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Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin

8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1955 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Wisconsin Rapids City. It lies in ZIP code area 54494. It lies near Belle Island. The Survey maps it on the Wisconsin Rapids North quadrangle. 18,877 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,027 feet above sea level.

Wisconsin Rapids within Wood County

On record in Wisconsin Rapids

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 3 records

Population over time

3 figures

Wisconsin Rapids grew from 1,115 to 18,877 between 1870 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.

YearPeople Change
18701,115
201018,367
202018,877+510 (+3%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

5 surveys from 8 printed sheets

Matched 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.

Fires near this place

179 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 179 fires within 5 miles of Wisconsin Rapids between 1992 and 2020, burning about 315 acres in total. 2 started naturally. 8 were 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/undetermined50
Debris and open burning48
Equipment and vehicle use22
Fireworks11
Misuse of fire by a minor9
Power generation/transmission/distribution9
Recreation and ceremony9
Arson/incendiarism8
Railroad operations and maintenance5
Smoking3
Other causes3
Natural2

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
6 September 2016Debris and open burningunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesFOOD PLOT
6 September 2015Misuse of fire by a minorunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesROCKET
16 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resources1832792
16 September 2012Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
12 September 2004Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
3 August 2008Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
29 August 2011Debris and open burningunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesWAZEECHA FIRE
29 August 2004Arson/incendiarismunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Wood County

Mines and quarries near this place

1 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Wisconsin Rapids: 1 producer. All of them still produce. 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 SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Wood County OperationsStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer

Every working recorded in Wood County

Storms near this place

52 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Wisconsin Rapids in 52 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 26 hail, 22 thunderstorm wind, 2 lightning, 1 flash flood. 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
May 2021LightningWisconsin Rapids$300,000Lightning struck the Verso Paper Mill at 7:30 pm CDT, producing $300,000 worth of damage.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids$250,000Thunderstorm winds downed trees, large branches, and power lines in Wisconsin Rapids. Downed branches, as big as 5 inches in diameter and 10 feet long, blocked at least one road.
July 2014HailWisconsin Rapids$50,000A thunderstorm produced hail up to 2.25 inches in diameter as it passed through Wisconsin Rapids. Hail covered the ground and damaged at least 10 vehicles, denting them and breaking windshields.
May 1996Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids$50,000no account filed
July 2011Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids$25,000Law enforcement reported trees were knocked down in the city of Wisconsin Rapids. One tree fell onto a house, damaging the roof and kitchen ceiling. Scattered power outages were also reported in Marshfield.
June 1996Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids$10,000no account filed
June 1997Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids$1,000no account filed
June 2025HailWisconsin Rapids-Quarter size hail fell near Wisconsin Rapids.
May 2024HailWisconsin Rapids-Quarter size hail fell in Wisconsin Rapids.
May 2024HailWisconsin Rapids-Quarter size hail fell near Wisconsin Rapids.
April 2022HailWisconsin Rapids-Quarter size hail fell in Wisconsin Rapids.
August 2021Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-A thunderstorm wind gust of 59 mph was measured at the Wisconsin Rapids airport. There were also reports of a few trees down on the north side of Wisconsin Rapids.
June 2021HailWisconsin Rapids-Nickel size hail fell in Wisconsin Rapids.
December 2021Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-A thunderstorm wind gust of 69 mph was measured at the Wisconsin Rapids airport.
August 2020HailWisconsin Rapids-Quarter size hail fell in Wisconsin Rapids.
June 2020Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-A thunderstorm wind gust of 61 mph was measured at the Wisconsin Rapids Airport.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-Thunderstorm winds downed trees and power lines around Wisconsin Rapids, and across much of Wood County. The time of this event was estimated based on radar data.
July 2016HailWisconsin Rapids-Quarter size hail fell in Wisconsin Rapids.
June 2015HailWisconsin Rapids-Nickel size hail fell at Wisconsin Rapids as thunderstorms moved through the area.
July 2015Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-A thunderstorm produced winds to 58 mph at Alexander Field South Wood County Airport in Wisconsin Rapids.
August 2014HailWisconsin Rapids-Penny size hail fell at Wisconsin Rapids.
May 2014HailWisconsin Rapids-Thunderstorms produced penny size hail in Wisconsin Rapids.
August 2012Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-Several trees were knocked down by strong thunderstorm winds.
July 2011HailWisconsin Rapids-Nickel size hail fell from thunderstorms as they moved through Wisconsin Rapids.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-The public reported a couple of trees were knocked down on the northwest side of Wisconsin Rapids.
September 2010Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-Thunderstorm wind gusts downed trees in Wisconsin Rapids as the storm moved through the area.
July 2010Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-Several trees were knocked down by an isolated thunderstorm that moved across far southern Wood County. The trees blocked a road in Wisconsin Rapids.
March 2008Heavy RainWisconsin Rapids-Heavy rain fell across most of Wood County. The highest precipitation totals were 1.23 inches at Wisconsin Rapids and 1.22 inches at Pittsville.
May 2008HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
March 2007HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
May 2007HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 2007HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
May 2006HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
August 2006HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 2005HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
August 2005Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
July 2005Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
May 2004HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 2004HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
April 2002Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
May 2001HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
July 2001Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
September 2001Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 1999Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 1999LightningWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 1999Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
September 1998HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
June 1998HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
July 1997HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
March 1996Flash FloodWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
August 1995Thunderstorm WindWisconsin Rapids-no account filed
July 1994HailWisconsin Rapids-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Wood County

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 PlaceDistance Sheets
Lake Wazeecha3.3 miles8
Biron3.4 miles8
Port Edwards3.4 miles8
Nekoosa Junction5.0 miles8
Nekoosa6.7 miles8
Rudolph7.8 miles8
Eight Corners8.2 miles8
Walker8.6 miles8

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 Wisconsin RapidsAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q1003702The 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 1576906. 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.