Fontana, Wisconsin
19 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1980. It stands in Fontana-on-Geneva Lake Village. It lies in ZIP code area 53125. It stands on Potawatomi Creek. The Survey maps it on the Walworth quadrangle. 3,120 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 909 feet above sea level.
On record in Fontana
Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.
On the National Register 1 record
Douglass-Stevenson Houselisted 1986
Population over time
2 figuresFontana grew from 1,672 to 3,120 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 1,672 | |
| 2020 | 3,120 | +1,448 (+87%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
8 surveys from 19 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1893 USGS Delavan quadrangle1:62500, 6 printings
- 1954 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000
- 1955 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000
- 1958 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1960 USGS Delavan quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1960 USGS Walworth quadrangle1:24000, 3 printings
- 1963 USGS Rockford quadrangle1:250000
- 1980 USGS Lake Geneva quadrangle1:100000
In the county-history sources
25,986 words on this townshipHistory of Walworth County, Wisconsin, Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources...its War Record, Biographical Sketches, Portraits of Prominent Men and Early Settlers; the Whole Preceded by a History of Wisconsin...and an Abstract of Its Laws and Constitution.., published 1882 names this settlement in its chapter on Fontana-on-Geneva Lake Village. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.
The lover of rustic life may long for more rural scenes than is presented by a modern hotel teeming with life, fashion and beauty. To such, the fullest enjoyment of a summer vacation comes from camping out, or in a semi-rustic life in lake-side cottages. There are many camps and camping grounds about the lake that offer to the visitor every facility for the free enjoyment ot life, untrarameled by the requirements of society. Among such camps or parks at the command of the public, in addition to those mentioned above, may be mentioned Fontana, or Porter & Montague's Park, Camp Collie, Russell's Park and " Warwick," and private parks - Lakeside, Harvard, Belvidere, Oak Park, Englewood, etc.
Passage source: History of Walworth County, Wisconsin, Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources...its War Record, Biographical Sketches, Portraits of Prominent Men and Early Settlers; the Whole Preceded by a History of Wisconsin...and an Abstract of Its Laws and Constitution.., published 1882.
This hotel is admirably located near the head of the lake in a beautiful grove of oaks. It commands one of the finest views of the lake it is possible to obtain from any point. It is managed by Misses Bissell & Reed, who came here in 1880, from Toledo, Ohio. The park is situated directly opposite Fontana, and in addition to the hotel contains a number of cottages owned by people of Marengo, 111., which has given the park its name. The hotel is a large two-story mansion with broad piazzas like a Southern planter's home, and the cottages, bathing houses, boat houses, laundry, office, and other substantial buildings which surround it add to that resemblance. A broad, beautiful lawn of many acres slopes from its front to the water's edge. Swings, croquet grounds, a dancing platform, and numerous rustic benches and decorative flower beds ar« distributed about it.
Passage source: History of Walworth County, Wisconsin, Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources...its War Record, Biographical Sketches, Portraits of Prominent Men and Early Settlers; the Whole Preceded by a History of Wisconsin...and an Abstract of Its Laws and Constitution.., published 1882.
(1) Dock for private boats; (2) George Sturges; (.3) L. Z. Leiter: (4) N. K. Fairbank; (5) J. T. Lester; (6) Henrv Strong: (7) H. L. Gav: (8) E. Bm-k; (9) T. J. Schneider: (10) Judge Withrow; (11) O. W. Potter : (12) Elgin, 111., Chib House; (13) new Elgin, III. club; (U) E. T. Crane; (15) Pisheotaqua Hotel, C. F. Hall, proprietor: (IP)) Camp Collie, a resort for ministers and their families, on the point west of Williams Bay; thence returning around the head of the laki^ and down the south shore is (17) Eussell's Park, public; (18), Belvidere Park, owned mostly by residents of BeU-idere, 111.; (19) Fontana, public, Porter & Montague: (20) N. K. Fairbank, fish pond; on the south shore (21) Marengo Hotel: (22) A. Sperry's Landing: (23) Harvard Park, owned by citizens of Harvard, 111.; (24) Prof. Nightingale's Lauding: (25) Bon Ami Club, Chicago; (2fi) Englewood Camp, Chicago Club: (27) Kaye's Park, public, with hotel; (28) Warwick Park; (29) J. S. Eumsey. private, (30) Geo. L. Dunlap; (31) J. C. Walter. The last-named landing is immediatelv south of the Whitinir House dock.
Passage source: History of Walworth County, Wisconsin, Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources...its War Record, Biographical Sketches, Portraits of Prominent Men and Early Settlers; the Whole Preceded by a History of Wisconsin...and an Abstract of Its Laws and Constitution.., published 1882.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Fires near this place
19 since 2015Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 19 fires within 5 miles of Fontana between 2015 and 2020, burning about 43 acres in total. None started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Debris and open burning | 7 |
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 7 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 2 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 1 |
| Smoking | 1 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 September 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 20340 |
| 8 May 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 174 |
| 26 May 2018 | Smoking | 1.0 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 18-084 |
| 7 April 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 1804008 |
| 26 April 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 109 |
| 23 April 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 108 |
| 21 April 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 64 |
| 14 April 2015 | Debris and open burning | 1.0 acres | Illinois Division of Forestry Resources | 15-334 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
3 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Fontana: 2 past producers, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mann Brothers, Inc. | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Stewart Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Williams Bay Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Storms near this place
8 since 1995Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Fontana in 8 storm reports between 1995 and 2020: 4 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 funnel cloud. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fontana | $100,000 | Widespread tree damage and power outages in the Village of Fontana-On-Geneva-Lake. Dozens of roads blocked by fallen trees. At least 14 homes sustained structural damage due to fallen trees. A roof blown off a home. A green house destroyed. |
| June 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fontana | $10,000 | no account filed |
| August 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fontana | $2,000 | no account filed |
| May 2018 | Hail | Fontana | - | no account filed |
| August 2006 | Hail | Fontana | - | no account filed |
| June 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fontana | - | no account filed |
| June 1999 | Funnel Cloud | Fontana | - | no account filed |
| June 1995 | Hail | Fontana | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walworth | 1.9 miles | 19 | |
| Williams Bay | 2.6 miles | 19 | |
| Delavan Lake | 3.8 miles | 19 | |
| East Delavan | 4.0 miles | 19 | |
| Linton | 4.1 miles | 19 | |
| Lake Como | 4.7 miles | 19 | |
| Lake Lawn | 5.2 miles | 19 | |
| Inlet | 5.3 miles | 19 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Fontana | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q2640552 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1584503. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.







