Gilman, Taylor County, Wisconsin
Encyclopedia
Gilman is a village in Taylor County
, Wisconsin
, United States
. The population was 474 at the 2000 census. The village is located between the towns of Aurora
and Ford
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the village has a total area of 2.3 square miles (6.1 km²), all of it land.
by 1900. The article on Aurora contains a description of the area from 1854, before logging or settlers.
In 1902 and 1903 the Stanley, Merrill and Phillips Railway crossed the Yellow River
into the woods that would become Gilman, heading for Jump River and beyond. It built a section house where the line crossed the river and named the stop for Sally Gilman, the wife of the president of the Northwester Lumber Company. That was the start of Gilman. The SM&P ran generally north through town, passing just east of the current school. Around 1905, the Wisconsin Central Railway built its line northwest through town, heading from Owen
to Ladysmith
and eventually Superior
. This line later became the Soo Line Railroad
and eventually the Canadian National Railway line which still runs through town.
The village grew fast. A school was started in 1904 and the village was platted in 1905. Hotels, saloons, a general store, a barber and a post office soon followed. In 1907 Roy Heagle and others started a stave and heading
mill called Gilman Manufacturing Company on the south side of town near the river. It made barrels from local basswood
and by 1912 it employed as many as sixty men. During World War I
the mill ran around the clock making barrels for ammunition. This mill operated until 1935. Heagle also ran a planing mill and a lath
mill in Gilman.
Gilman was incorporated as a village in 1914. In 1915 three gas lights
lit the streets at night - the only street lights between Owen and Ladysmith at the time. That same year the Catholic church was organized. Other denominations followed shortly. A high school started in 1917. A fire destroyed much of Gilman's business district in 1922, but it rebuilt.
During the same period, the village of Polley had grown two miles to the south, also on the SM&P line. It had a school, a hotel-saloon, a general store, a forty-man sawmill, a barber, a cheese factory, a millinery
shop, and a newspaper. But the SM&P shut down in the 1930s and Polley declined until today only a bar and some homes and farms remain, while Gilman survives.
In the 1950s a central high school was started at Gilman for all of western Taylor County. Since then the primary schools have been centralized there too.
Today Gilman is smaller than it once was, but it has a grocery store, a hardware store, a few cafes, a bank, and other services. Major employers in town are the school, the nursing home, and Gilman Cheese. The major events each year are the Fall Fest and Snieg (Polish for snow) Fest in February, which features snow sculpting and a frying pan toss.
of 2000, there were 474 people, 185 households, and 110 families residing in the village. The population density
was 202.8 people per square mile (78.2/km²). There were 209 housing units at an average density of 89.4/sq mi (34.5/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.89% White, 0.42% Asian, 1.48% from other races
, and 0.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.69% of the population.
There were 185 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.9% were married couples
living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.5% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the village the population was spread out with 19.8% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 28.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $32,708, and the median income for a family was $50,833. Males had a median income of $29,875 versus $22,083 for females. The per capita income
for the village was $18,075. About 7.8% of families and 14.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.8% of those under age 18 and 30.8% of those age 65 or over.
Taylor County, Wisconsin
Taylor County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2010, the population was 20,689. Its county seat is Medford.-History:The earliest recorded event in Taylor county probably occurred in 1661, when Wisconsin was part of New France...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 474 at the 2000 census. The village is located between the towns of Aurora
Aurora, Taylor County, Wisconsin
Aurora is a town in Taylor County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 386 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 34.2 square miles , all of it land.-History:...
and Ford
Ford, Wisconsin
Ford is a town in Taylor County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 276 at the 2000 census. The unincorporated community of Polley is located in the town.-Geography:...
.
Geography
Gilman is located at 45°9′54"N 90°48′35"W (45.164963, -90.809755).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the village has a total area of 2.3 square miles (6.1 km²), all of it land.
History
Gilman was not settled until 1902 or 1903, though people had settled in the west end of what is now the town of AuroraAurora, Taylor County, Wisconsin
Aurora is a town in Taylor County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 386 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 34.2 square miles , all of it land.-History:...
by 1900. The article on Aurora contains a description of the area from 1854, before logging or settlers.
