Kohler, Wisconsin Facts for Kids

This page is about the village in Sheboygan County. For the community in Ozaukee County, see Little Kohler, Wisconsin.

Quick facts for kids Kohler, Wisconsin
Village

Location of Kohler in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin.
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
County	Sheboygan
Area
• Total	5.53 sq mi (14.33 km²)
• Land	5.32 sq mi (13.77 km²)
• Water	0.22 sq mi (0.56 km²)
Elevation	686 ft (209 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	2,120
• Estimate (2019)	2,059
• Density	387.18/sq mi (149.48/km²)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code(s)	920
FIPS code	55-40275
GNIS feature ID	1567601

Kohler is a village in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, United States, along the Sheboygan River. The population was 2,120 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Sheboygan, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History
Geography
Demographics
- 2010 census
Businesses
Gallery
Notable people
See also

History

Originally called Riverside within the rural Town of Sheboygan, the village was founded as a model company town in 1900 when the Kohler Company built a new plant at the location. The village was incorporated in 1912 as the Village of Kohler. Of the original homes, most built between 1917 and 1931, approximately 95% are owner occupied. The Kohler Company continues to retain final authority over the design of home and business additions, outbuildings and fences in the village to keep them within a certain aesthetic standard.

In 1900, Kohler Company had moved from four miles westward from Sheboygan to its present location, then known as Riverside. Chief executive Walter J. Kohler Sr. hoped to establish “a fine American city with opportunity for home ownership in agreeable surroundings, all tending toward a rational home life.” He traveled to Europe in 1913, studying the Krupp Steel Works’s communities and conferring in England with “garden city” urban planner Sir Ebenezer Howard. Kohler’s planning, starting in 1917, including engaging the Olmsted Brothers landscape architectural firm.

In 1931 the New York Times described Kohler Village as “That ideal long sought—industry surrounded by rich community life—seems to have found fulfillment in the town of Kohler. Among all other towns it stands apart, a compact manufacturing centre in the midst of garden homes, a manufacturing plant without a visible ash heap.”

In 1934, 1954–1965, 1983, and 2015, the United Auto Workers and other unions have gone on strike against the Kohler Company, causing limited to major disruptions to village operations.

Geography

Kohler is located at 43°44′18″N 87°46′52″W / 43.73833°N 87.78111°W / 43.73833; -87.78111 (43.738244, -87.781109).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 5.63 square miles (14.58 km²), of which, 5.41 square miles (14.01 km²) of it is land and 0.22 square miles (0.57 km²) is water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1920	403	—
1930	1,748	333.7%
1940	1,789	2.3%
1950	1,716	−4.1%
1960	1,524	−11.2%
1970	1,738	14.0%
1980	1,651	−5.0%
1990	1,817	10.1%
2000	1,926	6.0%
2010	2,120	10.1%
2019 (est.)	2,059	−2.9%
U.S. Decennial Census

2010 census

Kohler Memorial Theatre

As of the census of 2010, there were 2,120 people, 784 households, and 608 families residing in the village. The population density was 391.9 inhabitants per square mile (151.3/km²). There were 871 housing units at an average density of 161.0 per square mile (62.2/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.0% White, 0.2% African American, 2.5% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.3% of the population.

There were 784 households, of which 38.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.9% were married couples living together, 6.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 22.4% were non-families. 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.12.

The median age in the village was 42 years. 30.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 3.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22% were from 25 to 44; 29.4% were from 45 to 64; and 15% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 47.2% male and 52.8% female.

Businesses

As a company town, the Kohler Company, a leading plumbing and small engine company, is the village's largest employer. Kohler's hospitality division along with its residential real estate and retail arms make up the largest goods and services employer of the village.

Kohler Company Main Office

Kohler has two major shopping areas: the Shops at Woodlake Kohler just north of the village's downtown, and Deertrace on the extreme southeast side of the village at the intersection of WI 28 and Washington Avenue.

In July 2022, Aurora Health Care opened Aurora Medical Center Sheboygan County, which replaced the 89-year-old Aurora Sheboygan Memorial Medical Center. It is located on Union Avenue east of I-43 on Kohler village land north of the Acuity Insurance campus. The land itself is otherwise inaccessible from Kohler proper itself without going through Sheboygan.