Beloit, Wisconsin
Beloit, Wisconsin | |
---|---|
608 | |
FIPS code | 55-06500 |
Website | beloitwi.gov |
Beloit (/bəˈlɔɪt/ bə-LOYT)[3] is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 36,657 people.[4][5] Beloit is a principal city of the Janesville-Beloit Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Madison Combined Statistical Area.
History
Twelve men in Colebrook, New Hampshire created the "New England Emigrating Company" in October 1836, and sent Horace White to find a suitable region of Wisconsin in which to settle. The level fields and the water power of Turtle Creek and "unlimited gravel" in the area around what is now Beloit fixed the site of the village and farms. White purchased the land. At the same time as the Colebrook settlers, six families from Bedford, New Hampshire, arrived and settled in the region. They said the Rock River Valley had a "New England look" that made them feel at home. The village was platted in 1838 and was planned with wide streets, building on the New England model.
Beloit was originally named New Albany (after Albany, Vermont) in 1837 by its founder, Caleb Blodgett. The name was changed to Beloit in 1838.[6][7] The name was coined to be reminiscent of Detroit.[6]
Beloit lays claim to such inventions as the
Historic buildings
Beloit's 1889
The Fairbanks Flats were built in 1917 to house the rush of African Americans moving to the area from the Southern United States.
Pearsons Hall of Science was designed by the architectural firm Burnham and Root for Beloit College as a science center.
The Lathrop-Munn Cobblestone House was originally built for politician John Hackett.
The Castle at 501 Prospect was built as First Presbyterian Church in 1902. It now operates as a Performing Arts Center and Music School.
Downtown Beloit and the riverfront
Downtown Beloit is the city's historic economic, cultural and social center. North of the confluence of the Rock River and Turtle Creek, the downtown is anchored by a core of historic buildings and the Ironworks office and industrial campus. Beloit's riverfront park system, mainly Riverside Park, extends north of downtown along the east bank toward the Town of Beloit.
Downtown Beloit is one of two inaugural members of the Wisconsin Main Street designation.[12]
Railroad heritage
Beloit was served by the
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 17.66 square miles (45.74 km2), of which 17.33 square miles (44.88 km2) is land and 0.33 square miles (0.85 km2) is water.[14] Location: 42°30′30″N 89°01′54″W / 42.50833°N 89.03167°W.
The city is adjacent to the Town of Beloit, Town of Turtle, and the Illinois municipality of South Beloit.
Most of Beloit's development is occurring on the east side, adjacent to Interstates 39/90 and Interstate 43, where the city annexed rural land for Beloit Gateway Industrial Park, as well as in the newly revitalized downtown along the Rock River.
Climate
|
Climate data for Beloit, Wisconsin (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1893–present) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 61 (16) |
69 (21) |
84 (29) |
92 (33) |
103 (39) |
104 (40) |
110 (43) |
102 (39) |
100 (38) |
89 (32) |
78 (26) |
67 (19) |
110 (43) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 48.7 (9.3) |
52.6 (11.4) |
67.6 (19.8) |
78.7 (25.9) |
86.3 (30.2) |
91.2 (32.9) |
92.0 (33.3) |
91.2 (32.9) |
88.3 (31.3) |
81.1 (27.3) |
65.9 (18.8) |
52.1 (11.2) |
94.1 (34.5) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 25.1 (−3.8) |
29.4 (−1.4) |
41.5 (5.3) |
54.8 (12.7) |
66.5 (19.2) |
76.1 (24.5) |
79.6 (26.4) |
78.0 (25.6) |
71.3 (21.8) |
58.3 (14.6) |
43.2 (6.2) |
30.5 (−0.8) |
54.5 (12.5) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 17.9 (−7.8) |
21.6 (−5.8) |
32.7 (0.4) |
44.6 (7.0) |
56.1 (13.4) |
65.9 (18.8) |
69.7 (20.9) |
68.1 (20.1) |
60.8 (16.0) |
48.5 (9.2) |
35.3 (1.8) |
23.8 (−4.6) |
45.4 (7.4) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 10.7 (−11.8) |
13.9 (−10.1) |
23.8 (−4.6) |
34.4 (1.3) |
45.7 (7.6) |
55.8 (13.2) |
59.8 (15.4) |
58.1 (14.5) |
50.3 (10.2) |
38.7 (3.7) |
27.4 (−2.6) |
17.0 (−8.3) |
36.3 (2.4) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | −8.7 (−22.6) |
−3.6 (−19.8) |
6.6 (−14.1) |
23.8 (−4.6) |
34.9 (1.6) |
45.4 (7.4) |
52.5 (11.4) |
51.5 (10.8) |
38.9 (3.8) |
27.3 (−2.6) |
14.2 (−9.9) |
−0.8 (−18.2) |
−12.6 (−24.8) |
Record low °F (°C) | −29 (−34) |
−28 (−33) |