In 1902 and 1903 the Stanley, Merrill and Phillips Railway crossed the Yellow River
Yellow River (Chippewa River)
The Yellow River in north central Wisconsin is a tributary of the Chippewa River. For the most part it is a mud and rock-bottomed river flowing through forest and farmland...
into the woods that would become Gilman, heading for Jump River and beyond. It built a section house where the line crossed the river and named the stop for Sally Gilman, the wife of the president of the Northwester Lumber Company. That was the start of Gilman. The SM&P ran generally north through town, passing just east of the current school. Around 1905, the Wisconsin Central Railway built its line northwest through town, heading from Owen
Owen, Wisconsin
Owen is a city in Clark County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 936 at the 2000 census, but was 982 as of 2008. Owen is located directly east of the village of Withee, which is about half the size of Owen.-Geography:...
to Ladysmith
Ladysmith, Wisconsin
Ladysmith is a city in Rusk County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,932 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Rusk County. It is the former location of Mount Senario College, which closed in 2002 due to significant debt. For the 2006-2007 school year, part of the former campus...
and eventually Superior
Superior, Wisconsin
Superior is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 26,960 at the 2010 census. Located at the junction of U.S. Highways 2 and 53, it is north of and adjacent to both the Village of Superior and the Town of Superior.Superior is at the western...
. This line later became the Soo Line Railroad
Soo Line
Soo Line may refer to:*Soo Line Railroad, Canadian Pacific Railway subsidiary**Soo Line Corporation, parent of the above*Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad, major railroad west of Minneapolis-St. Paul; merged into the above in 1961...
and eventually the Canadian National Railway line which still runs through town.
The village grew fast. A school was started in 1904 and the village was platted in 1905. Hotels, saloons, a general store, a barber and a post office soon followed. In 1907 Roy Heagle and others started a stave and heading
Barrel
A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container, traditionally made of vertical wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. Traditionally, the barrel was a standard size of measure referring to a set capacity or weight of a given commodity. A small barrel is called a keg.For example, a...
mill called Gilman Manufacturing Company on the south side of town near the river. It made barrels from local basswood
Tilia
Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The greatest species diversity is found in Asia, and the genus also occurs in Europe and eastern North America, but not western North America...
and by 1912 it employed as many as sixty men. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
the mill ran around the clock making barrels for ammunition. This mill operated until 1935. Heagle also ran a planing mill and a lath
Lath
A lath is a thin, narrow strip of some straight-grained wood or other material, including metal or gypsum. A lattice, or lattice-work, is a criss-crossed or interlaced arrangement of laths, or the pattern made by such an arrangement...
mill in Gilman.
Gilman was incorporated as a village in 1914. In 1915 three gas lights
Gas lighting
Gas lighting is production of artificial light from combustion of a gaseous fuel, including hydrogen, methane, carbon monoxide, propane, butane, acetylene, ethylene, or natural gas. Before electricity became sufficiently widespread and economical to allow for general public use, gas was the most...
lit the streets at night - the only street lights between Owen and Ladysmith at the time. That same year the Catholic church was organized. Other denominations followed shortly. A high school started in 1917. A fire destroyed much of Gilman's business district in 1922, but it rebuilt.
During the same period, the village of Polley had grown two miles to the south, also on the SM&P line. It had a school, a hotel-saloon, a general store, a forty-man sawmill, a barber, a cheese factory, a millinery
Millinery
Hatmaking is the manufacture of hats and headwear, millinery is the designing and manufacture of ladies’ hats.-Notable hatters:* Gerard Albouy , often known by the name Ouy, a French milliner...
shop, and a newspaper. But the SM&P shut down in the 1930s and Polley declined until today only a bar and some homes and farms remain, while Gilman survives.
In the 1950s a central high school was started at Gilman for all of western Taylor County. Since then the primary schools have been centralized there too.
Today Gilman is smaller than it once was, but it has a grocery store, a hardware store, a few cafes, a bank, and other services. Major employers in town are the school, the nursing home, and Gilman Cheese. The major events each year are the Fall Fest and Snieg (Polish for snow) Fest in February, which features snow sculpting and a frying pan toss.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 474 people, 185 households, and 110 families residing in the village. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 202.8 people per square mile (78.2/km²). There were 209 housing units at an average density of 89.4/sq mi (34.5/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.89% White, 0.42% Asian, 1.48% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.69% of the population.
There were 185 households out of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.9% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.5% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the village the population was spread out with 19.8% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 28.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 100.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $32,708, and the median income for a family was $50,833. Males had a median income of $29,875 versus $22,083 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the village was $18,075. About 7.8% of families and 14.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.8% of those under age 18 and 30.8% of those age 65 or over.
Landmarks
- The historic Gilman watertower is a landmark of the community.