Stats and Facts
Location
Washburn County is located at:
45.9001 N Latitude
91.7911 W Longitude
Between Spooner and:
Chicago 393 miles
Des Moines 386 miles
Duluth/Superior 75 miles
Indianapolis 607 miles
Madison 255 miles
Milwaukee 325 miles
Twin Cities 109 miles
U.S. Hwy. 53 extends north to Duluth/ Superior and south to Interstate 94.
Hwy. 63 extends from the Mississippi River through Spooner to Lake Superior.
Hwy. 70 extends east and west across northern Wisconsin.
Hwy. 77 extends from the Minnesota border east through Danbury, Minong, and Hayward to Hwy. 13 north of
Glidden.
Largest city: Spooner, population 2,633 (1998 estimate). Spooner is the third-largest community
between Eau Claire and Superior on the four-lane U.S. Hwy. 53.
County Seat: Shell Lake.
Size-wise
Washburn County is the 28th largest county in Wisconsin.
It ranks seventh in the state for total water surface acreage.
Land use
Total area: 857 square miles; 548,840 acres.
Forested land: 67 percent of county, with aspen the leading timber type.
Non-forested land: 27 percent.
Surface water: Nearly 6 percent of county, including 961 lakes, 475 of them named, with 31,498 acres of
water and 866 miles of lakeshore.
Land ownership: 29 percent is publicly owned, and 65 percent is privately owned. Remainder is
waterways.
County forest: Approximately 148,000 acres.
Owned by the state: Approx. 5,690 acres.
Owned by U.S. government: Approx. 2,310 acres.
Elevation
1,050 feet above sea level.
Population
Eighteen people per square mile. Rank in state, with 1 being the highest: 61st.
Total pop. 15,236
Age 5-15 5.7%
Age 5-15 19.8%
Age 16-24 5.4%
Age 25-44 27.1%
Age 45-64 23.0%
Age 65+ 19.0%
Births in 1998 148
Deaths in 1998 182
County's equalized value
1999 $1,052,653,100
1998 $918,884,300
1997 $778,525,900
1996 $637,099,550
1995 $595,930,450
1985 $405,480,160
1975 $164,803,270
Mill rates
Taxpayers paid the following per each $1,000 of assessed value in 1999. The rates are rounded to the
nearest penny and are based on combined state, county, municipal, school, and vocational college mill
rates.
Where more than one school district lies in a township, the town will have multiple rates.
T. Barronett $21.03
T. Bashaw $28.00, $22.35
T. Bass Lake $21.64
T. Beaverbrook $21.79, $19.80
T. Bircwhood $22.89, $19.15, $20.13, $19.15
T. Brooklyn $20.42, $17.06
T. Casey $19.06
T. Chicog $36.51
T. Crystal $18.42
T. Evergreen $24.38
T. Frog Creek $25.94
T. Gull Lake $21.55
T. Long Lake $24.49, $23.24
T. Madge $29.33, $23.29
T. Minong $26.34
T. Sarona $18.29, $21.05, $17.95
T. Spooner $20.06
T. Springbrook $20.84
T. Stinnett $21.05
T. Stone Lake $32.22, $30.45
T. Trego $19.01
V. Birchwood $22.49
V. Minong $29.41
C. Shell Lake $40.65
C. Spooner $22.20
County sales tax
The county collects a half-percent tax to fund the building of the county courthouse complex.
The following amounts have been collected since the tax went into effect in June 1991.
1999 $783,159.96
1998 $718,971.34
1997 $685,296.26
1996 $603,249.42
1995 $575,775.09
1994 $521,347.35
1993 $479,625.46
1992 $443,181.25
1991 $259,713.05
Approximately $294,884 was collected in the first half of 2000.
Through June 30, 2000, total sales tax collections overall stood at $5,367,203.20.
On video
Four videos featuring Wash-burn County and the region can be viewed at the Washburn County Tourism
Center, 122 N. River St., Spooner. 635-9696.
They include Washburn County Route to Relaxation, which spotlights natural resources, recreational
opportunities, and hunting and fishing; Winter Journey through North-west Wisconsin, which covers
snowmobiling; Exploring the Festivals of Northwest Wisconsin; and Falling for Northwest Wisconsin,
which explores autumn in the region.
Info via
the Internet
www.spooneronline.com
www.spoonerwi.com
www.washburncounty.com
www.spoonerwisconsin.com
www.wibeautiful.net
Welcome service
The Spooner Welcome Service provides information about the area and gift certificates from local
businesses. 635-3790.
