Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin

Early French explorers named the Dells of the Wisconsin River as dalles, a rapids or narrows on a river in voyageur French.[10]

Because of the scenery provided by the dells of the Wisconsin River, Kilbourn City quickly became a popular travel destination in the Midwest. In 1856, Leroy Gates began taking tourists on boat tours of the Wisconsin Dells. These tours were given using wooden rowboats until 1873 when the first steamboat, the Modocawanda, was used. In 1875, early landscape photographer H. H. Bennett established a studio in the city and took many photos of the sandstone formations in the dells, including stereoscopic views. Prints of these photographs were distributed across the United States, further enhancing the status of Kilbourn City as a destination for sightseers. Taking advantage of this, Bennett began offering to take souvenir pictures of visitors to the dells, becoming one of the first to capitalize on the area's burgeoning tourist trade. Today, the H. H. Bennett Studio is an historic site operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society.

The Dells region remained primarily a place for sightseers to escape the bustle of the city for many decades. By 1894, distillate-powered tour boats began to be used. In 1908, the Kilbourn Dam was installed by what is now Alliant Energy, over the protests of people such as H. H. Bennett, separating the Dells into the Upper and Lower Dells.

Since the time of Leroy Gates, the Dells Boat Tours have gone through many operators. Some of the previous companies were The Riverview Boat Line, the Olson Boat Line, the Dells Boat Company, the Consolidated Boat Company, and the Silver Dollar Boat Line.

A few other events of interest took place during this time, including the June 16, 1911 impact of a 772-gram stony meteorite in rural Columbia County near the city, damaging a barn. In 1928 Mr. Clinton Berry established Berry's Dells airport. It occupied sixty acres and was designated on government maps as beacon No. 19. Berry built the airport to carry visitors to the Dells from the surrounding metropolitan areas.[11]

In 1952, a new traveling performance from Chicago called "Tommy Bartlett's Thrill Show" came to Lake Delton on its second stop. Following the show's huge success in the city, its owner, Tommy Bartlett, chose to keep the performance permanently in Wisconsin Dells. To promote the show, Bartlett gave away bumper stickers advertising his thrill show and the city, effectively spreading word about the area across the nation.

Soon more attractions followed to serve the ever-increasing tourists, along with many hotels, shops, and restaurants. Today, a large number of water parks are central to the local economy.[12]

Lake Delton, Wisconsin Dells's sister city to the south, gradually became popular as the Dells attractions spread out. The Wonder Spot was founded in Lake Delton in 1952, and remained open until 2006.[13]

Winnebago Indians called themselves "Hochungra," meaning "People of the Big Voice." A Siouan people, they once occupied the southern half of Wisconsin including Wisconsin Dells. Until 1993, the Ho-Chunk Nation was formerly known as the Wisconsin Winnebago Tribe, but the term Winnebago is a misnomer derived from the Algonquian language family and refers to the marsh lands of the region. Today, there are approximately 8,000 Ho-Chunk Nation citizens living in the five districts of the Ho-Chunk Nation as well as living throughout the United States and the world. The Ho-Chunk Nation is not located on a reservation or a single continuous land base in Wisconsin, but rather, the Ho-Chunk Nation owns land in 14 counties in Wisconsin, including Adams, Clark, Crawford, Dane, Eau Claire, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Marathon, Monroe, Sauk, Shawano, Vernon and Wood Counties and also land in the State of Illinois.This is a result of the failed attempts from 1832-1874 to ethnically cleanse the Ho-Chunk from Wisconsin, which the Ho-Chunk thwarted by continuously returning during this process, finally exploiting the 1862 Homestead Act to purchase land in their ancestral home. This strategy and resilience resulted in a new national law, the Indian Homestead Act of 1875. Today, the Ho-Chunk Nation is the largest employer in Sauk and Jackson counties.[16]

Wisconsin Dells has a humid continental climate.

On July 13, 1936, the temperature in Wisconsin Dells reached 114 °F (46 °C), the highest ever recorded in the state of Wisconsin.[17]

As of the census[3] of 2010, there were 2,678 people, 1,148 households, and 659 families residing in the city. The population density was 363.9 inhabitants per square mile (140.5/km²). There were 1,485 housing units at an average density of 201.8 per square mile (77.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.5% White, 0.7% African American, 1.8% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 3.3% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.4% of the population.

There were 1,148 households, of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.9% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.6% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.87.

The median age in the city was 40.3 years. 20.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.4% were from 25 to 44; 26.6% were from 45 to 64; and 17.7% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.6% male and 50.4% female.

Of the 2010 total population of 2,678, the population by county was:

• Adams County: 61
• Columbia County: 2,440
• Juneau County: 2
• Sauk County: 175

As of the census[6] of 2000, there were 2,418 people, 1,019 households, and 609 families residing in the city. The population density was 583.1 people per square mile (225.0/km²). There were 1,178 housing units at an average density of 284.1 per square mile (109.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.56% White, 0.37% African American, 0.87% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 0.62% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.70% of the population.

There were 1,019 households, out of which 26.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.5% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.2% were non-families. 34.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.0% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 23.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,699, and the median income for a family was $46,304. Males had a median income of $29,830 versus $22,553 for females. The per capita income for the city was $23,447. About 4.0% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.7% of those under age 18 and 3.0% of those age 65 or over.

• Kilbourn Public Library
• Wawbeek-Horace A.J. Upham House
• Jacob Weber House

Greyhound Lines provides intrastate and interstate bus service to Wisconsin Dells[26] on its Chicago - Milwaukee - Madison - Minneapolis route.[27]

The Empire Builder, operated by Amtrak, provides daily rail service from the Wisconsin Dells Amtrak station.[28][29] The station was built in the 1980s in the style of the original station.

• Frontier Communications