−13 (−25) |
7 (−14) |
26 (−3) |
34 (1) |
42 (6) |
39 (4) |
23 (−5) |
4 (−16) |
−12 (−24) |
−25 (−32) |
−29 (−34) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.60 (41) |
1.52 (39) |
2.13 (54) |
3.72 (94) |
4.34 (110) |
5.64 (143) |
3.36 (85) |
4.14 (105) |
3.83 (97) |
2.77 (70) |
2.40 (61) |
1.96 (50) |
37.41 (950) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 9.8 (25) |
7.3 (19) |
4.3 (11) |
1.1 (2.8) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.2 (0.51) |
2.7 (6.9) |
10.2 (26) |
35.6 (90) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 8.7 | 7.1 | 8.4 | 10.3 | 11.7 | 10.6 | 8.9 | 8.7 | 7.6 | 9.1 | 8.0 | 8.6 | 107.7 |
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 6.2 | 4.5 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 4.6 | 19.1 |
Source: |
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1860 | 4,098 | — | |
1870 | 4,396 | 7.3% | |
1880 | 4,790 | 9.0% | |
1890 | 6,315 | 31.8% | |
1900 | 10,436 | 65.3% | |
1910 | 15,125 | 44.9% | |
1920 | 21,284 | 40.7% | |
1930 | 23,611 | 10.9% | |
1940 | 25,365 | 7.4% | |
1950 | 29,590 | 16.7% | |
1960 | 32,846 | 11.0% | |
1970 | 35,729 | 8.8% | |
1980 | 35,207 | −1.5% | |
1990 | 35,573 | 1.0% | |
2000 | 35,775 | 0.6% | |
2010 | 36,966 | 3.3% | |
2020 | 36,657 | −0.8% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[18] |
2020 census
As of the
2010 census
As of the
There were 13,781 households, of which 36.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.6% were married couples living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.7% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.16.
The median age in the city was 33.1 years. 27.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 12.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.7% were from 25 to 44; 23.1% were from 45 to 64; 12% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.
Government
Beloit is represented by
Beloit has a council-manager system of government, with seven council members, each elected for two-year terms. Four members are elected in even years and three in odd years. City council elections are held annually in April.[20] The city council establishes policies for the city and appoints a city manager to implement those policies. The current city manager, Jerry Gabrielatos, started on February 20, 2023.[21]
Economy
Industries with headquarters in Beloit include
Downtown Beloit is a dense cluster of mostly small shops and boutiques. The area has been recognized for increased investment and renewal since the 1990s.[22] Upscale downtown condominiums and hotels were introduced after 2000 with the construction of the Hotel Hilton Apartments (2001), the Beloit Inn (now the Ironworks Hotel, 2003), Heritage View (2005), Phoenix Project (2013), Hotel Goodwin (2018), and the Wright & Wagner Lofts (2021).[23]
From the 1990s to 2011, downtown Beloit received direct public and private investment totaling more than $75 million.
Education
The School District of Beloit serves 5,923 students[27] in six primary schools, four intermediate schools, and one high school, with alternative programming and charter schools. Beloit Memorial High School is the city's public high school.
The majority of Beloit is in the Beloit school district, though some portions are in the Beloit Turner School District.[28]
Beloit College, a private liberal arts college with undergraduate enrollment around 1,300, is in the city, with the main campus adjacent to downtown. The campus has a number of prehistoric Native American mounds.
Beloit has a public library that is part of the Arrowhead Library System.
Media
Beloit's main newspaper is The Beloit Daily News, a daily (published Monday through Friday) paper owned by Adams Publishing Group, LLC, and serving the Wisconsin/Illinois stateline area. The Janesville Gazette, also owned by Adams Publishing Group, also serves Beloit.
Beloit is a part of the Madison television market, but due to its proximity to Rockford, stations from Rockford also serve the city and report on stories and information (weather, school closings, etc.) relating to Beloit.
Radio stations serving Beloit include WBCR (90.3 FM), a variety-formatted station owned by The Board of Trustees of Beloit College, '90s hits station WBEL (1380 AM), classic country station WGEZ (1490 AM), Janesville-based stations WCLO (1230 AM) and WJVL (99.9 FM), and Fort Atkinson-based WSJY (107.3 FM).
