Edgerton, Wisconsin
Encyclopedia
Edgerton is a city in Dane
and Rock
Counties in the U.S. state
of Wisconsin
. The population was 4,933 at the 2000 census. Known locally as "Tobacco City U.S.A.," because of the importance of tobacco growing in the region, Edgerton continues to be a center for the declining tobacco industry in the area.
, the city has a total area of 3.7 square miles (9.5 km²). None of the area is covered with water, except for Saunders Creek, although the city is within a five-minute drive of Lake Koshkonong
.
of 2000, there were 4,933 people, 58 households, and 1,268 families residing in the city. The population density
was 1,343.8 people per square mile (519.0/km²). There were 2,084 housing units at an average density of 567.7 per square mile (219.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.55% White, 0.20% African American, 0.51% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.89% from other races
, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.81% of the population.
There were 1,958 households out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples
living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.2% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,684, and the median income for a family was $52,555. Males had a median income of $34,890 versus $24,231 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $20,481. About 3.7% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.9% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.
In 1886, Catholic parents in Edgerton protested the reading of the King James Bible in the village schools because they considered the Douay version the correct translation. The school board argued that Catholic children could ignore the Bible readings or sit in the cloak room while the rest of the children listened to the reading of a Protestant version of the Bible. Because the school board refused to change their policy, several families brought suit on the grounds that the schools' practice conflicted with the Wisconsin Constitution, which forbade sectarian instruction in the public schools.
The circuit court rejected their argument, deciding in 1888 that the readings were not sectarian because both translations were of the same work. The parents appealed their case to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which on March 18, 1890, overruled the circuit court, concluding that reading the Bible did, in fact, constitute sectarian instruction, and thus illegally united the functions of church and state.
Seventy years later, when the U.S. Supreme Court banned prayer from the public schools in 1963, the Edgerton Bible Case
was one of the precedents cited by Justice William Brennan.
At one time, there were as many as forty tobacco warehouse
s dotting the streets of Edgerton. Queen Anne style mansions along Edgerton's Washington Street testify to the wealth
and prominence some merchants once had. The 1890s Carlton Hotel, once located on Henry Street, also once served as an additional reminder of the tobacco industry's influence. Although built by a brewing firm
, the hotel (which burned to the ground in the 1990s) was frequented by tobacco buyers and sellers.
Beyond its connection to author Sterling North
's boyhood and its onetime place as Wisconsin's premiere tobacco city, Edgerton's other major claim to fame is its association with Pauline Jacobus
. Jacobus and her husband, Oscar Jacobus, were responsible for the first artistic pottery
created in Chicago in the mid-1880s. By 1888, the couple had moved their business to Edgerton. Although Oscar's death and an economic depression
disrupted the business in the 1890s, Pauline Jacobus continued making pottery in Edgerton until the early 1900s' fire that destroyed her rural Edgerton home, "The Bogart". Much admired and sought-after as an American art form, "Pauline Pottery" is recognized in antique and art galleries throughout the world. A log cabin
from the old Bogart site and the factory
warehouse where Pauline Pottery was first made in Edgerton still survive.
Another point of interest is the Pomeroy and Pelton Tobacco Warehouse, located at 1 West Fulton Street. On the National Register of Historic Places, it is the oldest free-standing brick warehouse in Wisconsin. It is now known as the T. W. Dickinson & Son Tobacco Warehouse after it was purchased by Weetman Dickinson, an Edgerton tobacco dealer, in 1918.
, and Jessica Nelson North MacDonald
is open as a museum. Sterling North, whose most famous book, Rascal
, was set in Edgerton, used the town as the setting for several of his books, where he referred to it as "Brailsford Junction."
Dane County, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 426,526 people, 173,484 households, and 100,794 families residing in the county. The population density was 355 people per square mile . There were 180,398 housing units at an average density of 150 per square mile...
and Rock
Rock County, Wisconsin
-Unincorporated communities:-Further reading:* . Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1879.* Brown, William F. , Chicago: Cooper, 1908.* Brown, William F. , Chicago: Cooper, 1908....
Counties in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. The population was 4,933 at the 2000 census. Known locally as "Tobacco City U.S.A.," because of the importance of tobacco growing in the region, Edgerton continues to be a center for the declining tobacco industry in the area.
