Sheboygan County, Wisconsin

Sheboygan County Education, Geography, and History

Sheboygan County is a county in the state of Wisconsin. It is named after the Sheboygan River. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 115,507. Its county seat is Sheboygan. The county was created in 1836 and organized in 1846.

Sheboygan County comprises the Sheboygan, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology - Origin of Sheboygan County Name

Sheboygan County takes its name from a river emptying into Lake Michigan. Two meanings have been assigned to this word: "a noise underground," and "river disappearing underground" - Wis. Hist. Colls., i, p. 17, and Hist. No. Wis., p. 967; and "a perforated object, such as a pipe-stem, or hollow bone" - Wis. Hist. Colls., iii, p. 337; xii, p. 397.

[Source: Kellogg, Louise Phelps. "Derivation of County Names" in Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin for 1909, pages 219-231.]

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Sheboygan County History

Sheboygan County was established on December 17, 1838 and is located in Eastern Wisconsin on the western shores of Lake Michigan. Sheboygan County consists of 15 townships, 10 villages and 3 cities with a land area of 513.7 square miles and a population of 112,640 as of 2000. The county is surrounded by 5 other counties: Manitowoc County to the north, Calumet County to the north west, Fond du Lac County to the west, Washington County to the south west and Ozaukee County to the south.

Because government, at all levels, is so broad and provides so many services, many citizens do not know what county government does or what services it provides. The purpose of this web site is to give you an idea of what county government is all about. Our goal is to foster interaction between the residents of Sheboygan County and county officials.

John W. Hunt's 1853 Wisconsin Gazetteer

 "SHEBOYGAN, County, is bounded on the north by Calumet and Manitowoc, on the east by the State line in Lake Michigan, on the south by Washington, and on the west by Fond du Lac. It was set off from Brown Dec. 7, 1836 The whole surface of the county is covered by a dense growth of timber, among which pine is found in considerable quantities along the margin of the principal streams. The seat of justice is at the village of Sheboygan, on the lake, centrally from the north and south boundaries of the county. It is watered by the Sheboygan river and its tributaries. Population in 1840 was 133; 1842, 227; 1846, 4637; 1847, 5,580; 1850, 8,836. There are 1,790 dwellings, 581 farms, and 30 manufactories."

SHEBOYGAN--Population 20,391.
From: Handbook of Wisconsin by S. Silas, 1855
pg. 101

Lies on Lake Michigan, 50 miles north of Milwaukee. It is heavily timbered with oak, maple, ash, hickory and pine. The soil is light, inclining in some parts to sand, but is productive, and raises wheat of the best quality. Sheboygan wheat bears a higher price than that raised farther south. The population is American, German and Dutch. The Nieusbode, the only Dutch paper, with but one exception, published in the United States, is printed here. A plank road extends from Sheboygan to Fond du Lac. There is but little public land in market. It is in the Menasha land district, expect the southern tier of towns, which is in the Milwaukee.

Sheboygan, the principal place, is on the Lake Shore, and is the principal port of shipment for a large back country. For its exports and imports see the appropriate article.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,271 square miles (3,292 km²), of which, 514 square miles (1,330 km²) of it is land and 757 square miles (1,962 km²) of it (59.59%) is water.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Manitowoc County - north
• Ozaukee County - south
  Washington County - southwest
• Fond du Lac County - west
• Calumet County - northwest

Education

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