Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin

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Country	United States
Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin

State	Wisconsin
County	Jefferson
Government
- City Manager	John Wilmet
Population (2000)
- City	11,621
Time zone	CST (UTC-6)
- Summer (DST)	CDT (UTC-5)
Website: http://www.fortatkinsonwi.net/

Fort Atkinson is a city in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located on the Rock River, a few miles upstream from Lake Koshkonong. Money Magazine named Fort Atkinson "One of America's Hottest Little Boomtowns". The population was 11,621 at the 2000 census.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 Economy
5 Transportation
6 Notable residents
7 External links

[edit] Geography

Fort Atkinson is located at 42°55′38″N, 88°50′26″W (42.927091, -88.840446)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 14.2 km² (5.5 mi²). 14.0 km² (5.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (1.64%) is water.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 11,621 people, 4,760 households, and 3,070 families residing in the city. The population density was 832.4/km² (2,154.8/mi²). There were 4,983 housing units at an average density of 356.9/km² (924.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.09% White, 0.34% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.87% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.37% of the population.

There were 4,760 households out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.2% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.5% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 30.9% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $43,807, and the median income for a family was $51,689. Males had a median income of $36,442 versus $23,852 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,008. 5.3% of the population and 3.9% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 4.7% of those under the age of 18 and 5.8% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

[edit] History

Rock River floods downtown area. June 2004.

The City of Fort Atkinson is located at the site of Fort Koshkonong, and is named after General Henry Atkinson. There is a replica of the original stockade just outside of town, although not at its original site which was at the confluence of the Rock and Bark Rivers.

Much of the history of Fort Atkinson and the surrounding area, as well as natural history is presented at The Hoard Historical Museum and National Dairy Shrine's Visitor Center [1]. The historical museum has a special Civil War library and exhibit as well. The museum is named after the Hoard family who founded the nationally distributed dairy farm magazine Hoard's Dairyman. The Dairy Shrine portion of the complex shows the history and importance of the dairy industry.

Another historic feature of Fort Atkinson is the General Atkinson Mound Group, a group of Indian mounds located just south of town. Similarly to the larger group of mounds at nearby Aztalan State Park in Aztalan, Wisconsin, the mounds are an artifact of Middle Mississippian Tradition in Wisconsin. Some of the mounds are effigy mounds, resembling birds and turtles. There is also a 125-foot long panther intaglio west of town, the last remaining intaglio in the world.

[edit] Economy

Fort Atkinson is home to industry, health care and a growing tourist trade. The city's largest employer is Fort HealthCare with approximately 900 employees. Fort HealthCare is an integrated hospital and health system that attracts patients throughout southeastern Wisconsin. Fort Atkinson Memorial Hospital is a modern, fully accredited, acute- and subacute-care facility with 110 licensed beds. More than 100 physicians are on staff. Fort Medical Group, a subsidiary of Fort HealthCare, employs more than 30 physicians, nurse practitioners, and other healthcare providers. Satellite clinics offering primary and specialty care are located in Fort Atkinson, Cambridge, Edgerton, Elkhorn, Johnson Creek, Jefferson, Lake Mills, Stoughton and Whitewater. Other services offered by Fort HealthCare include occupational medicine, rehabilitation and sports medicine, home health, a preferred provider network for employers known as FortCare, urgent care and more.

The Fireside Dinner Theatre, a self-described motorcoach attraction, draws tens of thousands of visitors each year. The city itself and key business owners have recently begun to expand the tourist trade with upscale shopping locations as well as general beautification along the river downtown. Other notable tourist attractions include a reconstruction of the original fort and the Cafe Carpe, noted throughout the state for hosting folk music performances.

In industry, Fort Atkinson is home to Nasco Science, a leading supplier of science educational products, Jones Dairy Farm, and Spacesaver.

[edit] Transportation

Primary automobile transportation is provided via Highway 12, Highway 26, Highway 89 and Highway 106. Highway 26 provides easy access to Interstate 94 (to the north in Johnson Creek), leading to downtown Milwaukee in about an hour; and to Interstate 90 (to the south in Janesville) leading to downtown Chicago in about 2.5 hours. Highway 12 provides access to the Madison metro area in about 45 minutes. General aviation interests are served by the Fort Atkinson Municipal Airport.