Clark County, Wisconsin

Clark County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, its population was 34,659.^[2] The county seat is Neillsville.^[3]

Clark County
County
Clark County Courthouse
Location within the U.S. state of Wisconsin
Wisconsin's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 44°44′N 90°37′W
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
Founded	1854
Named after	George Rogers Clark
Seat	Neillsville
Largest city	Neillsville
Area
• Total	1,219 sq mi (3,160 km2)
• Land	1,210 sq mi (3,100 km2)
• Water	9.0 sq mi (23 km2)  0.7%
Population  (2020)
• Total	34,659
• Estimate  (2024)[1]	34,801
• Density	28.8/sq mi (11.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	7th
Website	www.clarkcountywi.gov%20www.clarkcountywi.gov

History

By the early 1800s, the land and streams that are now Clark County were the hunting grounds of the Chippewa, Dakota, Ho-Chunk, and possibly Menominee peoples. In 1836, these Indigenous groups were joined by a party of French-Canadian fur traders who established a temporary post for the American Fur Company on the East Fork of the Black River.^[4]

The next European-American arrivals were likely Mormon loggers in 1844, who came to harvest pine logs from the forests along the Black River. They floated the logs downstream to a sawmill at Black River Falls, where the lumber was processed and transported further downriver for use in constructing the Mormon temple in Nauvoo, Illinois. The Mormons established logging camps along the river at sites including Mormon Riffle (about a mile below Neillsville), near Weston's Rapids, and south of Greenwood. This logging operation likely ended by 1846, when most of the Mormons left the area following the murder of Joseph Smith.^[5]

In June 1845, James and Henry O'Neill led a party overland from Black River Falls, cutting a road through the brush. They used oxen to pull a wagon carrying tools and supplies. Upon arriving, they built a cabin on O'Neill Creek, followed by a sawmill. Lumber from the mill was rafted down the Black River to Black River Falls and then transported to Alexander O'Neill in Burlington, Iowa. However, a storm in June 1847 caused severe flooding of the Black River, destroying all the existing sawmills. Despite this setback, the settlers rebuilt.^[6]

Clark County fairgrounds

Clark County was founded in 1853 and officially organized the following year.^[7] The county's name origin is uncertain—it was either named for A. W. Clark, an early settler,^[8] or for General George Rogers Clark.^[9][10]

Electricity became available in some towns and villages around 1900 through private power plants. For example, in 1902, the Paulsen mill began supplying electricity to the village of Withee. However, rural farms remained without electricity until the late 1930s. In 1937, the newly formed Clark Electric Cooperative, funded by a loan from the New Deal's Rural Electrification Administration, began installing power lines to serve the county's rural areas.^[11]

In 1920, construction began on the Clark County Asylum, located two miles east of Owen. It was the last in a network of 35 county mental hospitals established in Wisconsin, designed to provide long-term care for patients unlikely to recover. Twelve patients from the Wausau asylum assisted with construction and became the facility’s first residents. The asylum operated a farm to keep patients engaged while supplying food for the institution. By 1924, patients cultivated 60 acres of corn, 25 acres of potatoes, 16 acres of barley, 40 acres of oats, 6 acres of buckwheat, and 3 acres of millet. A dairy herd was later introduced, along with hog farming and a slaughterhouse by 1948. Over time, the institution's mission shifted from a "custodial asylum" to a "treatment hospital" and eventually to a skilled nursing facility. Today, it is known as the Clark County Rehab and Living Center.^[12]

Geography

Rolling farmland on the shoulders of North Bluff north of Willard

According to the United States Census Bureau, Clark County has a total area of 1,219 square miles (3,160 km²), of which 1,210 square miles (3,100 km²) is land and 9.0 square miles (23 km²) (0.7%) is water.^[13]

Adjacent counties

• Taylor County – north
• Marathon County – east
• Wood County – southeast
• Jackson County – south
• Eau Claire County – west
• Chippewa County – northwest

Major highways

U.S. Highway 10 U.S. Highway 12 Highway 13 (Wisconsin) Highway 27 (Wisconsin)

Highway 29 (Wisconsin) Highway 73 (Wisconsin) Highway 95 (Wisconsin) Highway 98 (Wisconsin)

