Dodge County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 89,396. Its county seat is Juneau. The county was created from the Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and organized in 1844.

Dodge County comprises the Beaver Dam, WI Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Milwaukee–Racine–Waukesha, WI Combined Statistical Area.

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (3.5%) is water.

The 6,718 acre Beaver Dam Lake and the 2,713 acre Fox Lake are found within the county.

Adjacent counties Fond du Lac County – northeast Washington County – east Waukesha County – southeast Jefferson County – south Dane County – southwest Columbia County – west Green Lake County – northwest

National protected area Horicon National Wildlife Refuge (part)

Climate

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Dodge County, Wisconsin – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980 Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)73,19974,13180,56381,32577,84597.52%96.83%93.79%91.62%87.08%Black or African American alone (NH)8221,1132,0952,3612,7011.10%1.45%2.44%2.66%3.02%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)1492093223693710.20%0.27%0.37%0.42%0.42%Asian alone (NH)1511852934605110.20%0.24%0.34%0.52%0.57%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census253911xx0.03%0.04%0.01%Other race alone (NH)661029232040.09%0.01%0.03%0.03%0.23%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census3826602,263xx0.44%0.74%2.53%Hispanic or Latino (any race)6779112,1883,5225,4900.90%1.19%2.55%3.97%6.14%Total75,06476,55985,89788,75989,396 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 89,396 and a population density of .

The median age was 43.3 years. 19.9% of residents were under the age of 18 and 19.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 112.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 113.4 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 88.8% White, 3.1% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 2.4% from some other race, and 4.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.1% of the population.

45.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 54.9% lived in rural areas.

There were 35,437 households in the county, of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 50.3% were married-couple households, 19.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 38,123 housing units at an average density of , of which 7.0% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 71.0% were owner-occupied and 29.0% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.6%.

2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 85,897 people, 31,417 households, and 22,313 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 33,672 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 95.28% White, 2.49% Black or African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.87% from other races, and 0.58% from two or more races. 2.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Ancestry-wise, 56.2% were of German, 8.7% Irish, 5.0% English, 4.2% Norwegian and 3.9% selected "United States or American" ancestry. 95.4% spoke English, 2.2% Spanish and 2.0% other Indo-European languages as their language spoken at home.

There were 31,417 households, out of which 33.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.60% were married couples living together, 7.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.00% were non-families. 24.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.05.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.80% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 31.20% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 109.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.80 males.

In 2017, there were 758 births, giving a general fertility rate of 54.0 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 12th lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties.

Transportation

Major highways

Interstate 41 U.S. Highway 41 U.S. Highway 151 Highway 16 Highway 19 Highway 26 Highway 28 Highway 33 Highway 49 Highway 60 Highway 67 Highway 68 Highway 73 Highway 89 Highway 175

Railroads Amtrak Canadian National Canadian Pacific Union Pacific Wisconsin and Southern Railroad

Buses

Airport Dodge County Airport (KUNU) serves the county and surrounding communities.

Communities

Cities

Beaver Dam Columbus (mostly in Columbia County) Fox Lake Hartford (part; mostly in Washington County) Horicon Juneau (county seat) Mayville Watertown (mostly in Jefferson County) Waupun (partly in Fond du Lac County)

Villages

Brownsville Clyman Hustisford Iron Ridge Kekoskee Lomira Lowell Neosho Randolph (partly in Columbia County) Reeseville Theresa

Towns

Ashippun Beaver Dam Burnett Calamus Chester Clyman Elba Emmet Fox Lake Herman Hubbard Hustisford Iron Ridge Lebanon LeRoy Lomira Lowell Oak Grove Portland Rubicon Shields Theresa Trenton Westford Williamstown (former)

Census-designated places Ashippun Burnett Lebanon Rubicon

Unincorporated communities

Alderley Astico Atwater Beaver Edge Clyman Junction Danville Delbern Acres East Waupun Farmersville Fox Lake Junction Herman Center Hochheim Huilsburg Knowles LeRoy Leipsig Lost Lake Lyndon Dale Minnesota Junction Nasbro Neda North Lowell Oak Grove Old Ashippun Old Lebanon Portland (partial) Richwood Rolling Prairie Saylesville South Beaver Dam South Randolph Sugar Island Sunset Beach Theresa Station Woodland

Ghost town Clason Prairie

Gallery

Politics

Since 1940, Dodge County has been a Republican stronghold in presidential elections. It has voted Republican in every election in that span with the exception of the 1964 landslide victory of Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson. Only six other times in that span has the Democratic candidate obtained at least 40% of the vote. In 2024, Donald Trump received over 65% of the vote in Dodge County, the best Republican performance since the 1956 landslide reelection of Dwight D. Eisenhower.

Historically, Dodge County had been a major stronghold of the Democratic Party in Wisconsin, from the establishment of the state, in 1848, until the 1910s, when a combination of and the rise of the progressive faction of Republicans began to eat into the Democratic vote in the county. A significant factor in the switch was the anti-war attitude among the county's large German American population. Democratic president Woodrow Wilson and Wisconsin's Democratic U.S. senator Paul O. Husting (who was actually from Dodge County) supported the declaration of war against Germany in 1917, while progressive Republican leader Robert M. La Follette was one of only six senators who voted against the resolution. In the next presidential election, Dodge County gave 77% of its votes to the Republican nominee—the largest majority the county has given to either party in the last 130 years.

Education K-12 school districts include: - Text list

Beaver Dam Unified School District Columbus School District Dodgeland School District Fall River School District Horicon School District Hustisford School District Lomira School District Markesan School District Mayville School District Oakfield School District Oconomowoc Area School District Randolph School District Waterloo School District Watertown Unified School District Waupun School District

There are also two elementary school districts: Herman-Neosho-Rubicon School District and Hartford Joint No. 1 School District, and one secondary school district, Hartford Union High School District.

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Dodge County, Wisconsin

References

Further reading Hubbell, Homer Bishop. Dodge County, Wisconsin: Past and Present. Chicago: S. J. Clarke, 1913.

External links Dodge County official website Dodge County map from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation Dodge County Tourism Association Beaver Dam Area Chamber of Commerce