Florence County was created by the legislature of 1882 from portions of Marinette County and Oconto County. The first white man to document his journey through Florence County was Thomas J. Cram, who surveyed northeast Wisconsin in 1840 and 1841. The region belonged to the Menominee tribe, who mingled with the Chippewa there. Florence County continued to be a region for hunting and trapping until the 1870s when iron was discovered in the region. The Florence mine was discovered in 1874 by H. D. Fisher. In 1879, Fisher named the mine and town after the wife of Nelson Powell Hulst, Florence Terry Hulst, establishing the name for the county as well.[4][5][6]
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 498 square miles (1,290 km2), of which 488 square miles (1,260 km2) is land and 9.3 square miles (24 km2) (1.9%) is water.[7]
At the 2000 census there were 5,088 people, 2,133 households, and 1,441 families in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile (3.9 people/km2). There were 4,239 housing units at an average density of 9 units per square mile (3.5 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.17% White, 0.16% Black or African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 0.81% from two or more races. 0.45% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 25.6% were of German, 11.6% Swedish, 8.4% Polish, 8.2% Italian, 6.6% French, 5.9% English, 5.4% French Canadian and 5.2% Irish ancestry.[12]
Of the 2,133 households 27.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.60% were married couples living together, 6.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.40% were non-families. 27.90% of households were one person and 12.50% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.87.
The age distribution was 22.90% under the age of 18, 5.30% from 18 to 24, 27.10% from 25 to 44, 27.30% from 45 to 64, and 17.50% 65 or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.50 males.
In 2017, there were 31 births, giving a general fertility rate of 57.9 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 21st lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties. 10 of the births were to unmarried mothers, 21 were to married mothers.[13] Additionally, there were fewer than five reported induced abortions performed on women of Florence County residence in 2017.[14]
Communities
FairgroundsFlorence County sign
Florence County is one of only two counties in Wisconsin with no incorporated communities, the other being Menominee County.
^Reported Induced Abortions in Wisconsin, Office of Health Informatics, Division of Public Health, Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Section: Trend Information, 2013-2017, Table 18, pages 17-18
.svg){kind=small}
