Amberg, Wisconsin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Amberg, Wisconsin
Town
Location of Amberg, Wisconsin
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
County	Marinette
Area
• Total	72.7 sq mi (188.3 km2)
• Land	71.8 sq mi (186.0 km2)
• Water	0.9 sq mi (2.3 km2)
Elevation	817 ft (249 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	693
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area codes	715 & 534
FIPS code	55-01675
GNIS feature ID	1582687
Website	http://ambergtownship.com/

Amberg is a small town in Marinette County, Wisconsin, in the United States. In 2020, about 693 people lived there. The area includes parts of the community of Cedarville and the place called Amberg.

Geology: Amberg's Unique Rocks

The Amberg and Athelstane Granites

Amberg is in northeastern Wisconsin, about 75 kilometers (47 miles) north of Green Bay. The rocks here are part of the Wisconsin Magmatic Terrane. This area was formed around 1,850 million years ago when huge pieces of the Earth's crust (tectonic plates) crashed into each other. This event created the Niagara Fault Zone.

The Amberg Granite is one of the largest granite areas in Wisconsin. It is famous for its many different colors and textures. The two main types are a fine-grained gray granite and a coarse-grained red granite, often called "Amberg red." These granites were very valuable in the late 1800s and early 1900s. This led to many quarries opening in the area.

You can find Dave's Falls about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) south of Amberg. It's a beautiful spot to see the local geology.

History: Amberg's Quarry Days

Working in the Granite Quarries

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, several big companies operated in the Amberg area. The Amberg Granite Company was the first. Later, the Pike River Granite Company started, partly because of tough working conditions at the Amberg Granite Company.

William Amberg of Chicago owned the Amberg Granite Company. His company had quarries in Amberg, including the Argyle, Martindale, Athelstane, and Aberdeen quarries. The Argyle and Martindale quarries produced the fine-grained gray granite. The Aberdeen quarry was known for the "Amberg red" granite. The Athelstane quarry produced a coarse-grained gray granite.

Much of the granite from these quarries was sent to Chicago. It was used for things like curbing blocks and paving streets. It was also used to build important buildings, such as the Minnesota State Capitol, and other buildings in Chicago and Cincinnati.

The Pike River Company mainly produced fine-grained gray granite. This granite was often used for monuments because it was strong and looked good. For example, in 1929, a lot of this stone was sold to the Universal Granite Company to be used as breakwater stone.

Even though these businesses were once very busy and made a lot of money, there are no active granite quarries in the Amberg area today. You can learn more about the history of these quarries and the local area at the Amberg Museum complex. It is located in Amberg on Marinette County V, just off Highway 141.

Geography: Where Amberg Is Located

The town of Amberg covers about 188.3 square kilometers (72.7 square miles). Most of this area, about 186.0 square kilometers (71.8 square miles), is land. The rest, about 2.3 square kilometers (0.9 square miles), is water.

Demographics: Who Lives in Amberg

In 2000, there were 854 people living in Amberg. By 2020, the population was 693.

In 2000, about 19.8% of the people were under 18 years old. About 21.8% were 65 years old or older. The average age in the town was 46 years.

See also

In Spanish: Amberg (condado de Marinette, Wisconsin) para niños