Platteville, Wisconsin
Encyclopedia
Platteville is the largest city in Grant County
Grant County, Wisconsin
Grant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 49,597. Its county seat is Lancaster. Estimates for 2008 show a population of 49,238...
in southwestern 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 11,224 at the 2010 census, growing 12% since the 2000 Census. Much of this growth is likely due to the enrollment increase of the University of Wisconsin–Platteville. It is the principal city of the Platteville Micropolitan Statistical area which has an estimated population of 49,681.
Geography
Platteville is located at 42.73707°N 90.477501°W (42.73707, -90.477501). It is in the Hollow Region, as named by early southern miners, in the rolling hills of southwestern Wisconsin.According to the United States Census Bureau
United 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 4.2 square miles (10.9 km2). None of the area is covered with water.
Platteville is serviced by Wisconsin State Highways 80 and 81, as well as U.S. Highway 151. Originally, U.S. 151 went through the valley that made up the southern border of the city limits, but with the completion of the four-lane limited-access superhighway, traffic has been rerouted and now loops south of the city.
The minerals in the area consist of galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
, sulfide of lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
(lead 86.6, sulfur 13.4). Sphalerite or zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
sulfide is also common in the region. Zinc and lead mining were in heavy production through the 1820s - 1920s. Consequently, there are few straight streets in Platteville. As a result of the mining in the 1800s, a honeycomb of abandoned old mines, streets were located to avoid the mines.
Climate
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 9,989 people, 3,312 households, and 1,692 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 2,376.4 people per square mile (918.3/km2). There were 3,482 housing units at an average density of 828.4 per square mile (320.1/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 96.15% White, 1.12% Black or African American
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...
, 0.27% Native American, 1.40% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.27% 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 0.75% from two or more races. 0.88% of the population were Hispanic
Hispanic
Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...
or Latino
Latino
The demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
of any race.
There were 3,312 households out of which 22.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.0% 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, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.9% were non-families. 32.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.86.
In the city the population was spread out with 14.4% under the age of 18, 41.3% from 18 to 24, 17.5% from 25 to 44, 14.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 119.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 120.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,742, and the median income for a family was $50,583. Males had a median income of $31,424 versus $21,896 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 $15,858. About 4.6% of families and 19.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.
History
Platteville was a small farming and fur trading community along the Platte River, from which the town got its name. In the 1820s, leadLead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
ore or Galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
was discovered in the area, a mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
boom took the area by storm. The mining district encompassed a significant portion of southwest Wisconsin. More specifically, the counties of Grant, Iowa, Lafayette, and Jo Davies County (Illinois) played a major role in the mining of lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
and zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
ore. The Galena, Illinois
Galena, Illinois
Galena is the county seat of, and largest city in, Jo Daviess County, Illinois in the United States, with a population of 3,429 in 2010. The city is a popular tourist destination known for its history, historical architecture, and ski and golf resorts. Galena was the residence of Ulysses S...
mining district, an area south of Platteville, had been known to many for years. Beginning in 1825, lead prices saw a dramatic boost and the Platteville economy flourished. The "grey gold" (a common nickname for lead ore) was brought development of businesses and schools. Platteville's landscape was shaped by the mining that helped build the town, and mineral holes abounded everywhere.
By the 1849s lead ore production was decreasing. However, the mining of zinc ore quickly filled the void for prospective work. Platteville was now an established town, complete with schools, an academy, newspaper, several churches, and a telegraph service as of November 1849."
During this time, a teachers' college and a mining college were founded. First the Normal School was established on October 9, 1866. The Wisconsin Mining Trade School opened in January 1908. In 1959, these two colleges later merged to become Wisconsin State College and Institute of Technology. It was not until 1971 that the college became University of Wisconsin–Platteville, a school that specializes in engineering.
Today, Platteville is mainly a college town, with some development in the white-collar sector. That growth is a result of the increasing number of engineering firms locating in Platteville to take advantage of UW-P's engineering program.
From 1984 until 2001 the Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team held training camp on the campus of University of Wisconsin–Platteville. This resulted in a substantial infusion of money into the local economy each summer. That money stopped flowing after the Bears decided to hold training camp at Olivet Nazarene University in Illinois.
