COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT - Fun Facts About Bayfield County
Water
Bayfield County has 962 lakes,
(22,629 acres), making it the county with the fourth highest
number of lakes in Wisconsin. Of these, 623 lakes are less than
50 acres and still unnamed!* Vilas County (1,327 lakes totaling
93,889 acres) and Oneida County (11,129 lakes totaling 68,447
acres) are first and second respectively.*
The most common lake names in Wisconsin are (the number in parenthesis
is the number of lakes by that name in Bayfield County).*
Bass (7) Long (2) Lost (1) Mud (3) Spring (2)
Cisco Lake is the deepest lake in the count, with a maximum
depth of 105 feet. There are seven one-acres lakes including
Tea Cup Lake and Chelonia Lake. The largest lake is Namakagon
Lake with 3,227 acres.
As of 1999, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has
tested 27 Bayfield County lakes to determine mercury levels in
fish. Of those tested, 16 lakes were found to contain mercury
in one or more fish species, putting those lakes under a fish
advisory; 11 lakes have been tested for mercury and no advisories
were issued. Only 600 Wisconsin lakes have ever been tested for
mercury in fish.
Bayfield County has a countywide lakes association (call 715-798-3163
for more information) as well an many individual lake associations
whose volunteer members educate lake residents about water issues.
Land
- Approximately 83 percent of all county land is classified
as forest. There are 400 miles of streams.
- Bayfield County is the third largest (in acreage) county,
yet does not have a single stoplight! That's because the county
is mostly rural or forested.
- 46 percent of all Bayfield County acreage is in public land
holdings like the Chequamegon-Nicolette National Forest and
the Apostle Islands National Park Service; about 11 percent
is farmland.
Economic Snapshot
Here are the top 10 industry groups in the county in 1998 (number
of employees in parenthesis):
1. Hotels and other lodging (540)
2. Education Services (473)
3. Executive, legislative, general government (358)
4. Eating and drinking places (314)
5. Amusement and recreation services (153)
6. Membership organization services (137)
7. Health care services (125)
8. Automotive dealers, service stations (115)
9. Government administration of environmental programs (108)
10. Depositor institutions (85)
There are 452 employers in the county; 121 of them are in the
services industry (lodging, education, amusement/ recreation),
membership, health care).
The People of Bayfield County
- Out of a workforce population of 7,700 people, 6.7 percent
were unemployed in 1997; the state unemployment rate is 3.7
percent, and it's 4.9 percent in the U.S. (1998).
- Bayfield County is home of the Red Cliff Indian tribe; about
9 percent of the county's population is Native American.
- The population of the county is about 14, 300 (1998). This
is an increase of 4.2 percent since 1990, all of it from immigration.
The U.S. growth rate is 7.3 percent; Wisconsin is 7.0 percent.
Natural Environment
Average temperatures:
- Spring (March to May): 39 to 45 degrees
- Summer (June to August): 65 to 71 degrees
- Fall (September to November): 42 to 47 degrees
- Winter (December to February): 18 to 23 degrees
Average annual precipitation: 27 inches
Average annual snowfall: 73 inches
Return to Community Development home
|