Culture
- Beloit Art Center
- Beloit Civic Theatre
- Beloit Historical Society
- Beloit Janesville Symphony Orchestra
- The Castle Performing Arts Center
- Logan Museum of Anthropology
- Turtle Creek Chamber Orchestra
- Wright Museum of Art
- Beloit City Hall – this houses a mural portraying the history of Beloit, completed in 1985 by artist Martha Nessler Hayden.[29]
Festivals
Beloit's main festivals include:
- Beloit Autorama
- Beloit Farmers' Market
- Beloit International Film Festival
- Dancing at Harry's Place
- Downtown Beloit Street Dance
- Fridays in the Park
- Music at Harry's Place
- Winterfest
Recreation
Beloit is home to a professional
Transportation
Transit
The
Routes
- Red East Side Cranston
- Blue West Side
- Yellow North End-Prairie
- Brown Beloit-Janesville
Roads
Interstate 90 Westbound (Northbound) routes to Janesville and Madison. Eastbound (Southbound) routes to Rockford, Illinois. This is a full interstate grade freeway that runs on the east side of the city, although the I-90 is overall a west–east interstate the section in Beloit runs north–south. | |
Interstate 39 runs entirely concurrently with Interstate 90 through the city of Beloit. | |
Interstate 43 terminates at I-90/39 in Beloit, it routes Northbound to Milwaukee | |
U.S. Route 51 runs through the center and partly the south side of the city. Northbound routes to Janesville, Madison, and Wausau. Southbound routes to South Beloit, Illinois and Rockford. |
Air
Beloit Airport is a small public-use GA airport within the city. It offers hangars for storing aircraft, gliders, and sky diving.
Southern Wisconsin Regional Airport is a public airport north of Beloit in Rock County. Formerly known as Rock County Airport, it is owned and operated by the Rock County government. The airport has no scheduled commercial passenger service.
Notable people
- Thomas Ryum Amlie, U.S. Representative
- Clinton Anderson, Wisconsin State Representative
- U. S. ArmyMajor General
- Roy Chapman Andrews, adventurer and naturalist
- U.S. Air ForceMajor General
- Alan E. Ashcraft, Jr., Illinois State Representative
- Clinton Babbitt, U.S. Representative
- George B. Belting, Wisconsin State Representative
- James A. Blaisdell, founder of the Claremont Colleges[30][31]
- MLBplayer
- Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
- James A. Brittan, Wisconsin State Representative
- Tony Brizzolara, MLB player
- Richard Burdge, Wisconsin State Senator
- Jackson J. Bushnell, educator
- Jim Caldwell, Beloit Memorial High School alumnus, former head coach of NFL's Detroit Lions
- Thomas Chrowder Chamberlin, geologist
- Franklin Clarke, professional football player for Dallas Cowboys (1960–1967) and Cleveland Browns(1957–1959)
- Lawrence E. Cunningham, Wisconsin State Senator
- Horatio N. Davis, Wisconsin State Senator
- Delmar DeLong, Wisconsin State Representative
- Burger M. Engebretson, Wisconsin State Representative
- NBAexecutive
- The Shoop Shoop Song")
- Edward A. Everett, Wisconsin State Representative
- Dorr Felt, inventor of comptometer
- Edwin G. Fifield, Wisconsin State Representative
- NFLplayer
- MLBplayer
- Danny Gokey, American Idol contestant, choir director at a Beloit church
- Bernie Graham, professional baseball player
- John Hackett, businessman and politician
- Jim Hall, professional boxer
- Edward F. Hansen, Wisconsin State Representative
- William O. Hansen, Wisconsin State Representative
- NBAplayer and coach
- Jonathan Harr, journalist and author of A Civil Action
- Ken Hendricks, founder of ABC Supply, listed on the Forbes 400
- William H. Hurlbut, Wisconsin State Representative
- Gary Johnson, elected majority leader of Wisconsin Assembly in 1980 and 1983[32]
- Cleveland Indians(1973)
- John Baxter Kinne, Medal of Honor recipient
- Stephanie Klett, television personality, Miss Wisconsin 1992
- NFLplayer
- Richard LaPiere, sociologist at Stanford University
- Eugene Lee, Tony Award-winning set designer (Wicked, Saturday Night Live)
- Wallace Leschinsky, Wisconsin State Representative
- Alonzo J. Mathison, Wisconsin State Representative
- Max Maxfield, Wyoming Secretary of State
- Juan Conway McNabb (John Conway McNabb), Roman Catholic bishop, missionary in Peru
- Sereno Merrill, Wisconsin State Representative
- MLBplayer
- Tommy Mills, head coach of Creighton Bluejays, Georgetown Hoyas and Arkansas State Indians football teams; Creighton and Arkansas State men's basketball, Notre Dame Fighting Irish baseball
- Orsen N. Nielsen, U.S. diplomat
- David Noggle, Wisconsin State Representative, Chief Justice of Supreme Court of Idaho Territory
- Russ Oltz, NFL player
- Terell Parks, professional basketball player