Phone prefixes
Telephone prefixes in and around Washburn County
AREA CODE 715
234: Rice Lake
236: Rice Lake
259: Danbury, Webb Lake
266: Winter
292: Superior
319: Superior
349: Hertel, Siren, Webster
354: Birchwood
376: Gordon
378: Solon Springs
392: Superior
394: Superior
395: Superior
398: Superior
399: Superior
462: Spider Lake
463: Grantsburg
466: Minong, Wascott
468: Shell Lake, Hertel
469: Sarona
488: Grantsburg
537: Barron
634: Hayward
635: Spooner, Trego
656: Danbury
689: Grantsburg
766: Springbrook
822: Barronett, Cumberland
865: Stone Lake
866: Webster
943: Exeland
945: Couderay, Radisson
995: Superior
Area Zip Codes
Barron 54812
Barronett 54813
Birchwood 54817
Couderay 54828
Cumberland 54829
Danbury 54830
Earl 54875
Edgewater 54834
Exeland 54835
Gordon 54838
Grantsburg 54840
Hayward 54843
Hertel 54845
Minong 54859
Radisson 54867
Rice Lake 54868
Sarona 54870
Shell Lake 54871
Siren 54872
Solon Springs 54873
Spider Lake 54843, 54828
Spooner 54801
Springbrook 54875
Stone Lake 54876
Superior 54880
Trego 54888
Wascott 54890
Webb Lake 54830
Webster 54893
Winter 54896
The Weather
The general climate of Washburn County is classified as continental moist (cold winters and warm
summers).
Average annual temperature: 42.4 degrees.
Extremes recorded at weather station in Spooner: 110 degrees (on July 11, 1936)
and -46 degrees (on Feb. 19, 1895).
Coldest month: January, averages 12 degrees F.
Warmest month: July, averages 69 degrees F.
Average last frost date: May 24.
Average first frost: Sept. 20.
Lakes tend to be ice-covered from late November through mid-April.
Average wind speed: 11 mph in winter, 9 mph during summer.
Sunshine: July through September, sun shines two-thirds of the possible time; November and December
average the least amount of sunshine, with sunshine 40 percent of the possible time.
Mean precipitation: Just under 30 inches of rain annually.
Average annual snowfall: 47 inches.
Chambers & Info
Birchwood Area
Lakes Association
Robert Herscher, Pres; 715-354-3771 or 1-800-236-2252,
PO Box 406,
Birchwood, WI 54817
Long Lake
Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 19, 715-354-3533
Sarona, WI 54870
Shell Lake
Chamber of Commerce
Karla Mortensen, 468-4088
P.O. Box 67
Shell Lake, WI 54871
Spooner Area
Chamber of Commerce
Ruth Skeie, 635-2168
122 N. River Street,
Spooner, WI 54801
Stone Lake
Chamber of Commerce
Marlene Pizzitola, 715-865-6038
Box 75
Stone Lake, WI 54876
Washburn County
Tourism Association
635-9696, or 1/800/367-3306
122 N. River St.,
Spooner, WI 54801
Post Offices
Birchwood (54817), Main Street, 354-3318; 8-11:30 a.m. and 12:30-4 p.m., Mon.-Fri.;
7:30-11 a.m., Sat.
Minong (54859), 321 W. Fifth Ave. (Hwy. 77), 466-2111; 9 a.m.-noon and 1-4 p.m.,
Mon.-Fri.; 8-9:30 a.m., Sat.
Sarona (54870), W5340 Ripley Rd.,
469-3202; 7 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 1:30-4 p.m., Mon.-Fri.; 7-9:30 a.m., Sat.
Shell Lake (54871), 214 W. Fifth Ave.,
468-2111; 8:30-11:30 a.m. and 12:30-4:45 p.m., Mon.-Fri.; 8:30-11 a.m., Sat.
Spooner (54801), 704 N. Front St.,
635-8716; 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Mon.-Fri.; 8 a.m.-noon, Sat.
Springbrook (54875), W3060 Hwy. 63,
766-2951; 7:30-11:30 a.m. and 12:30-4:30 p.m., Mon.-Fri.; 7:30-9:30 a.m., Sat.
Stone Lake (54876), First and Gibson,
865-3421; 8:30-11:30 a.m. and 12:30-4 p.m., Mon.-Fri.; 8:30-9:30 a.m., Sat.
Trego (54888), N7316 Third St., 635-8566; 8:30 a.m.-noon and 1-4 p.m., Mon.-Fri.;
8:30-9:30 a.m., Sat.
Go Back >>
122 North River Street · Spooner, WI 54801 · Phone: 715-635-2168
Email: chamber@spooneronline.com
