Editing Polk, Wisconsin

{{short description|Town in Washington County, Wisconsin}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Polk, Wisconsin
|settlement_type          = [[Administrative divisions of Wisconsin#Town|Town]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

<!-- Images -->
|image_skyline            = Polk Town Hall.jpg
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = Town hall
|image_flag               = 
|image_seal               =

<!-- Maps -->
|image_map                = WIMap-doton-Polk.png
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of Polk, Wisconsin
|image_map1               = 
|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        = [[Washington County, Wisconsin|Washington]]

<!-- Government -->
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = 
|leader_title             = 
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = 
|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
|established_date         = {{Start date and age|January 21, 1846}}

<!-- Area -->
|unit_pref  =  Imperial
|area_footnotes           =

|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 83.4
|area_land_km2            = 82.7
|area_water_km2           = 0.7
|area_total_sq_mi         = 32.2
|area_land_sq_mi          = 31.9
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.3

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[United States Census, 2000|2000]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 3938
|population_density_km2   = 47.6
|population_density_sq_mi = 123.3

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[North American Central Time Zone|Central (CST)]]
|utc_offset               = -6
|timezone_DST             = CDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -5
|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name="GR3">{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=US Board on Geographic Names|publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]]|date=October 25, 2007}}</ref>
|elevation_m              = 342
|elevation_ft             = 1122
|coordinates              = {{coord|43|19|18|N|88|14|10|W|region:US-WI|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = 
|postal_code              = 
|area_code                = [[Area code 262|262]]  
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 55-63875<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 1583950<ref name="GR3" />
|website                  = {{URL|www.tn.polk.wi.gov}}
|footnotes                = 
}}
'''Polk''' is a town in [[Washington County, Wisconsin|Washington County]], [[Wisconsin]], United States. The population was 3,938 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated communities of [[Ackerville, Wisconsin|Ackerville]], [[Cedar Creek, Wisconsin|Cedar Creek]], Cedar Lake, [[Diefenbach Corners, Wisconsin|Diefenbach Corners]], [[Mayfield, Wisconsin|Mayfield]], and [[Rugby Junction, Wisconsin|Rugby Junction]] are located in the town. The town derives its name from [[James K. Polk]], 11th U.S. president, who was in office when the town incorporated in 1846.<ref name="History"/>

==History==
In the early 19th century, Polk was home to [[Potawatomi]] Native Americans, who surrendered the land to the United States Federal Government in 1833 through the [[1833 Treaty of Chicago]], which (after being ratified in 1835) required them to leave Wisconsin by 1838.<ref>{{cite web|title=Early history of Ozaukee County, Wisconsin|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/WI/WI-idx?type=article&did=WI.OzEarlyHist.i0009&id=WI.OzEarlyHist&isize=M|publisher=University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries|access-date=January 1, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Gerwing |first1 = Anselm J. |title = The Chicago Indian Treaty of 1833 |journal = Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society |date =Summer 1964 |volume = 57 |issue = 2 |pages = 117–142 |jstor = 40190019 |issn = 0019-2287 }}</ref> While many Potawatomis moved west of the Mississippi River to [[Kansas]], some chose to remain, and were referred to as "strolling Potawatomi" in contemporary documents because many of them were migrants who subsisted by [[squatting]] on their ancestral lands, which were now owned by white settlers.<ref name="Potawatomi History">{{cite web|title=Potawatomi History|url=https://www.mpm.edu/content/wirp/ICW-152|publisher=Milwaukee Public Museum|access-date=February 20, 2020}}</ref> One band of strolling Potawatomi travelled through [[Dodge County, Wisconsin|Dodge]], [[Jefferson County, Wisconsin|Jefferson]], and Washington counties, and was led by Chief Kewaskum, who had a camp on [[Pike Lake Unit, Kettle Moraine State Forest|Pike Lake]], west of the Polk area. Kewaskum was friendly with the white settlers who began arriving in the 1840s.<ref name="S. J. Clarke Publishing Company">{{cite book |last1=Quickert |first1=Carl |title=Washington County, Wisconsin: Past and Present |date=1912 |publisher=S. J. Clarke Publishing Company |location=Chicago, IL |page=33}}</ref> He died sometime between 1847 and 1850, and the early settlers named the [[Kewaskum, Wisconsin|Village of Kewaskum]] in his honor.<ref>{{cite web|title=About Kewaskum|url=http://www.kewaskum.lib.wi.us/contact-us/who-was-chief-kewaskum |publisher=Kewaskum Public Library |access-date=March 17, 2020}}</ref> Itinerant Potawatomis lived in Washington County into the late 19th century, when many of them gathered in northern Wisconsin to form the [[Forest County Potawatomi Community]].<ref name="Potawatomi History"/>

