Spencer, Wisconsin Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Spencer, Wisconsin
Village
Looking west at the downtown from intersection of WIS13 and WIS98
Motto(s): A friendly small town with a future.
Location of Spencer in Marathon County, Wisconsin.
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
County	Marathon
Area
• Total	1.96 sq mi (5.09 km²)
• Land	1.96 sq mi (5.08 km²)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.00 km²)
Elevation	1,312 ft (400 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	1,925
• Estimate (2019)	1,878
• Density	957.19/sq mi (369.52/km²)
Time zone	UTC-6 (Central (CST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code(s)	715 & 534
FIPS code	55-75425
GNIS feature ID	1574525

Spencer is a small village located in Marathon County, Wisconsin. It is part of the larger Wausau, Wisconsin area. In 2010, about 1,925 people lived there.

The village was started in 1874. It was built near a branch of the Wisconsin Central Railway. Spencer is located between two marshy areas. Today, it sits where two main roads, Wisconsin Highway 13 (WIS 13) and WIS 98, meet. It is about 8 miles (13 km) northwest of Marshfield.

History of Spencer
Geography of Spencer
People in Spencer
- Spencer's Population in 2010
Education in Spencer
- Spencer Branch Library History
Famous People from Spencer
Images for kids
See also

History of Spencer

Spencer was first called Waltham. Later, its name changed to Irene. This new name was for Irene, the wife of James L. Robinson. He was a settler who built a sawmill in the area. Finally, the town was named Spencer. This name came from Spencer, Massachusetts.

Geography of Spencer

Spencer is located at coordinates 44.756406 degrees north and -90.298178 degrees west.

The United States Census Bureau says the village covers about 2.01 square miles (5.21 square kilometers). All of this area is land.

People in Spencer

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1890	526	—
1910	362	—
1920	482	33.1%
1930	456	−5.4%
1940	506	11.0%
1950	757	49.6%
1960	897	18.5%
1970	1,181	31.7%
1980	1,754	48.5%
1990	1,757	0.2%
2000	1,932	10.0%
2010	1,925	−0.4%
2019 (est.)	1,878	−2.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

Spencer's Population in 2010

In 2010, there were 1,925 people living in Spencer. These people lived in 816 homes. About 540 of these were family homes. The village had about 957 people per square mile (369 people per square kilometer). There were 875 housing units in total.

Most of the people living in Spencer were White (97.4%). A small number were Native American (0.4%). Some people were from other backgrounds (1.1%) or had mixed backgrounds (1.1%). About 2.0% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.

In the homes, 31.7% had children under 18. About half (50.5%) were married couples. Some homes had a single parent. About 33.8% of homes were not families. About 27.8% of homes had one person living alone. This included 12.4% of people aged 65 or older. On average, about 2.36 people lived in each home. Families had about 2.86 people.

The average age in Spencer was 38.1 years. About 24.7% of residents were under 18. About 7% were between 18 and 24. People aged 25 to 44 made up 27.3% of the population. Those aged 45 to 64 were 26.7%. About 14.4% of residents were 65 or older. The village had slightly more females (52.4%) than males (47.6%).

Education in Spencer

Spencer Branch Library History

A library was started in Spencer in 1875. In 1973, this library became part of the new Marathon County Public Library system.

Famous People from Spencer

Albert B. Barney: He was a lawyer and served in the Wisconsin State Representative.
Tyler Dennett: He was an author who won a Pulitzer Prize.
Dave Dudley: A well-known country music singer.
Ted Fritsch: He played football as a fullback for the NFL Green Bay Packers. He also played professional basketball.
Carol Kolb: A comedy writer for the famous newspaper the Onion.
Gilbert Vandercook: He was a lawyer, editor, and served in the Wisconsin State Representative.
Hunter Luepke: He is a fullback for the NFL Dallas Cowboys.