In 2004, the University of Wisconsin System
University of Wisconsin System
The University of Wisconsin System is a university system of public universities in the state of Wisconsin. It is one of the largest public higher education systems in the country, enrolling more than 182,000 students each year and employing more than 32,000 faculty and staff statewide...
gave its approval to the University of Wisconsin–Platteville's plan to expand the student enrollment from 5,000 to 7,500.
In 2004, U.S. Highway 151 was upgraded to a limited-access highway whose lanes run further south of Platteville, bypassing the city. Prior to the upgrade, the highway exits were closer to Platteville and Platteville has already made changes to adjust to the new southern US 151 bypass. A new hospital was built just north of US 151 and next to its off ramps. A Walmart Supercenter and a Menards have opened near the northern end of the US 151 bypass.
Education
The Platteville School DistrictPlatteville School District
The Platteville School District is located in the city of Platteville, Grant County in southwestern Wisconsin. The district operates four schools - two elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. It is the largest school district in Grant CountyThe two elementary schools, Neal...
serves the Platteville area. Platteville High School
Platteville High School
Platteville High School is the only high school in the Platteville School District in Platteville, Wisconsin. Platteville High School experienced a large enrollment drop over the past decade, from 660 students in the 1996-1997 school year to 489 students in the 2008-2009 school year.The principal...
is the area's public high school. Platteville High School
Platteville High School
Platteville High School is the only high school in the Platteville School District in Platteville, Wisconsin. Platteville High School experienced a large enrollment drop over the past decade, from 660 students in the 1996-1997 school year to 489 students in the 2008-2009 school year.The principal...
's mascot is "Henry Hillmen."
Culture
The main source of culture in Platteville is the Center for the Arts on University of Wisconsin–Platteville campus, which sponsors a steady stream of well-attended professional touring events.The "Heartland Festival", a semi-professional theater festival that produces four shows that run throughout the summer, is a summer attraction featured at the UWP-Center for the Arts. The casts are a combination of professionals and local residents.
Attractions
Stone CottageThis home was built in 1837 by the Rev. Samuel Mitchell and still contains many of the original furnishings. The home was a home of the Major John Rountree, one of Platteville's founders. The walls of this home are two feet thick and made of dolomite Galena Limestone.
The Big M
Platteville has the world's largest M, a claim that its Chamber of Commerce states is unchallenged. The M is a monogram for the former Wisconsin Mining School (now the University of Wisconsin–Platteville).
The first M was first constructed in 1936 when two men, Raymond Medley and Alvin Knoerr climbed the Platte Mound and trudged through 2 feet of snow to form a huge letter M. Actual construction of the stone M began in the spring of 1937 and was completed in the fall of the same year.
The M is composed of rocks laid on Platte Mound and is whitewashed (not painted) every year. The M is 241-feet tall, 214-feet wide and legs that are 25-feet wide.
The M can be seen many places in Platteville and sometimes in Iowa, on a clear day. Atop the Platte Mound and the M viewers can see three states: Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois.
The M is lit once a year during the University of Wisconsin - Platteville college homecoming. It is an attraction Platteville citizens generally appreciate.
Rollo Jamison Museum and Mining Museum
At the museums one can tour the Lorenzo Bevan's 1845 lead mine, ride a 1931 zinc mine train, and view many exhibits on Platteville's mining history as well as Rollo Jamison's personal collection of artifacts.
Notable residents
- S. Wesley ClarkS. Wesley ClarkS. Wesley Clark was a politician in the State of South Dakota.-Biography:Clark was born Samuel Wesley Clark to Samuel Pliny and Elizabeth Dennison Clark on December 28, 1872 in Platteville, Wisconsin. In 1900, he would marry Daisy Labrie, who passed away in 1915. Later he would marry Essie Eggler...
, Attorney General of South DakotaSouth DakotaSouth Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over... - Major John H. RountreeJohn Hawkins RountreeJohn Hawkins Rountree was a Wisconsin pioneer and politician.Born in Warren County, Kentucky, Rountree settled first in Hillsboro, Illinois, and then went to Michigan Territory to the lead mines in 1827. There he staked a claim where the city of Platteville, Wisconsin is today...