- Danica Patrick, Indy Car & NASCAR auto racing driver and model
- MLBplayer
- Samuel L. Plummer, Wisconsin State Representative
- Alan S. Robertson, Wisconsin State Representative
- Robert P. Robinson, Wisconsin State Senator
- Judy Robson, former majority leader, Wisconsin Senate
- David Roth, opera director
- Jane Sherman, actress, writer, composer, dancer with The Rockettes
- Richard Shoemaker, Wisconsin State Senator
- Tracy Silverman, violinist
- Mark Simonson, font designer
- Erastus G. Smith, Wisconsin State Representative
- Simon Smith, Wisconsin State Representative
- Robert C. Strong, U.S. diplomat
- William Barstow Strong, former president of Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
- Tyree Talton, NFL player
- Rusty Tillman, NFL player and assistant coach, XFL head coach
- S. J. Todd, Wisconsin State Senator
- Marijuana Pepsi Vandyck, education professional
- Allen F. Warden, Wisconsin State Representative
- Arthur Pratt Warner, aviator and inventor
- Kyle Weaver, professional basketball player for Oklahoma City Thunder
- Floyd E. Wheeler, Wisconsin State Representative and lawyer
- John D. Wickhem, Justice of Wisconsin Supreme Court
- Albert J. Winegar, Wisconsin State Representative
- MLBplayer
- Robin Zander, musician (Cheap Trick)
Images
-
Fairbanks-Morse
-
Beloit Water Tower, constructed in 1889
-
Beloit Ironworks, a group of restored industrial buildings along the city's downtown riverfront
-
Middle College, on the Beloit College campus, Wisconsin's oldest academic building still in use
See also
References
- ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
- ^ a b "2020 Decennial Census: Beloit city, Wisconsin". data.census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
- ^ "Cities -". Retrieved September 9, 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "American FactFinder - Results". Archived from the original on March 5, 2014. Retrieved April 19, 2012.
- ^ a b Callary, Edward. 2009. Place Names of Illinois. Champaign: University of Illinois Press, p. 326.
- ^ D.V.M., Ralph S. Cooper. "Arthur P. Warner". www.earlyaviators.com. Archived from the original on May 17, 2016. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
- ^ Appleby, John Francis 1840 - 1917 Archived February 10, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "REMEMBER - This Is Beloit |". This Is Beloit |. Archived from the original on May 22, 2017. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)Internet Archive: Retrieved May 26, 2018 - ^ Atlas Obscura: Brief History of the Cheese Curl Retrieved May 26, 2018
- ^ "Wisconsin Main Street map and founding years" (PDF). Wisconsin Main Street Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
- ^ "Beloit, WI, Operations". www.glenviewcreek.com. Archived from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
- ^ "2020 Gazetteer Files". census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
- ^ "NASA Earth Observations Data Set Index". NASA. Archived from the original on May 11, 2020. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
- ^ "NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
- ^ "Station: Beloit, WI". U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991-2020). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved November 18, 2012.
- ^ "City Council - Welcome to the City of Beloit". www.beloitwi.gov. Retrieved February 15, 2017.
- ^ "Jerry Gabrielatos named Beloit's new city manager". www.beloitwi.gov. January 16, 2023. Retrieved April 14, 2023.
- ^ a b "The 2011 Great American Main Street Award Winners". Preservation Nation. Archived from the original on September 27, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
- ^ "Wright and Wagner Lofts project looks to honor Beloit's past, build for the future". September 10, 2020.
- ^ Stewart, Erica (May 23, 2011). "The 2011 Great American Main Street Award Winners: Places You'll Want to Know (and Visit!)". PreservationNation Blog. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
- ^ "America's Greatest Mainstreets 2012".
- ^ Adams, Barry. "Downtown Beloit an Emerging Destination". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
- ^ "National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data". Retrieved October 5, 2022.
- U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
- ^ Enking, Minnie (March 30, 1985). "Artist Finds Beauty in Beloit". Beloit Daily News. p. 84.
- ^ "1910". Pomona College Timeline. Pomona College. November 7, 2014. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Legislative Spotlight". www.legis.state.wi.us. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved June 21, 2017.