Geography
Edgerton is located at 42°50′10"N 89°4′23"W (42.836108, -89.072919). According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 3.7 square miles (9.5 km²). None of the area is covered with water, except for Saunders Creek, although the city is within a five-minute drive of Lake Koshkonong
Lake Koshkonong
Lake Koshkonong is a reservoir in southern Wisconsin. It lies along the Rock River, . down-river from Fort Atkinson, primarily in southwestern Jefferson County, although small portions of the lake extend into southeastern Dane and northern Rock counties....
.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 4,933 people, 58 households, and 1,268 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,343.8 people per square mile (519.0/km²). There were 2,084 housing units at an average density of 567.7 per square mile (219.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.55% White, 0.20% African American, 0.51% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.89% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.81% of the population.
There were 1,958 households out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.2% were non-families. 29.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the city the population was spread out with 26.8% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,684, and the median income for a family was $52,555. Males had a median income of $34,890 versus $24,231 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $20,481. About 3.7% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.9% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.
History
Originally called Fulton Station, Edgerton was named after a 19th century railroad engineer, Benjamin Hyde Edgerton. When Edgerton was approached about using his name for the city, he recommended caution. "You better wait until after I'm dead," he told leading citizens. "I might do something to discredit the name."In 1886, Catholic parents in Edgerton protested the reading of the King James Bible in the village schools because they considered the Douay version the correct translation. The school board argued that Catholic children could ignore the Bible readings or sit in the cloak room while the rest of the children listened to the reading of a Protestant version of the Bible. Because the school board refused to change their policy, several families brought suit on the grounds that the schools' practice conflicted with the Wisconsin Constitution, which forbade sectarian instruction in the public schools.
The circuit court rejected their argument, deciding in 1888 that the readings were not sectarian because both translations were of the same work. The parents appealed their case to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, which on March 18, 1890, overruled the circuit court, concluding that reading the Bible did, in fact, constitute sectarian instruction, and thus illegally united the functions of church and state.
Seventy years later, when the U.S. Supreme Court banned prayer from the public schools in 1963, the Edgerton Bible Case
Edgerton Bible Case
The Edgerton Bible Case was an important court case involving prayer in public schools in Wisconsin. In the early days of Edgerton, Wisconsin, it was common practice for public school teachers to read aloud from the King James Bible to their students...
was one of the precedents cited by Justice William Brennan.
At one time, there were as many as forty tobacco warehouse
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
s dotting the streets of Edgerton. Queen Anne style mansions along Edgerton's Washington Street testify to the wealth
Wealth
Wealth is the abundance of valuable resources or material possessions. The word wealth is derived from the old English wela, which is from an Indo-European word stem...
and prominence some merchants once had. The 1890s Carlton Hotel, once located on Henry Street, also once served as an additional reminder of the tobacco industry's influence. Although built by a brewing firm
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
, the hotel (which burned to the ground in the 1990s) was frequented by tobacco buyers and sellers.
Beyond its connection to author Sterling North
Sterling North
Thomas Sterling North was an American author of books for children and adults, including 1963's bestselling Rascal. North, who professionally went by "Sterling North", was born on the second floor of a farmhouse on the shores of Lake Koshkonong, a few miles from Edgerton, Wisconsin, in 1906, and...
's boyhood and its onetime place as Wisconsin's premiere tobacco city, Edgerton's other major claim to fame is its association with Pauline Jacobus
Pauline Jacobus
Pauline Jacobus was an American studio potter from Chicago who worked in Edgerton, Wisconsin.Jacobus, the wife of a Chicago merchant of the 1880s, was an accomplished painter of porcelain before she decided to try her hand at crafting and decorating the very first art pottery in Chicago in 1883....
. Jacobus and her husband, Oscar Jacobus, were responsible for the first artistic pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
created in Chicago in the mid-1880s. By 1888, the couple had moved their business to Edgerton. Although Oscar's death and an economic depression
Depression (economics)
In economics, a depression is a sustained, long-term downturn in economic activity in one or more economies. It is a more severe downturn than a recession, which is seen by some economists as part of the modern business cycle....
disrupted the business in the 1890s, Pauline Jacobus continued making pottery in Edgerton until the early 1900s' fire that destroyed her rural Edgerton home, "The Bogart". Much admired and sought-after as an American art form, "Pauline Pottery" is recognized in antique and art galleries throughout the world. A log cabin
Log home
A log home is structurally identical to a log cabin...
from the old Bogart site and the factory
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
warehouse where Pauline Pottery was first made in Edgerton still survive.
