Lancaster, Wisconsin
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Location of Lancaster, Wisconsin
Lancaster is a city located in Grant County, Wisconsin. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 4,070. It is the county seat of Grant CountyTemplate:GR.
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Geography
Lancaster is located at 42°50'55" North, 90°42'38" West (42.848505, -90.710430)Template:GR. Lancaster is located in the unglaciated "Driftless Area" of southwest Wisconsin whose topography is strikingly different from that of the rest of the state.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.3 km² (2.8 mi²). 7.3 km² (2.8 mi²) of it is land and none of the area is covered with water.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there are 4,070 people, 1,706 households, and 1,079 families residing in the city. The population density is 557.2/km² (1,441.1/mi²). There are 1,799 housing units at an average density of 246.3/km² (637.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 99.24% White, 0.07% African American, 0.00% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, and 0.29% from two or more races. 0.42% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
Lancaster_courthouse.jpg
There are 1,706 households out of which 28.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.8% are married couples living together, 8.0% have a female householder with no husband present, and 36.7% are non-families. 31.8% of all households are made up of individuals and 18.1% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.31 and the average family size is 2.93.
In the city the population is spread out with 23.5% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 20.5% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 40 years. For every 100 females there are 89.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 87.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $32,723, and the median income for a family is $47,500. Males have a median income of $30,683 versus $22,331 for females. The per capita income for the city is $17,797. 8.9% of the population and 6.4% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 8.9% of those under the age of 18 and 9.7% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
Notes
Major G.M. Price, a land speculator, laid out the town in 1837. He was persuaded to name it Lancaster by a relative who emigrated from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. At Pleasant Ridge, one of the first Afro-American communities in Wisconsin was founded by the Shepard family in 1849 and settled in the 1850s. Lancaster was the home of the first Governor of Wisconsin, Nelson Dewey. Lancaster calls itself "The City of the Dome" after the octagonal glass and copper-clad dome of its courthouse building (illustrated, right above), which was designed by Armand Koch and built in 1905. In the spandrels of the courthouse dome are four allegorical murals (illustration, left) painted by Franz Edward Rohrbeck.
The Municipal Building (1922) is a fine example of Prairie School early modern architecture, which has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The post office contains a striking Depression-era mural, painted under the Works Progress Administration program in the 1930s (illustration, right). Frank Lloyd Wright was born in Wisconsin, and the stone and wood Patrick Kinney house (1951) is one of some 45 Wright structures in the state (see link).
Lancaster, Wisconsin Information and Contacts
Lancaster City Hall 206 S. Madison Street Lancaster, WI 53813-1799 Phone: (608) 723-4246 FAX: (608) 723-4789
Lancaster Area Chamber of Commerce 206 S. Madison St., PO Box 292 Lancaster, WI 53813 Phone: (608) 723-2820 Fax: (608) 723-7409 E-mail: lanchamber@pcii.net
Accommodations:
- Bed-and-Breakfasts (http://www.lancasterwisconsin.com/business/bed-and-breakfasts.html)
- Hotel (http://www.lancasterwisconsin.com/business/hotel.html)
External links
- City of Lancaster official website (http://www.lancasterwisconsin.com/)
- Frank Lloyd Wright Wisconsin webpage (http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/1469/flw_wi.html)
- Milwaukee Courier article on Pleasant Ridge, the first African American settlement in Wisconsin (http://www.milwaukeecourier.org/news/Article/Article.asp?NewsID=44574&sID=38)