Westby, Wisconsin
14 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1923 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Westby City. It lies in ZIP code area 54667. The Survey maps it on the Westby quadrangle. 2,332 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,299 feet above sea level.
On record in Westby
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
Population over time
2 figuresWestby grew from 2,200 to 2,332 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 | 2,200 | |
| 2020 | 2,332 | +132 (+6%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
9 surveys from 14 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.
- 1923 USGS Viroqua quadrangle1:62500
- 1926 USGS Viroqua quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1958 USGS La Crosse quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1961 USGS La Crosse quadrangle1:250000
- 1965 USGS La Crosse quadrangle1:250000
- 1965 USGS Viroqua quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1976 USGS La Crosse quadrangle1:250000
- 1983 USGS Westby quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1985 USGS Sparta quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
What happened here
An account from the chapter on Westby city. The inset identifies its exact source book and publication year.
Case Of Murder
A brutal case of murder of one of the citizens of the town of Christiana occurred on New Years night, 1864. Robert Lange resided on section 33, where he kept a store. Jack Clear was a soldier in the Union army, whose father lived in the town of Viroqua. At the time of the murder Clear was at home on a furlough, which had about expired.
In the county-history sources
4,627 words on this townshipHistory of Vernon County, Wisconsin .., published 1884 names this settlement in its chapter on Westby City. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.
The forty acres upon which this village was laid out was purchased of the State by the Lutheran Church, with the intention of building a church thereon. A portion of the land was used by this sect as a cemetery for a number of years. The Church, however, decided to build on Coon prairie, and they then ex changed the property with Nels Hanson, for that of their present location on Coon prairie. Subsequently Mr. Hanson sold the land to Jens Johnson who in turn disposed of the property to Ole Syverson, and before the village was laid out, the property passed into the hands of a son of the latter - Anton Syverson. The plat was surveyed by the railroad company in August, 1879, and a little later the survey was confirmed by the county surveyor, with a slight change. The village is the outgrowth of the railroad, which reached this point at about the same time the plat was being surveyed. The place derived its name from O. T. Westby, who was then running a small store at this point.
Passage source: History of Vernon County, Wisconsin .., published 1884.
The first lumber dealer was Peter E. Peterson, who later engaged in trade with O. T. VVestby. Cargill &King, of Sparta, were the first stock dealers of the place ; John Humphrey was their buyer. John Steig had a blacksmith shop at this point when the railroad was built through and continued in the business for some time thereafter. The first hotel was built in the autumn of 1879, by Berut Gilbertdon, who continued to operate it for about three years. It was owned by E. C. Bergh in 1884.
Passage source: History of Vernon County, Wisconsin .., published 1884.
Hans K. Larson, has the honor of being one of the first settlers in this town. He was born in Norway, in December, 1803, and went direct to Koshkonong, Dane county in 1848, and to Vernon county in 11;<49. He made a claim of a quarter section of land, forty acres on each of the four sections numbered 22, 23, 26 and 27. He finally purchased the eighty acres which lie on sections 22 and 26. Mr. Larson was married in Norway, and three children were there born, one daughter and two sons. The daughter died in Norway, and in 1849, Mr. Larson's family accompanied him to America. Another son was born on the vessel while enroute to this country. Mr. Larson has been peculiarly unfortunate with his family. His wife died in 1859, and his eldest son, Lars, reached maturity and then died, leaving a family. His second son, Mathias, died at Westby, in I 881. He was a man of intelligence, and at the time of his death was chairman of the town board and justice of the peace. The son, Andrew, born on board the vessel, only lived to be fourteen years old. A grand-son of Mr. Larson, Henry Hanson, son of Mathias, lives with his grand-father. He was the only son of his parents, and born in this town, April 7, 1870. He is a boy of intelligence and much promise.
Passage source: History of Vernon County, Wisconsin .., published 1884.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Westby City - it names this place 9 more 9 times.
Fires near this place
6 since 2018Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 6 fires within 5 miles of Westby between 2018 and 2020, burning about 24 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 |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 4 |
| Debris and open burning | 1 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 July 2018 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 411 |
| 9 May 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 537 |
| 28 April 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 18054 |
| 26 April 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 2018-15 |
| 20 April 2019 | Arson/incendiarism | 3.0 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 468 |
| 27 March 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | 529 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
2 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of Westby: 2 past producers. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clockmaker Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Rumdee Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer |
Storms near this place
30 since 1994Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Westby in 30 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 17 thunderstorm wind, 8 hail, 3 funnel cloud, 1 lightning. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $60,000 | Roof blown off bowling alley |
| June 1998 | Hail | Westby | $30,000 | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $30,000 | no account filed |
| May 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $30,000 | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Hail | Westby | $15,000 | no account filed |
| September 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $10,000 | Trees and powers line down. |
| June 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $5,000 | no account filed |
| June 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $3,000 | Trees and power lines were blown down in Westby. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $2,000 | An NWS Storm Survey estimated 80 mph wind gusts near Westby with extensive damage that included many snapped maple trees. |
| August 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $2,000 | Volunteer observers reported multiple downed power lines with widespread power outages. |
| May 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $2,000 | Trees were blown down across U.S. Highway 14/61 in Westby. |
| August 2011 | Lightning | Westby | $2,000 | Lightning from an early morning thundestorm struck a house in Westby causing the brick chimney to explode. |
| August 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $1,000 | Trees were blown down on West Smith Road south of Westby. |
| April 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $1,000 | no account filed |
| July 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $750 | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | $350 | no account filed |
| July 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | - | The public reported a downed tree limb near Westby. |
| August 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | - | Law enforcement reported trees down near Westby. |
| May 2022 | Hail | Westby | - | Quarter sized hail was reported in Westby. |
| April 2015 | Hail | Westby | - | Quarter sized hail fell just south of Westby. |
| April 2015 | Hail | Westby | - | Quarter to half dollar sized hail fell in Westby. |
| April 2014 | Hail | Westby | - | Half dollar sized hail was reported in Westby. |
| June 2014 | Flood | Westby | - | Street flooding from heavy rains occurred in Westby. |
| July 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | - | Amateur radio operators estimated a wind gust of sixty miles per hour one mile south of Westby. |
| May 2008 | Hail | Westby | - | no account filed |
| September 2007 | Hail | Westby | - | no account filed |
| May 2005 | Funnel Cloud | Westby | - | no account filed |
| June 1998 | Funnel Cloud | Westby | - | no account filed |
| July 1997 | Funnel Cloud | Westby | - | no account filed |
| July 1994 | Thunderstorm Wind | Westby | - | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomingdale | 4.2 miles | 14 | |
| Newry | 4.3 miles | 14 | |
| Avalanche | 5.4 miles | 14 | |
| Esofea | 6.0 miles | 14 | |
| Springville | 6.8 miles | 14 | |
| Viroqua | 7.1 miles | 14 | |
| Coon Valley | 9.0 miles | 11 | |
| Ross | 9.6 miles | 14 |
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 Westby | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q1570381 | 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 1576571. 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.









