Marathon County, Wisconsin | |
|---|---|
 Marathon County Courthouse in Wausau | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofWisconsin | |
| Coordinates:44°54′N89°46′W / 44.9°N 89.76°W /44.9; -89.76 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Wisconsin |
| Founded | 1850 |
| Named after | Marathon, Greece |
| Seat | Wausau |
| Largest city | Wausau |
| Area | |
• Total | 1,576 sq mi (4,080 km2) |
| • Land | 1,545 sq mi (4,000 km2) |
| • Water | 31 sq mi (80 km2) 2.0% |
| Population | |
• Total | 138,013 |
• Estimate (2024) | 139,091 |
| • Density | 89.3/sq mi (34.5/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (Central) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| Congressional district | 7th |
| Website | www |
Marathon County is acounty located in theU.S. state ofWisconsin. As of the2020 census, the population was 138,013.[1] Itscounty seat isWausau.[2] It was founded in 1850,[2] created from a portion ofPortage County. At that time the county stretched to the northern border with theUpper Peninsula of Michigan. It is named after the battlefield atMarathon, Greece.[3]
Marathon County comprises the Wausau, WIMetropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Wausau–Stevens Point–Wisconsin Rapids, WICombined Statistical Area.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,576 square miles (4,080 km2), of which 1,545 square miles (4,000 km2) is land and 31 square miles (80 km2) (2.0%) is water.[4] It is the largest county in Wisconsin by land area and fourth-largest by total area.
The Marathon County Park Commission has posted a geographical marker[5] that identifies the spot(45°N, 90°W) of the exact center of the northern half of theWestern Hemisphere, meaning that it is a quarter of the way around the world from thePrime Meridian and halfway from theEquator to theNorth Pole.
Interstate 39
US Highway 51
Wisconsin Highway 13
Wisconsin Highway 29
Wisconsin Highway 34
Wisconsin Highway 49
Wisconsin Highway 52
Wisconsin Highway 97
Wisconsin Highway 98
Wisconsin Highway 107
Wisconsin Highway 153| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1850 | 508 | — | |
| 1860 | 2,892 | 469.3% | |
| 1870 | 5,885 | 103.5% | |
| 1880 | 17,121 | 190.9% | |
| 1890 | 30,369 | 77.4% | |
| 1900 | 43,256 | 42.4% | |
| 1910 | 55,054 | 27.3% | |
| 1920 | 65,259 | 18.5% | |
| 1930 | 70,629 | 8.2% | |
| 1940 | 75,915 | 7.5% | |
| 1950 | 80,337 | 5.8% | |
| 1960 | 88,874 | 10.6% | |
| 1970 | 97,457 | 9.7% | |
| 1980 | 111,270 | 14.2% | |
| 1990 | 115,400 | 3.7% | |
| 2000 | 125,834 | 9.0% | |
| 2010 | 134,063 | 6.5% | |
| 2020 | 138,013 | 2.9% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 139,091 | [6] | 0.8% |
| U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9] 1990–2000[10] 2010[11] 2020[1] | |||
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 138,013. Thepopulation density was 89.3 people per square mile (34.5 people/km2). There were 59,828 housing units at an average density of 38.7 units per square mile (14.9 units/km2).[1]
The median age was 41.1 years, 22.6% of residents were under the age of 18, and 18.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.9 males age 18 and over.[12]
There were 56,517 households in the county, of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 51.4% were married-couple households, 18.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[12]
Of the 59,828 housing units, 5.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 72.1% were owner-occupied and 27.9% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.3%.[12]
The racial makeup of the county was 86.9%White, 0.9%Black or African American, 0.5%American Indian and Alaska Native, 6.2%Asian, <0.1%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 1.3% from some other race, and 4.3% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 3.2% of the population.[13]
56.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 43.4% lived in rural areas.[14]
As of thecensus[15] of 2000, there were 125,834 people, 47,702 households, and 33,868 families residing in the county. Thepopulation density was 81 people per square mile (31 people/km2). There were 50,360 housing units at an average density of 33 units per square mile (13 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 93.84%White, 0.28%Black orAfrican American, 0.35%Native American, 4.54%Asian, 0.02%Pacific Islander, 0.26% fromother races, and 0.72% from two or more races. 0.78% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race. 52.6% were ofGerman and 13.6%Polish ancestry. 92.9% spokeEnglish, 3.4%Hmong, 1.1%German and 1.1%Spanish as their first language.
There were 47,702 households, out of which 34.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.90% weremarried couples living together, 7.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.00% were non-families. 23.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.11.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.80% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 29.50% from 25 to 44, 22.50% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.50 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 97.40 males.
TheMarathon County Public Library (MCPL) has its headquarters in downtownWausau, Wisconsin. Eight branch libraries have been established in the cities of Athens, Edgar, Hatley, Marathon City, Mosinee, Rothschild, Spencer, and Stratford.
