Door County, Wisconsin

Door County, Wisconsin
Door County Government Center
Location in the U.S. state of Wisconsin
Wisconsin's location in the U.S.
Founded	1861
Named for	Door Peninsula
Seat	Sturgeon Bay
Largest city	Sturgeon Bay
Area
• Total	2,370 sq mi (6,138 km2)
• Land	482 sq mi (1,248 km2)
• Water	1,888 sq mi (4,890 km2), 80%
Population
• (2010)	27,785
• Density	58/sq mi (22/km²)
Congressional district	8th
Time zone	Central: UTC-6/-5
Website	www.co.door.wi.gov

Door County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2010 census, the population was 27,785. Its county seat is Sturgeon Bay.

The county was created in 1851 and organized in 1861. It is named after the strait between the Door Peninsula and Washington Island. The dangerous passage, which is now scattered with shipwrecks, was known to early French explorers and local Native Americans. Because of the natural hazards of the strait, where the waters of Green Bay meet the open body of Lake Michigan, they gave it the French appellation Porte des Morts, which in English means "Death's Door."

Door County is a popular vacation and tourist destination, especially for residents of Wisconsin and Illinois.

History

The Door County peninsula has been inhabited for about 11,000 years. Artifacts from an ancient village site at Nicolet Bay Beach have been dated to about 400 BC. This site was occupied by various cultures until about 1300 AD.

The 18th and 19th centuries saw the immigration and settlement of pioneers, mariners, fishermen and farmers, with the first white settler being Increase Claflin. Economic sustenance came from lumbering and tourism.

During the 18th century, Door County was actually referred to as "Death's Door territory" by the French, the water strait between what is now the Door Peninsula and Washington Island is very hazardous for navigating ships. This led to (and continues to cause) many vessels being damaged and shipwrecks, hence the name.

During the 19th century, various groups of Native Americans occupied the area that would become Door County and its islands. Beginning in mid-century, these Indians, mostly Potawatomi, were removed from the peninsula by the federal government under the Indian Removal Act of 1830. Later in the 19th century there was a fairly large-scale immigration of Belgian Walloons, who populated a small region in the county.

A Civilian Conservation Corps camp was established at Peninsula State Park during the Great Depression. In the summer of 1945, Fish Creek was the site of a German POW camp, under an affiliation with a base camp at Fort Sheridan, Illinois. The prisoners engaged in construction projects, cut wood, and picked cherries in Peninsula State Park and the surrounding area. Eagle Bluff Lighthouse was constructed in Peninsula State Park in 1868 on orders from President Andrew Johnson, at a cost of $12,000. It was restored by the Door County Historical Society in 1964, and opened to the public.

Eagle Bluff Lighthouse

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,370 square miles (6,100 km²), of which 482 square miles (1,250 km²) is land and 1,888 square miles (4,890 km²) (80%) is water. It is the largest county in Wisconsin by total area. The county also has 298 miles of shoreline. Locals and tourists alike refer to the area as the "Cape Cod of the Midwest". The county covers the majority of the Door Peninsula. With the completion of the Sturgeon Bay Shipping Canal in 1881, the northern half of the peninsula, in actuality, became an island.

Limestone outcroppings of the Niagara Escarpment are visible on both shores of the peninsula, but are larger and more prominent on the Green Bay side as seen at the Bayshore Blufflands. Progressions of dunes have created much of the rest of the shoreline, especially on the easterly side. Flora along the shore provides clear evidence of plant succession. The middle of the peninsula is mostly flat or rolling cultivated land. Soils overlaying the dolomite bedrock are very thin in the northern half of the county; 39% of the County is mapped as having less than three feet to bedrock. Beyond the northern tip of the peninsula, the partially submerged ridge forms a number of islands that stretch to the Garden Peninsula in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The largest of these islands is Washington Island. Most of these islands form the Town of Washington.

