Siren, Wisconsin

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This article is about the Wisconsin village. For other uses, see Siren (disambiguation).

Siren is a village in Burnett County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 988 at the 2000 census. The village is located within the Town of Siren.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 Bibliography
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Siren is located at 45°47′1″N, 92°22′48″W (45.783633, -92.380161)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 2.9 km² (1.1 mi²). 2.8 km² (1.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (1.77%) is water.

Siren is surrounded by several lakes including Long Lake, Big Doctor Lake, and Fish Lake.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 988 people, 413 households, and 230 families residing in the village. The population density was 346.8/km² (895.1/mi²). There were 499 housing units at an average density of 175.1/km² (452.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 95.85% White, 0.10% Black or African American, 2.02% Native American, 0.30% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, and 1.52% from two or more races. 0.10% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 413 households out of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.7% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.3% were non-families. 39.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.15 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the village the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 26.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $24,342, and the median income for a family was $31,797. Males had a median income of $27,250 versus $21,635 for females. The per capita income for the village was $14,792. About 12.0% of families and 18.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.6% of those under age 18 and 18.9% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] History

The Ojibwa and the French fur traders were the principal inhabitants of the region in the early nineteenth century.

Swedish immigrants began settling in the area around what is now Siren in the 1880's. Many of them were members of the Evangelical Covenant Church. The first post office was built in 1890 about a mile north of its present location. The first postmaster named the town "Syren", the Swedish word for "lilac", but the name was later respelled as "Siren". In 1912, the town center was moved nearer the Soo Line railroad tracks which had been extended through the area to Duluth, Minnesota. The tracks were later removed but the trail was left behind for recreational purposes. It is now known as the Gandy Dancer Trail.

On June 18, 2001, a tornado passed through Siren inflicting severe damage. Three people died as a result of the tornado; 175 buildings were destroyed and many more damaged.