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Outagamie County
County
Outagamie County Administration Complex
Location within the U.S. state of Wisconsin
Wisconsin's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 44°25′N 88°28′W / 44.41°N 88.46°W / 44.41; -88.46
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
Founded	1852
Seat	Appleton
Largest city	Appleton
Area
• Total	645 sq mi (1,670 km2)
• Land	638 sq mi (1,650 km2)
• Water	7.1 sq mi (18 km2)  1.1%
Population  (2020)
• Total	190,705
• Estimate  (2023)	193,234
• Density	300/sq mi (110/km2)
Time zone	UTC−6 (Central)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−5 (CDT)
Congressional district	8th
Website	www.outagamie.org

Outagamie County (/ˌaʊtəˈɡeɪmi/ OW-tə-GAY-mee)^[1] is a county in the Fox Cities region of the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located in the northeast of the state. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 190,705.^[2] Its county seat is Appleton.^[3]

Outagamie County is included in the Appleton, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Appleton-Neenah-Oshkosh, WI Combined Statistical Area. It was named for the historic Meskwaki (Fox) people.

"Outagamie," a French transliteration of the Anishinaabe term for the Meskwaki (Fox) people, meant "dwellers of other shore" or "dwellers on the other side of the stream," referring to their historic habitation along the St. Lawrence River and south of the Great Lakes. They had occupied considerable territory in Wisconsin prior to colonization.^[4] Outagamie County was created in 1851 and organized in 1852.^[5] Prior to this it was under the jurisdiction of Brown County.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 645 square miles (1,670 km²), of which 638 square miles (1,650 km²) is land and 7.1 square miles (18 km²) (1.1%) is water.^[6]

• Shawano County - north
• Brown County - east
• Calumet County - southeast
• Winnebago County - southwest
• Waupaca County - west

• Wolf River - The Wolf River runs through the city of New London and the village of Shiocton along western half of the county.
• Fox River - The Fox River follows the south-eastern corner of the county, running through the cities of Appleton and Kaukauna
• Shioc River - This river runs merges with the Wolf River in the village of Shiocton.
• Embarrass River - The Embarrass River runs through the city of New London and merges with the Wolf River there.

• Black Otter Lake - Located in Hortonville, it receives much recreational use by anglers for being the only lake within the county.

Outagamie County's government consists of an elected County Board of Supervisors, a County Executive, and 36 county agencies and departments.^[7][8]

The county executive serves as its chief executive officer, participating in the legislative process with the County Board of Supervisors and exercising administrative authority and control over the county's operations, departments, offices, boards, programs, and communications.^[9]

Department heads are appointed by the county executive, subject to the approval of the board of supervisors. The county executive also appoints members to the county's boards and commissions. The county executive sets the annual budget in consultation with and subject to the approval of the board of supervisors.^[10][11]

County Executive Tom Nelson was first elected in 2011.^[12]

• Canadian National
• Watco

• Valley Transit (Wisconsin)

• Appleton International Airport (KATW) serves the county and surrounding communities. It is the third busiest airport in Wisconsin and is served by 4 airlines to 16 destinations.
• Shiocton Airport (W34) is a grass strip airport located in Shiocton, Wisconsin

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1860	9,587		—
1870	18,430		92.2%
1880	28,716		55.8%
1890	38,690		34.7%
1900	46,247		19.5%
1910	49,102		6.2%
1920	55,113		12.2%
1930	62,790		13.9%
1940	70,032		11.5%
1950	81,722		16.7%
1960	101,794		24.6%
1970	119,356		17.3%
1980	128,799		7.9%
1990	140,510		9.1%
2000	160,971		14.6%
2010	176,695		9.8%
2020	190,705		7.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[14] 1790–1960[15] 1900–1990[16] 1990–2000[17] 2010[18] 2020[2]

As of the census of 2020,^[2] the population was 190,705. The population density was 299.1 people per square mile (115.5 people/km²). There were 79,131 housing units at an average density of 124.1 units per square mile (47.9 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 86.0% White, 3.5% Asian, 1.6% Native American, 1.6% Black or African American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.0% from other races, and 5.3% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 4.9% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

As of the census^[19] of 2000, there were 160,971 people, 60,530 households, and 42,189 families residing in the county. The population density was 251 people per square mile (97 people/km²). There were 62,614 housing units at an average density of 98 units per square mile (38 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.87% White, 0.54% Black or African American, 1.54% Native American, 2.23% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.81% from other races, and 0.98% from two or more races. 1.99% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 47.7% were of German, 9.4% Dutch, 6.2% Irish and 5.2% American and French-Canadian ancestry.

