View source for Port Edwards (town), Wisconsin

{{About|the town|the adjacent village|Port Edwards, Wisconsin}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name                     = Port Edwards
|official_name            = 
|settlement_type          = Town
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

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|image_skyline            = Port Edwards Town Hall.jpg
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = Town hall
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|image_seal               =

<!-- Maps -->
|pushpin_map              = Wisconsin
|pushpin_label_position   = <!-- the position of the pushpin label: left, right, top, bottom, none -->
|pushpin_map_caption      = Location within the state of Wisconsin
|pushpin_mapsize          =
|image_map                = 
|map_caption              = Location within Wood county
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|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             =

<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name  = {{flag|United States}}
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1  = {{flag|Wisconsin}}
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Wisconsin|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Wood County, Wisconsin|Wood]]
|government_footnotes     = 
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|established_date         =

<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = 
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 101.6
|area_land_km2            = 100.0
|area_water_km2           = 1.6

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[United States Census, 2000|2000]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 1446
|population_density_km2   = auto

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|timezone                 = [[Central Time Zone (Americas)|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = -6
|timezone_DST             = CDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -5
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|elevation_ft             = 
|coordinates              = {{coord|44|20|38|N|89|51|28|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]s
|postal_code              = 
|area_codes                = [[Area codes 715 and 534|715 & 534]] 
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               =
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              =
|blank2_name              = [[Public Land Survey System|PLSS]] township
|blank2_info              = parts of T21N R4E, T21N R5E, and T22N R5E
|website                  = 
|footnotes                = 
}}
'''Port Edwards''' is a town in [[Wood County, Wisconsin|Wood County]], [[Wisconsin]], United States. The population was 1,446 at the 2000 census. The [[Port Edwards, Wisconsin|village of Port Edwards]] is located to the northeast of and adjacent to the town. The town contains the [[Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin|Ho-Chunk]] community of [[Ceex Haci, Wisconsin|Ceex Haci]].
 
==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of 39.2&nbsp;square miles (101.6&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>), of which, 38.6&nbsp;square miles (100.0&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of it is land and 0.6&nbsp;square miles (1.6&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of it (1.58%) is water.

==History==
The part of the town of Port Edwards within three miles of the [[Wisconsin River]] was in the "Indian strip," sold by the [[Menominee]] to the U.S. government in the 1836 [[Treaty of the Cedars]]. As such, it was logged and surveyed early.<ref>{{cite web|last=Rosholt|first=Malcolm|title=Pioneers of the Pinery|url=http://www.mcmillanlibrary.org/rosholt/pioneers-of-the-pinery/pionpine/images/00000003.pdf|publisher=Rosholt House|accessdate=May 25, 2013|pages=23–24|year=1979}}</ref> In 1839 a crew working for the U.S. government [[Surveying|surveyed]] what would become parts of Port Edwards, walking through the woods and crossing the river, measuring with [[Gunter's chain|chain]] and [[Solar compass|compass]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Land Survey Information|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/SurveyNotes/SurveyInfo.html|publisher=Board of Commissioners of Public Lands|accessdate=March 26, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Field Notes for T21N R5E|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/SurveyNotes/SurveyNotes-idx?type=PLSS&twp=T021NR005E|work=Original Field Notes and Plat Maps, 1833-1866|publisher=Board of Commissioners of Public Lands|accessdate=July 11, 2013}}</ref> In 1851 a different crew surveyed the section lines. For the six mile square that now contains [[Nekoosa, Wisconsin|Nekoosa]] and the village of [[Port Edwards, Wisconsin|Port Edwards]], they gave this general description:
<blockquote>''The character of the Soil in this town is very uniform. The Uplands are all [[pine barrens]] on a light Sandy Soil. the timber nearly all burned off by the yearly Indian fires. The large [[Eastern white pine|pines]], valuable for lumber, are all gone. The bottom lands tho somewhat better, are sandy & not sufficiently large to make them valuable. Inhabitants are very scarce thin(?) being a Single house at Pt. Bausse, a noted(?) place for refitting rafts after passing the rapids before their final departure for the [[Mississippi River|Mississippi]], & a French hamlet on Section 1. On the whole it may be said of this town that for soil or timber it is nearly worthless. The Islands in the river are all overflowed & are neither valuable for size, soil, or timber & were therefore not meandered.''<ref>{{cite web|last=Stansbury|first=Erskine|title=Interior Field Notes (Sept. 1851 - Oct. 1851)|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/SurveyNotes/SurveyNotes-idx?type=article&byte=2771431&isize=L&twp=T021NR005E|publisher=Board of Commissioners of Public Lands|accessdate=2013-07-11}}</ref></blockquote>

Port Edwards was established in 1874, taking its name from the village of the same name within its borders.<ref>{{cite book | url=http://www.mcmillanlibrary.org/files/docs/placenames.pdf | title=Wood County Place Names | publisher=The University of Wisconsin Press | author=Rudolph, Robert S. | year=1970 | pages=66}}</ref>

==Demographics==
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|accessdate=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2000, there were 1,446 people, 526 households, and 399 families residing in the town. The [[population density]] was 37.4 people per square mile (14.5/km<sup>2</sup>).  There were 555 housing units at an average density of 14.4 per square mile (5.5/km<sup>2</sup>). The racial makeup of the town was 91.01% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.14% [[African American (U.S. Census)|Black]] or [[Race (United States Census)|African American]], 5.26% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.83% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 2.07% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.69% from two or more races.  4.56% of the population were [[Hispanic]] or [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Latino]] of any race.

There were 526 households, out of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.1% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.1% were non-families. 20.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.17.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 30.7% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $43,804, and the median income for a family was $52,604. Males had a median income of $41,736 versus $26,250 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $20,020. About 4.2% of families and 6.1% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.

==Notable people==
*[[John Edwards (Wisconsin)|John Edwards]], lumberman and politician<ref>'Wisconsin Blue Book 1891,' Biographical Sketch of John Edwards, pg. 605</ref>

==References==
<references />

== External links ==
* [http://images.library.wisc.edu/awareImageServer/SurveyNotesImageNav.jsp?collection=SurveyNotes&resource=PlatMaps/TN21/reference/002105EA.jp2 1852 plat map] of the six mile square that covers eastern Port Edwards and western [[Saratoga, Wisconsin|Saratoga]]
* [http://content.mpl.org/cdm/ref/collection/mcml/id/446 1879 plat map of same]
* [http://content.mpl.org/cdm/ref/collection/mcml/id/423 1896 plat map of same]
* [http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/WI/WI-idx?type=article&did=WI.AtlasWood09.i0033&id=WI.AtlasWood09&isize=L 1909 plat map]
* [http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/WI/WI-idx?type=article&did=WI.AtlasWood28.i0037&id=WI.AtlasWood28&isize=L 1928 plat map]
* [http://content.mpl.org/cdm/ref/collection/mcml/id/8191 1956 plat map of the six mile square that covers eastern Port Edwards and western Saratoga]
* For other plats of western Port Edwards, see external links under [[Cranmoor, Wisconsin|Cranmoor]].

{{Wood County, Wisconsin}}

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[[Category:Towns in Wood County, Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Towns in Wisconsin]]