 | 43.7% | |
| 1930 | 17,176 | 36.8% | |
| 1940 | 19,242 | 12.0% | |
| 1950 | 21,233 | 10.3% | |
| 1960 | 30,004 | 41.3% | |
| 1970 | 40,271 | 34.2% | |
| 1980 | 50,365 | 25.1% | |
| 1990 | 56,894 | 13.0% | |
| 2000 | 64,825 | 13.9% | |
| Est. 2005 | 67,658 | [10] | 4.4% |
| Source: U.S. Census[11] | |||
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 64,825 people, 25,663 households, and 16,296 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,000.5 people per square mile (1,158.8/km²). There were 26,856 housing units at an average density of 1,243.1/sq mi (480.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.22% White, 1.28% African American, 0.33% Native American, 2.17% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.31% from other races, and 1.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.58% of the population.
Approximately 32.5% of households had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. Some 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 33.6% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $50,084, and the median income for a family was $60,841. Males had a median income of $40,743 versus $29,279 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,242. About 3.0% of families and 5.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.0% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.
Waukesha is home to Carroll College, a private four-year Presbyterian school. Opening in 1846, it is the oldest college in the state[12] (a title also claimed by Beloit College). As a liberal arts school, it offers more than fifty areas of study at mostly an undergraduate level.
Additionally, the public two-year University of Wisconsin-Waukesha is on Waukesha's northwest side.
One of the two New Tribes Bible Institute campuses within the United States is located on a large hill in central Waukesha. Operated by New Tribes Mission, the school doubles as the first part of a four-year missionary training program.[13]
The School District of Waukesha serves the city and portions of other municipalities. It operates four high schools in the city: Waukesha South High School, Waukesha West High School, Waukesha North High School, and Harvey Phillip High School, an alternative school. It also runs three middle schools and 17 elementary schools.
The city is also home to Waukesha County's only Catholic high school, Catholic Memorial High School.
Listed are people or groups who are native to Waukesha, though they may not reside in the city anymore.
- Steve Miller, rock musician
- BoDeans, rock band
- Frank Caliendo, comedian
- Daniel Hoan, Mayor of Milwaukee
- Les Paul, guitarist, pioneer of the solid-body electric guitar and multitrack recording
- Alexander Randall, state governor, namesake of Camp Randall Stadium
- Jo Anne Paul, Former Television News Anchor at WTMJ-TV
- Tim Ward, American soccer player who currently plays for the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer
- Paul Hamm, Olympic gymnastic gold medalist went to Waukesha South High School here.
- Morgan Hamm, Olympic gymnastic contender went to Waukesha South High School here.
- Susan Hawk, Survivor: Pulau Tiga and Survivor: All-Stars contestant
- Terry Stanton, Former Television News Anchor at WTMJ-TV
- Austin Aries, professional wrestler
- Kurt Bestor, composer, conductor, musician
- Vernor Vinge, renowned science fiction author
- Leslie Osborne, United States women's national soccer team
Cellnet Technology Inc (based in Alpharetta, Georgia) plans to make Waukesha the second community in Wisconsin outfitted with a city-wide Wi-Fi network blanket. (Midwest Fiber Networks is scheduled to make Milwaukee the state's first wi-fi municipality by summer 2006.)[14]
Cellnet, which began working on a similar "blanket" for Madison, Wisconsin in early 2006, had planned to present their idea to Waukesha's Information Technology Advisory Committee in February 2006. If the proposed installation of the network goes through, city residents would only have to buy a wireless card (typically $50 USD) to gain access to the internet from any area in Waukesha.
- ^ Best Places to Live. Money. Retrieved on 2007-04-24.
- ^ Land Divisions Within Waukesha County. Sussex-Lisbon Area Historical Society, Inc.. Retrieved on 2007-04-24.
- ^ Town of Prairieville. NAME CHANGED FROM PRAIRIEVILLE TO WAUKESHA, P. 100, 1847, FEBRUARY 8, 1847. Office of the Secretary of State of Wisconsin. Retrieved on 2007-04-08.
- ^ name="slahs-land"
- ^ http://www.ci.waukesha.wi.us/History/springs_era.html
- ^ Mayors Against Illegal Guns: Coalition Members.
- ^ "Approach of the White Man." History of Milwaukee. Chicago: The Western Historical Company, 1881. pp. 33-55.
- ^ http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=the+sha
- ^ Average Weather for Waukesha, WI. Weather.com. Retrieved on 2007-04-26.
- ^ Waukesha city, Wisconsin. American FactFinder. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-04-25.
- ^ Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (July 2004). "The Population of Southeastern Wisconsin" (PDF). Technical Report Number 11 (4th Edition). Retrieved on 2007-04-09.
- ^ Carroll College History. Carroll College. Retrieved on 2007-04-27.
- ^ New Tribes Bible Institute. New Tribes Mission. Retrieved on 2007-11-13.
- ^ Esptein, Reid J. "Waukesha could be next city to go Wi-Fi" Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, February 3, 2006.
- Waukesha, Wisconsin is at coordinates Coordinates:
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Waukesha County, Wisconsin |
||
|---|---|---|
| County seat: Waukesha | ||
| Cities |
Brookfield | Delafield | Muskego | New Berlin | Oconomowoc | Pewaukee | Waukesha |
 |
| Towns | ||
| Villages |
Big Bend | Butler | Chenequa | Dousman | Eagle | Elm Grove | Hartland | Lac La Belle | Lannon | Menomonee Falls | Merton | Mukwonago | Nashotah | North Prairie | Pewaukee | Oconomowoc Lake | Sussex | Wales |
|
| CDPs | ||
| Communities | ||
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||
|---|---|---|
| Central City |  |
|
| Largest Municipalities (over 25,000 in 2000) |
Brookfield° · Franklin° · Greenfield° · Menomonee Falls‡ · New Berlin° · Oak Creek° · Waukesha° · Wauwatosa° · West Allis° · West Bend° |
|
| Municipalities (over 10,000 in 2000) |
Brown Deer‡ · Caledonia‡ · Cedarburg° · Cudahy° · Germantown‡ · Glendale° · Grafton‡ · Greendale‡ · Mequon° · Muskego° · Oconomowoc° · Pewaukee° · Richfield* · Shorewood‡ · South Milwaukee° · Whitefish Bay‡ |
|
| Smaller Municipalities (under 10,000 in 2000) |
Bayside‡ · Big Bend‡ · Brookfield* · Elm Grove‡ · Fox Point‡ · Hales Corners‡ · Mukwonago‡ · Pewaukee‡ · River Hills‡ · Saukville‡ · Saint Francis° · Sussex‡ · Thiensville‡ · West Milwaukee‡ |
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| Counties |
Milwaukee · Ozaukee · Racine · Washington · Waukesha |
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