Of the 60,530 households, 36.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.90% were married couples living together, 7.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.30% were non-families. 24.20% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.14.

By age, 27.70% of the population was under 18, 8.90% from 18 to 24, 31.90% from 25 to 44, 20.70% from 45 to 64, and 10.90% were 65 or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 99.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.90 males.

In 2017, there were 2,204 births, giving a general fertility rate of 64.0 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 34th highest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties.^[20] Additionally, there were 136 reported induced abortions performed on women of Outagamie County residence in 2017.^[21]

• Appleton (county seat; partly in Calumet County and Winnebago County)
• Kaukauna (partially in Calumet County)
• New London (mostly in Waupaca County)
• Seymour

• Dale

• Grand Chute
• Lawesburg
• Lime Rock
• Wakefield

• Oneida Nation of Wisconsin (partial)

Outagamie County has voted for the Republican presidential candidate in 19 of the last 22 presidential elections.

United States presidential election results for Outagamie County, Wisconsin^[22][23]

Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party(ies)
	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2024	60,827	54.34%	49,438	44.17%	1,667	1.49%
2020	58,385	54.05%	47,667	44.13%	1,970	1.82%
2016	49,879	53.10%	38,068	40.53%	5,986	6.37%
2012	47,372	50.08%	45,659	48.27%	1,565	1.65%
2008	39,677	43.33%	50,294	54.93%	1,592	1.74%
2004	48,903	54.31%	40,169	44.61%	978	1.09%
2000	39,460	52.10%	32,735	43.22%	3,547	4.68%
1996	27,758	42.78%	28,815	44.41%	8,316	12.82%
1992	30,370	41.65%	23,735	32.55%	18,806	25.79%
1988	33,113	54.04%	27,771	45.32%	394	0.64%
1984	36,773	64.54%	19,790	34.73%	416	0.73%
1980	31,500	52.99%	21,284	35.81%	6,657	11.20%
1976	28,363	54.02%	23,079	43.95%	1,065	2.03%
1972	27,533	59.84%	17,447	37.92%	1,028	2.23%
1968	25,080	59.29%	14,224	33.63%	2,997	7.08%
1964	18,595	46.26%	21,556	53.62%	47	0.12%
1960	24,146	58.15%	17,287	41.63%	89	0.21%
1956	26,090	76.56%	7,725	22.67%	262	0.77%
1952	26,603	73.86%	9,373	26.02%	44	0.12%
1948	16,161	58.40%	11,233	40.59%	278	1.00%
1944	18,294	64.44%	9,955	35.07%	140	0.49%
1940	17,733	58.98%	12,168	40.47%	166	0.55%
1936	9,485	34.66%	16,163	59.07%	1,716	6.27%
1932	8,517	33.91%	16,186	64.44%	415	1.65%
1928	12,378	49.58%	12,474	49.97%	112	0.45%
1924	6,426	35.39%	1,255	6.91%	10,479	57.70%
1920	11,140	74.69%	3,121	20.93%	654	4.38%
1916	5,302	52.97%	4,442	44.38%	265	2.65%
1912	2,384	28.82%	4,139	50.04%	1,748	21.13%
1908	5,079	52.34%	4,286	44.17%	339	3.49%
1904	5,949	63.65%	3,143	33.63%	254	2.72%
1900	5,245	55.15%	4,008	42.14%	258	2.71%
1896	5,433	55.42%	4,096	41.78%	275	2.80%
1892	2,733	35.91%	4,545	59.72%	333	4.38%

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Outagamie County, Wisconsin

• Commemorative Biographical Record of the Fox River Valley Counties of Brown, Outagamie and Winnebago. Chicago: J. H. Beers, 1895.
• Ryan, Thomas H. (ed.). History of Outagamie County Wisconsin. Chicago: Goodspeed Historical Association, 1911.

• Outagamie County government
• Outagamie County map from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation
• Outagamie County entry on Wisconsin Online

44°25′N 88°28′W / 44.41°N 88.46°W / 44.41; -88.46