Railroads

• Union Pacific
• Watco
• Canadian National

Buses

Airport

• KVIQ – Neillsville Municipal Airport

Climate

Clark County Climate chart (explanation) J F M A M J J A S O N D     34     −11 −15     41     −10 −17     47     1 −9     112     15 2     158     18 11     157     24 13     61     25 17     100     23 12     70     21 9     126     14 2     43     6 −6     40     −8 −11 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °C █ Precipitation totals in mm Source: [14] Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     1.3     12 5     1.6     14 1     1.9     34 16     4.4     59 36     6.2     64 52     6.2     75 55     2.4     77 63     3.9     73 54     2.8     70 48     5     57 36     1.7     43 21     1.6     18 12 █ Average max. and min. temperatures in °F █ Precipitation totals in inches

Demographics and religion statistics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1860	789		—
1870	3,450		337.3%
1880	10,715		210.6%
1890	17,708		65.3%
1900	25,848		46.0%
1910	30,074		16.3%
1920	35,120		16.8%
1930	34,165		−2.7%
1940	33,972		−0.6%
1950	32,459		−4.5%
1960	31,527		−2.9%
1970	30,361		−3.7%
1980	32,910		8.4%
1990	31,647		−3.8%
2000	33,557		6.0%
2010	34,690		3.4%
2020	34,659		−0.1%
2024 (est.)	34,801		0.4%
U.S. Decennial Census[15] 1790–1960[16] 1900–1990[17] 1990–2000[18] 2010[19] 2020[2] 2024[1]

2020 census

As of the 2020 census,^[2] the population of Clark County was 34,659. The population density was 28.7 people per square mile (11.1 people/km²). There were 14,755 housing units at an average density of 12.2 units per square mile (4.7 units/km²).

The racial makeup of the county was:

• 92.2% White
• 0.5% Native American
• 0.3% Black or African American
• 0.3% Asian
• 3.4% from other races
• 3.2% from two or more races

Additionally, 6.1% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2000 census

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Clark County

As of the 2000 census,^[20] Clark County had a population of 33,557, with 12,047 households and 8,673 families residing in the county. The population density was 28 people per square mile (11 people/km²). There were 13,531 housing units at an average density of 11 units per square mile (4.2 units/km²).

The racial composition of the county was:

• 98.05% White
• 0.13% Black or African American
• 0.48% Native American
• 0.30% Asian
• 0.01% Pacific Islander
• 0.56% from other races
• 0.47% from two or more races

Additionally, 1.20% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino of any race.

The most common ancestries reported were:

• 54.0% German
• 9.0% Polish
• 6.2% Norwegian
• 6.1% American

In terms of language, 6.62% of residents spoke German, Pennsylvania Dutch, or Dutch at home, while an additional 1.34% spoke Spanish.^[21]

There were 12,047 households, of which:

• 35.0% had children under 18 living with them
• 61.2% were married couples living together
• 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present
• 28.0% were non-families

Additionally, 23.8% of all households consisted of individuals, and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years or older. The average household size was 2.73, while the average family size was 3.27.

The county’s population was distributed as follows:

• 29.9% under the age of 18
• 7.7% from 18 to 24
• 26.2% from 25 to 44
• 20.2% from 45 to 64
• 16.0% aged 65 or older

The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.5 males. Among adults 18 and older, there were 98.7 males per 100 females.

In 2017, there were 554 births in the county, resulting in a general fertility rate of 99.2 births per 1,000 women aged 15–44—the second-highest rate among Wisconsin’s 72 counties. Of these, 184 births occurred at home, more than in any other county in the state.^[22]

Religion

Religion in Clark County, according to ARDA (2020) ^[23]

1. Catholic Church (22.9%)
2. Anabaptist Churches (Amish and Mennonite) (12.5%)
3. Evangelical Churches (11.9%)
4. Mainline Protestant Churches (9.20%)
5. 0.00%
6. Others (1.40%)
7. None (42.1%)

In 2010, the largest religious groups by reported number of adherents in Clark County were:

• Catholicism: 9,535 adherents
• Missouri Synod Lutheranism: 2,459 adherents
• ELCA Lutheranism: 2,281 adherents
• Amish: 1,986 adherents
• United Church of Christ: 959 adherents
• Wisconsin Synod Lutheran: 891 adherents
• United Methodist: 577 adherents.^[24]

Communities

Clark County sign

Cities

• Abbotsford (partly in Marathon County)
• Colby (partly in Marathon County)
• Greenwood
• Loyal
• Neillsville (county seat)
• Owen
• Thorp
• Stanley (mostly in Chippewa County)

Villages

• Curtiss
• Dorchester (partly in Marathon County)
• Granton
• Unity (mostly in Marathon County)
• Withee

Towns

• Beaver
• Butler
• Colby
• Dewhurst
• Eaton
• Foster
• Fremont
• Grant
• Green Grove
• Hendren
• Hewett
• Hixon
• Hoard
• Levis
• Longwood
• Loyal
• Lynn
• Mayville
• Mead
• Mentor
• Pine Valley
• Reseburg
• Seif
• Sherman
• Sherwood
• Thorp
• Unity
• Warner
• Washburn
• Weston
• Withee
• Worden
• York

Census-designated places

• Chili
• Humbird

Unincorporated communities

Globe is a remnant of a rural farming community, with the church remaining.

