Iron County, Wisconsin


Iron County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,916, making it the third-least populous county in Wisconsin. Its county seat is Hurley. It was named for the valuable iron ore found within its borders.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Adjacent counties

County Highways

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 5,916 people living in the county. 97.9% were White, 0.6% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% Black or African American, 0.2% of some other race and 0.9% of two or more races. 0.6% were Hispanic or Latino. 22.9% were of German, 13.7% Italian, 12.6% Finnish, 8.2% Polish, 6.6% American and 5.4% Irish ancestry.
As of the census of 2000, there were 6,861 people, 3,083 households, and 1,960 families living in the county. The population density was 9 people per square mile. There were 5,706 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 98.28% White, 0.09% Black or African American, 0.60% Native American, 0.13% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.06% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. 0.66% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.9% were of German, 18.6% Italian, 15.2% Finnish, 9.3% Polish and 6.4% Irish ancestry. 97.1% spoke English as their first language.
There were 3,083 households out of which 22.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.00% were married couples living together, 7.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.40% were non-families. 32.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.74.
In the county, the population was spread out with 19.40% under the age of 18, 5.90% from 18 to 24, 24.70% from 25 to 44, 26.80% from 45 to 64, and 23.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.80 males.
In 2017, there were 34 births, giving a general fertility rate of 46.1 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 2nd lowest rate out of 72 Wisconsin counties. 13 of the births were to unmarried mothers, 21 were to married mothers. Additionally, there were no reported induced abortions performed on women of Iron County residence in 2017.

Communities

Cities

The National Register of Historic Places lists the following historic sites in Iron County:
SiteArea of significanceYear added
Annala Round BarnArchitecture, agriculture1979
Montreal Company Location Historic DistrictLandscape architecture, community planning and development, industry1980
Old Iron County CourthousePolitics/government, architecture1977
Plummer Mine HeadframeEngineering, industry1997
SpringsteadArchitecture, exploration/settlement1997

Politics

From 1928 to 2008, Iron County voted Democratic in presidential elections, the only two exceptions being Richard Nixon in 1972 and George W. Bush in 2000. Beginning in 2012, Iron County became a swing county, with Mitt Romney winning the county by 6 votes. The county gave 59.2% of the vote to Trump in the 2016 election.