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  Door County Sign on Highway 57

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  Cave Point County Park

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  Outcroppings at Newport State Park approximately 10 feet (3 m) from Lake Michigan

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  Cave Point County Park

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  Cave Point County Park

Adjacent counties

• Kewaunee County - South
• Oconto County - West
• Marinette County - Northwest
• Menominee County, Michigan - Northwest
• Delta County, Michigan - North

National protected areas

• Gravel Island National Wildlife Refuge
• Green Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1860	2,948		—
1870	4,919		66.9%
1880	11,645		136.7%
1890	15,082		29.5%
1900	17,583		16.6%
1910	18,711		6.4%
1920	19,073		1.9%
1930	18,182		−4.7%
1940	19,095		5.0%
1950	20,870		9.3%
1960	20,685		−0.9%
1970	20,106		−2.8%
1980	25,029		24.5%
1990	25,690		2.6%
2000	27,961		8.8%
2010	27,785		−0.6%
Est. 2014	27,766		−0.1%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2014

2000 Census Age Pyramid for Door County

As of the census of 2000, there were 27,961 people, 11,828 households, and 7,995 families residing in the county. The population density was 58 people per square mile (22/km²). There were 19,587 housing units at an average density of 41 per square mile (16/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.84% White, 0.19% Black or African American, 0.65% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.33% from other races, and 0.69% from two or more races. 0.95% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 39.4% were of German and 10.3% Belgian ancestry. A small pocket of Walloon speakers is the only Walloon-language region outside of Wallonia and its immediate neighborhood.

There were 11,828 households out of which 26.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.10% were married couples living together, 6.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.40% were non-families. 28.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the county, the population was spread out with 22.10% under the age of 18, 6.10% from 18 to 24, 25.40% from 25 to 44, 27.70% from 45 to 64, and 18.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 97.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.50 males.

Tourism

Door County Fairgrounds

Cherry tree

Fish Boil platter

Although Door County has a year-round population of about 28,000, it experiences a tourist explosion each summer between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Most businesses are targeted to visitors and close during the off-season. In the summer, the population of Door County can reach as high as 250,000. The majority of tourists and summer residents come from the metropolitan areas of Milwaukee, Chicago, Madison, Green Bay, and the Twin Cities. The area has been called "the Cape Cod of the Midwest".

Door County is home to five state parks: Newport State Park, northeast of Ellison Bay; Peninsula State Park, along more than six miles (10 km) of the Green Bay shoreline; Potawatomi State Park, along Sturgeon Bay; Rock Island State Park, off the tip of the Door Peninsula; and Whitefish Dunes State Park, along Lake Michigan.

Door County has 10 lighthouses. Most were built during the 19th century and are listed in the National Register of Historic Places: Baileys Harbor Range Lights, Cana Island Lighthouse, Chambers Island Lighthouse, Eagle Bluff Lighthouse, Pilot Island Lighthouse, Plum Island Range Lights, Pottawatomie Lighthouse, and Sturgeon Bay Canal Lighthouse. The other lighthouses in the county are: Baileys Harbor Lighthouse, Sherwood Point Lighthouse, and the Sturgeon Bay Canal North Pierhead Light.

Fish boils, offered at many Door County restaurants, are a popular meal for tourists.

Door County has a history of cherry growing that dates back to the 19th century. Many of the cherry orchards offer "pick your own cherries", along with more traditional pre-picked containers. Cherry and apple stands can be found along many of Door County's country roads when in season.

Door County has eight wineries, Tasting rooms, three microbreweries, a distillery and a French-style cider house.

Transportation

Airports

• Door County Cherryland Airport (KSUE), located 3 miles west of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
• Ephraim–Gibraltar Airport (3D2), located 1 mile southwest of Ephraim, Wisconsin

Major highways

• Highway 42 (Wisconsin)
• Highway 57 (Wisconsin)

Communities

Door County, Wisconsin from the 1895 U.S. Atlas

City

• Sturgeon Bay (county seat)

Villages

• Egg Harbor
• Ephraim
• Forestville
• Sister Bay

Towns

• Baileys Harbor
• Brussels
• Clay Banks
• Egg Harbor
• Forestville
• Gardner
• Gibraltar
• Jacksonport
• Liberty Grove
• Nasewaupee
• Sevastopol
• Sturgeon Bay
• Union
• Washington

Census-designated places

• Baileys Harbor
• Ellison Bay
• Little Sturgeon

Unincorporated communities

• Brussels
• Carlsville
• Carnot
• Detroit Harbor
• Fish Creek
• Gills Rock
• Idlewild
• Institute
• Jacksonport
• Juddville
• Kolberg
• Maplewood
• Namur
• North Bay
• Northport
• Peninsula Center
• Rosiere (partial)
• Rowleys Bay
• Salona
• Shoemaker Point
• Valmy
• Vignes
• Washington
• West Jacksonport
• Whitefish Bay

See also

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

External links

• Door County
• Door County Visitor Bureau
• Road Trip to Door County Video produced by Wisconsin Public Television