• Atwood
• Bright
• Christie
• Clark
• Columbia
• Eadsville
• Eidsvold
• Globe
• Hemlock
• Junction
• Lombard
• Longwood
• Lynn
• Nevins
• Reseburg
• Riplinger
• Sherwood
• Shortville
• Tioga
• Sidney
• Spokeville
• Veefkind
• Willard

Ghost towns/neighborhoods

• Kurth
• Maple Works
• Romeo
• Trow
• Worden

Along with modern farmers, the county is home to many Amish, who continue to farm using traditional methods.

In 2013, there were 16 Amish church districts in Clark County.^[25]

Politics

Clark County has leaned Republican for much of its history, but it has voted for Democrats 6 times since 1950. The last Democrat to win the county was Barack Obama in 2008, and since then it has trended strongly Republican in every election. In 2020 and 2024, Donald Trump won the highest share of the vote for a Republican since Dwight Eisenhower's 1952 landslide.^[26]

United States presidential election results for Clark County, Wisconsin^[27]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	10,481	68.32%	4,509	29.39%	350	2.28%
2020	10,002	67.14%	4,524	30.37%	372	2.50%
2016	8,652	63.28%	4,221	30.87%	800	5.85%
2012	7,412	53.71%	6,172	44.72%	217	1.57%
2008	6,383	44.99%	7,454	52.54%	350	2.47%
2004	7,966	52.67%	6,966	46.06%	193	1.28%
2000	7,461	52.73%	5,931	41.92%	757	5.35%
1996	4,622	35.94%	5,540	43.08%	2,699	20.99%
1992	4,977	33.44%	5,540	37.22%	4,368	29.34%
1988	6,296	48.30%	6,642	50.95%	98	0.75%
1984	8,099	58.24%	5,647	40.61%	160	1.15%
1980	7,921	52.73%	6,091	40.54%	1,011	6.73%
1976	6,095	44.35%	7,238	52.67%	409	2.98%
1972	7,138	56.47%	4,617	36.52%	886	7.01%
1968	6,325	51.20%	4,601	37.24%	1,428	11.56%
1964	4,897	38.55%	7,781	61.25%	26	0.20%
1960	7,368	55.22%	5,934	44.47%	41	0.31%
1956	7,941	62.26%	4,765	37.36%	48	0.38%
1952	9,406	71.71%	3,652	27.84%	58	0.44%
1948	5,885	52.66%	4,840	43.31%	450	4.03%
1944	7,948	62.80%	4,612	36.44%	97	0.77%
1940	9,501	65.89%	4,683	32.48%	236	1.64%
1936	5,196	39.57%	6,931	52.78%	1,005	7.65%
1932	3,132	26.10%	8,372	69.77%	495	4.13%
1928	6,948	62.48%	3,938	35.41%	235	2.11%
1924	3,130	31.27%	552	5.51%	6,328	63.22%
1920	6,246	79.74%	745	9.51%	842	10.75%
1916	3,371	64.84%	1,614	31.04%	214	4.12%
1912	2,035	45.61%	1,528	34.24%	899	20.15%
1908	3,491	65.73%	1,576	29.67%	244	4.59%
1904	4,091	75.68%	1,050	19.42%	265	4.90%
1900	3,864	74.78%	1,157	22.39%	146	2.83%
1896	3,328	69.41%	1,318	27.49%	149	3.11%
1892	2,039	51.52%	1,711	43.23%	208	5.26%

Education

School districts include:^[28]

• Abbotsford School District
• Alma Center School District
• Colby School District
• Granton Area School District
• Greenwood School District
• Loyal School District
• Marshfield School District
• Neillsville School District
• Osseo-Fairchild School District
• Owen-Withee School District
• Pittsville School District
• Spencer School District
• Stanley-Boyd Area School District
• Thorp School District

See also

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