(1805-1890) extremely influential person in the Platteville area. His home is on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Grant County, Wisconsin. - Charles E. EstabrookCharles E. EstabrookCharles E. Estabrook was an American Republican politician from Wisconsin.Born in Platteville, Wisconsin, Estabrook graduated from the now University of Wisconsin–Platteville. He was admitted to the Wisconsin bar and practiced law in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Eventually he moved to Milwaukee,...
, Wisconsin Attorney General - John FiedlerJohn FiedlerJohn Donald Fiedler was an American voice actor and character actor in stage, film, television and radio. He was slight, balding, and bespectacled, with a distinctive, high-pitched voice and a career lasting more than 55 years.He is best remembered for four roles: as the nervous Juror #2 in 12...
(1925-2005) voice actor and character actorCharacter actorA character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
in stageStage (theatre)In theatre or performance arts, the stage is a designated space for the performance productions. The stage serves as a space for actors or performers and a focal point for the members of the audience...
, filmFilmA film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, televisionTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and radioRadio programmingRadio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....
, who was the voice of PigletPiglet (Winnie the Pooh)Piglet is a fictional character from A. A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh books. Piglet is Winnie-the-Pooh's closest friend amongst all the toys/animals featured in the stories...
in DisneyThe Walt Disney CompanyThe Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
's Winnie the Pooh productions and who played the Mr. Peterson, a nervous patient on The Bob Newhart ShowThe Bob Newhart ShowThe Bob Newhart Show is an American situation comedy produced by MTM Enterprises, which aired 142 original episodes on CBS from September 16, , to April 1, . Comedian Bob Newhart portrayed a psychologist having to deal with his patients and fellow office workers...
. - Arthur W. KoppArthur W. KoppArthur William Kopp was a U.S. Representative from Wisconsin.Born in Bigpatch, Wisconsin, Kopp attended the common schools of Grant County, Wisconsin....
, U.S. Representative. - Ray MeiklejohnRay Meiklejohn- Early life :Raymond Harry Meiklejohn was born on November 7, 1935 in Quill Lake, Saskatchewan to Robert James Meiklejohn and Ada Maria Woodbury.He received his primary and secondary education in Quill Lake...
, Canadian politician - James William MurphyJames William MurphyJames William Murphy was an American politician from Wisconsin....
, U.S. Representative. - Josiah Little PickardJosiah Little PickardJosiah Little Pickard was the Superintendent of Public Instruction of Wisconsin, 1860-1864, and the sixth President of the University of Iowa, 1878-1887....
, educator - Gordon RoseleipGordon RoseleipGordon Roseleip was an American, Republican politician and businessman from Wisconsin.Born in Platteville, Wisconsin, Roseleip was a veteran of World War II and the Korean War. Roseleip was a businessman; he served in the Wisconsin State Senate from 1963 to 1975.-Notes:...
, Wisconsin State Senator. - Pants RowlandPants RowlandClarence Henry "Pants" Rowland was a Major League Baseball manager for the Chicago White Sox from 1915 through 1918 who went on to become a major figure in minor league baseball. He was born in Platteville, Wisconsin...
, former manager of the Chicago White SoxChicago White SoxThe Chicago White Sox are a Major League Baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois.The White Sox play in the American League's Central Division. Since , the White Sox have played in U.S. Cellular Field, which was originally called New Comiskey Park and nicknamed The Cell by local fans...
. - Herbert Spencer Gasser (1888-1963) physiologist and recipient of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1944 for his work with action potentials in nerveNerveA peripheral nerve, or simply nerve, is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of peripheral axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons. Nerves are found only in the peripheral nervous system...
fibers. - James Russell VineyardJames Russell VineyardJames Russell Vineyard was a United States Democratic politician and pioneer.Born in Kentucky, Vineyard settled in Platteville, Wisconsin, in Wisconsin Territory, in the 1840s. During this time, he was elected to the Territorial Council...
, Wisconsin and California politician - Scott Adams (game designer)Scott Adams (game designer)Scott Adams is the co-founder, with ex-wife Alexis, of Adventure International, an early publisher of games for home computers....
, An early computer game publisher and designer
See also
- University of Wisconsin–Platteville
- Platteville Municipal AirportPlatteville Municipal AirportPlatteville Municipal Airport is a city-owned public-use airport located three nautical miles southeast of the central business district of Platteville, a city in Grant County, Wisconsin, United States.Although most U.S...