There are over 884 miles of groomed snowmobile trails in Marathon County maintained by 29 area snowmobile clubs.[16]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1892 | 1,959 | 33.04% | 3,791 | 63.94% | 179 | 3.02% |
| 1896 | 3,958 | 49.62% | 3,829 | 48.00% | 190 | 2.38% |
| 1900 | 4,717 | 54.32% | 3,768 | 43.40% | 198 | 2.28% |
| 1904 | 6,144 | 63.24% | 3,225 | 33.19% | 347 | 3.57% |
| 1908 | 5,258 | 50.62% | 4,722 | 45.46% | 408 | 3.93% |
| 1912 | 3,033 | 33.20% | 4,043 | 44.26% | 2,059 | 22.54% |
| 1916 | 5,838 | 57.03% | 3,677 | 35.92% | 722 | 7.05% |
| 1920 | 11,356 | 65.53% | 2,133 | 12.31% | 3,840 | 22.16% |
| 1924 | 5,577 | 29.22% | 1,109 | 5.81% | 12,402 | 64.97% |
| 1928 | 10,127 | 48.02% | 10,675 | 50.61% | 289 | 1.37% |
| 1932 | 6,210 | 25.24% | 17,744 | 72.13% | 647 | 2.63% |
| 1936 | 7,328 | 27.06% | 17,898 | 66.10% | 1,850 | 6.83% |
| 1940 | 15,264 | 51.80% | 13,724 | 46.57% | 481 | 1.63% |
| 1944 | 15,782 | 53.54% | 13,192 | 44.75% | 503 | 1.71% |
| 1948 | 11,494 | 40.93% | 15,898 | 56.62% | 687 | 2.45% |
| 1952 | 20,702 | 58.52% | 14,541 | 41.11% | 130 | 0.37% |
| 1956 | 22,586 | 59.36% | 15,301 | 40.21% | 164 | 0.43% |
| 1960 | 21,880 | 54.67% | 18,145 | 45.33% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1964 | 12,766 | 34.11% | 24,603 | 65.74% | 57 | 0.15% |
| 1968 | 16,907 | 44.40% | 18,063 | 47.43% | 3,111 | 8.17% |
| 1972 | 21,454 | 51.28% | 18,500 | 44.22% | 1,885 | 4.51% |
| 1976 | 21,898 | 45.62% | 24,934 | 51.94% | 1,169 | 2.44% |
| 1980 | 25,868 | 48.34% | 23,281 | 43.50% | 4,365 | 8.16% |
| 1984 | 27,080 | 55.64% | 20,128 | 41.36% | 1,462 | 3.00% |
| 1988 | 24,482 | 49.44% | 24,658 | 49.79% | 381 | 0.77% |
| 1992 | 20,948 | 36.51% | 21,482 | 37.44% | 14,948 | 26.05% |
| 1996 | 19,874 | 38.63% | 24,012 | 46.67% | 7,563 | 14.70% |
| 2000 | 28,883 | 49.48% | 26,546 | 45.48% | 2,945 | 5.05% |
| 2004 | 36,394 | 53.47% | 30,899 | 45.40% | 766 | 1.13% |
| 2008 | 30,345 | 44.66% | 36,367 | 53.53% | 1,228 | 1.81% |
| 2012 | 36,617 | 52.41% | 32,363 | 46.32% | 882 | 1.26% |
| 2016 | 39,014 | 56.12% | 26,481 | 38.09% | 4,023 | 5.79% |
| 2020 | 44,624 | 58.14% | 30,808 | 40.14% | 1,319 | 1.72% |
| 2024 | 46,213 | 58.63% | 31,529 | 40.00% | 1,084 | 1.38% |
In theUnited States Senate, Marathon County is represented by RepublicanRon Johnson and DemocratTammy Baldwin. In theUnited States House of Representatives, the county lies withinWisconsin's 7th congressional district, represented by RepublicanTom Tiffany. At the state level, Marathon County lies within theWisconsin Senate's23rd and29th districts (mostly the latter), represented by RepublicansJesse James andCory Tomczyk, respectively, and theWisconsin State Assembly's69th,85th,86th, and87th districts (mostly the latter three), represented by RepublicansKaren Hurd,Patrick Snyder,John Spiros, andBrent Jacobson, respectively. Judicially, the county lies within theWisconsin Court of Appeals's third district and the ninthWisconsin circuit court (of which it is the seat). At the local level, Marathon County has several elected officials and is governed by a 38-member county board, elected by district.
At founding, Marathon was reliably Democratic, attributed to its large population of German Catholic immigrants, who had many grievances against the Republican Party.[18] In 1896, the Democratic Party's adoption of thepopulist movement infuriated the local anti-free silver Germans, and Marathon broke for the Republican Party for the first time since formation.[19] Deeply progressive, the county saw the Democratic Party's perceived abandonment of progressive values as an offense, and like the state became a Republican stronghold for the next four election cycles.[20] Marathon's semi-urban but largely rural and heavily German Catholic population, which reflected the demographics of the state, led to it eventually becoming one of the most reliable bellwether counties in the state, voting for the candidate that won the state in every election between 1892 and 1996 (with two exceptions: 1928, when the losing candidate was aCatholic, and 1940, when many German Americans turned sharply away fromFranklin D. Roosevelt, who was seen as Anglophilic). Starting in 2000, Marathon County began following the trend of many other rural counties, breaking forGeorge W. Bush even as Wisconsin remained a safely blue state and continuing to shift rightward (with the exception ofBarack Obama's 2008 landslide). Since 2008, Republicans have gained ground in the county in every election cycle even as the state has flip-flopped between Republicans and Democrats. Marathon County's Republican swing has continued locally as well - it has not voted for a Democrat at the state level since 2006, and Republicans won the mayoralty ofWausau in 2024.[21]
School districts include:[22]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
Places adjacent to Marathon County, Wisconsin | |
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| Surrounding communities |
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| Counties | ||||
Municipalities and communities ofMarathon County, Wisconsin,United States | ||
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| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost towns/ neighborhoods | ||
| Indian reservation | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