In 1843, William Williamson purchased forty acres of land and became the first white settler in the area. [[Densmore Maxon]] was another early settler, arriving in 1844 to purchase forty acres along [[Cedar Creek (Wisconsin)|Cedar Creek]] and build one of the first sawmills in the area.<ref name="History">{{cite web|title=Polk, Wisconsin: Historical Information of the Town of Polk |url= http://www.tn.polk.wi.gov/section.asp?linkid=2076&locid=160 |publisher=Town of Polk |access-date=March 15, 2020}}</ref> Maxon would become a prominent figure in the community's early political scene. [[Baruch Schleisinger Weil]] arrived in 1845, purchasing nearly 2,000 acres and building a general store to supply settlers.<ref name="S. J. Clarke Publishing Company"/> The Town of Polk was organized on January 21, 1846, and named for [[James K. Polk]], who was then President of the United States.<ref name="History"/>

In 1855, Weil worked to have the [[Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad|La Crosse and Milwaukee Railroad]] pass through the Polk with a large depot on his land in Schleisingerville (present-day [[Slinger, Wisconsin|Slinger]]). The train also stopped at a station in the hamlet of [[Ackerville, Wisconsin|Ackerville]] in the town.<ref name="Encyclopedia">{{cite web|title=Encyclopedia of Milwaukee: Town of Polk |url=https://emke.uwm.edu/entry/town-of-polk/ |publisher=University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee|access-date=March 14, 2020}}</ref> While the railroad initially led to local economic growth, the company failed in 1861. Many local landowners had taken out mortgages on land for the railroad in exchange for company shares. The company's failure left the landowners with mortgages to pay off, creating a local crisis in which some families were forced to sell their farms.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Quickert |first1=Carl |title=Washington County, Wisconsin: Past and Present |date=1912 |publisher=S. J. Clarke Publishing Company |location=Chicago, IL |pages=91–92}}</ref> The railroad was purchased and operated by the Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad in 1863, and Schleisingerville continued to grow, incorporating as a village out of some of the town's land in 1869.<ref name="Encyclopedia"/>

In the 20th and 21st centuries, the surrounding villages of [[Jackson (village), Wisconsin|Jackson]], [[Richfield, Washington County, Wisconsin|Richfield]] and Slinger, have annexed land from the town as they have grown and suburbanized. Despite losing some of its geographic area, the Town of Polk's population has more than doubled since 1960.<ref name="Encyclopedia"/>

==Geography==
According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of 32.2&nbsp;square miles (83.4&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>), of which, 31.9&nbsp;square miles (82.7&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of it is land and 0.3&nbsp;square miles (0.7&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of it (0.87%) is water.

==Demographics==
As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 3,938 people, 1,352 households, and 1,139 families residing in the town. The [[population density]] was 123.3 people per square mile (47.6/km<sup>2</sup>). There were 1,430 housing units at an average density of 44.8 per square mile (17.3/km<sup>2</sup>). The racial makeup of the town was 98.70% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.20% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.15% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.15% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 0.13% [[Pacific Islander (U.S. Census)|Pacific Islander]], 0.33% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 0.33% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.91% of the population.

There were 1,352 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 77.2% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 3.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 15.7% were non-families. 12.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.9% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $62,933, and the median income for a family was $74,643. Males had a median income of $42,955 versus $33,750 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $27,518. About 3.2% of families and 3.5% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 2.2% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

==Notable people==

* [[Valentine Detling]], Wisconsin businessman and legislator, lived in the town of Polk<ref>'Wisconsin Blue Book 1889,' Biographical Sketch of Valentine Detling, pg. 518</ref>
* [[Louis D. Guth]], Wisconsin businessman and legislator, was born in the town of Polk<ref>'Wisconsin Blue Book 1899,' Biographical Sketch of Louis D. Guth, pg. 789</ref>
* [[James Rolfe (legislator)|James Rolfe]], Wisconsin farmer and legislator, lived in the town of Polk<ref>'History of Washington and Ozaukee Counties, Wisconsin,' Western Publishing Company: 1881, Biographical Sketch of James Rolfe, pg. 589</ref>

==References==
<references />

==External links==
* [http://www.tn.polk.wi.gov Town of Polk]
{{Washington County, Wisconsin}}

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