Another point of interest is the Pomeroy and Pelton Tobacco Warehouse, located at 1 West Fulton Street. On the National Register of Historic Places, it is the oldest free-standing brick warehouse in Wisconsin. It is now known as the T. W. Dickinson & Son Tobacco Warehouse after it was purchased by Weetman Dickinson, an Edgerton tobacco dealer, in 1918.
Museum
The childhood home of authors Sterling NorthSterling North
Thomas Sterling North was an American author of books for children and adults, including 1963's bestselling Rascal. North, who professionally went by "Sterling North", was born on the second floor of a farmhouse on the shores of Lake Koshkonong, a few miles from Edgerton, Wisconsin, in 1906, and...
, and Jessica Nelson North MacDonald
Jessica Nelson North
Jessica Nelson North was an American author, poet and editor.- Early life and family :Jessica Nelson North was born in Madison, Wisconsin, the daughter of David Willard North and Sarah Elizabeth "Elizabeth" North. She grew up on the shore of Lake Koshkonong near to what later became St...
is open as a museum. Sterling North, whose most famous book, Rascal
Rascal (book)
Rascal: A Memoir of a Better Era, often referred to as Rascal, is a 1963 children's book by Sterling North about his childhood in Wisconsin.-Publication:Rascal was published in 1963...
, was set in Edgerton, used the town as the setting for several of his books, where he referred to it as "Brailsford Junction."
Events
Because Edgerton was once the center of the Weed growing region in Wisconsin, the community's annual celebration is called Pot Days. The community celebration includes live music, food, family entertainment, a craft fair, an open air market, living history events and demonstrations, tobacco demonstrations, citywide rummage sales, book sales, and a parade. The Pot Days Motorcycle Show is south-central Wisconsin's largest motorcycle show.Notable people
- Rich BickleRich BickleRichard "Rich" Bickle, Jr. is a journeyman NASCAR driver. Bickle, who has never completed a full season in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, has a long history in short track racing.-Early career:...
, NASCARNASCARThe National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
driver - George W. Blanchard, U.S. Representative
- Ryan FoxRyan T. FoxRyan Fox is an American rowing athlete with a very decorated list of achievements with the US Rowing team.-Career:Fox was part of the silver medal winning team at the 2009 World Rowing Championships in Poznan, Poland...
, US National Rower - Pauline JacobusPauline JacobusPauline Jacobus was an American studio potter from Chicago who worked in Edgerton, Wisconsin.Jacobus, the wife of a Chicago merchant of the 1880s, was an accomplished painter of porcelain before she decided to try her hand at crafting and decorating the very first art pottery in Chicago in 1883....
, pottery artisan - Jimmy JohnsonJimmy Johnson (quarterback)Jimmy Johnson was an American football player. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1969.-Biography:Johnson was born on June 6, 1879 in Edgerton, WI....
, member of the College Football Hall of FameCollege Football Hall of FameThe College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum devoted to college football. Located in South Bend, Indiana, it is connected to a convention center and situated in the city's renovated downtown district, two miles south of the University of Notre Dame campus. It is slated to move... - Jessica Nelson NorthJessica Nelson NorthJessica Nelson North was an American author, poet and editor.- Early life and family :Jessica Nelson North was born in Madison, Wisconsin, the daughter of David Willard North and Sarah Elizabeth "Elizabeth" North. She grew up on the shore of Lake Koshkonong near to what later became St...
, author - Sterling NorthSterling NorthThomas Sterling North was an American author of books for children and adults, including 1963's bestselling Rascal. North, who professionally went by "Sterling North", was born on the second floor of a farmhouse on the shores of Lake Koshkonong, a few miles from Edgerton, Wisconsin, in 1906, and...
, author - Arielle North OlsonArielle North Olson-Family:Arielle is the daughter of noted author Sterling North, who wrote Rascal. She is also the niece of author, poet and editor Jessica Nelson North. She is one of the copyright owners of Sterling North's body of work. She now has 3 children and 7 grandchildren, and is a resident of St. Louis,...
, author - Steve StrickerSteve StrickerSteven Stricker is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He has won 11 tournaments on the PGA Tour including the 2001 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and two FedEx Cup playoff events. His most successful season on tour came in 2009, when he had three tournament victories...
, PGA TourPGA TourThe PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
golfer - Rollie WilliamsRollie WilliamsRolland Franklin "Rollie" Williams was a player in the National Football League for the Racine Legion in 1923. He played at the collegiate level at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, also playing baseball and basketball....
, NFL player