Monroe County is a county in Wisconsin, United States, on the western edge of the state’s central sand plains. It had a population of 46,274 at the 2020 census and covers 908 square miles (2,350 km2) centred near 43°57′N 90°37′W.
Sparta is the county seat, and its postal code is 54656. The county has 2 cities, 8 villages, 24 towns and several unincorporated communities. Monroe County is in the Central time zone; its FIPS code is 55081.
Towns & Villages in Monroe County
Monroe County’s populated places split into 2 incorporated cities, 8 incorporated villages, and a set of census-designated places (CDPs) and unincorporated communities scattered across its 24 towns (townships). The table below lists every named place carried over from the county’s settlement record; CDPs have no municipal government of their own, and “Unincorp.” places are informal crossroads or hamlets with no census count.
| Place | Type | Township | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta | City · seat | Sparta | 9,522 | 54656 |
| Tomah | City | Tomah | 9,362 | 54660 |
| Cashton | Village | Franklin | 1,113 | 54619 |
| Wilton | Village | Wilton | 553 | 54670 |
| Norwalk | Village | Little Falls | 592 | 54648 |
| Kendall | Village | Glendale | 495 | 54638 |
| Warrens | Village | Sparta | 313 | 54666 |
| Oakdale | Village | Oakdale | 397 | 54649 |
| Wyeville | Village | Wellington | — | — |
| Melvina | Village | La Grange | — | — |
| Cataract | CDP | Little Falls | — | 54648 |
| Fort McCoy | CDP | Greenfield | — | 54656 |
| Tunnel City | CDP | Ridgeville | — | — |
| Angelo | Unincorp. | Sparta | — | — |
| Clifton | Unincorp. | Clifton | — | — |
| Farmers Valley | Unincorp. | Adrian | — | — |
| Four Corners | Unincorp. | Byron | — | — |
| Glendale | Unincorp. | Glendale | — | — |
| Hoffman Corners | Unincorp. | Lincoln | — | — |
| Jacksonville | Unincorp. | Jefferson | — | — |
| Kirby | Unincorp. | Leon | — | — |
| Leon | Unincorp. | Leon | — | — |
| North Tomah | Unincorp. | Tomah | — | 54660 |
| Norway Ridge | Unincorp. | Grant | — | — |
| Oil City | Unincorp. | Portland | — | — |
| Portland | Unincorp. | Portland | — | — |
| Saint Marys | Unincorp. | Sheldon | — | — |
| Shennington | Unincorp. | Wellington | — | — |
| Spring Bank Park | Unincorp. | Angelo | — | — |
| Valley Junction | Unincorp. | Byron | — | — |
Cataract and Tunnel City both grew up around 19th-century rail junctions on what is now the Elroy-Sparta State Trail corridor, and are frequently confused with each other; Cataract sits on the Little La Crosse River in Little Falls township, while Tunnel City takes its name from the trail’s own rail tunnel in Ridgeville township several miles east.
Townships
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Sparta | — | Angelo, Warrens |
| Tomah | — | North Tomah |
| Greenfield | — | Fort McCoy |
| Little Falls | — | Norwalk, Cataract |
| Ridgeville | — | Tunnel City |
| Glendale | — | Kendall, Glendale |
| Wellington | — | Wyeville, Shennington |
| Franklin | — | Cashton |
| Wilton | — | Wilton |
| Oakdale | — | Oakdale |
| Leon | — | Leon, Kirby |
| La Grange | — | Melvina |
| Portland | — | Portland, Oil City |
| Byron | — | Four Corners, Valley Junction |
| Adrian | — | Farmers Valley |
| Lincoln | — | Hoffman Corners |
| Jefferson | — | Jacksonville |
| Grant | — | Norway Ridge |
| Clifton | — | Clifton |
| Sheldon | — | Saint Marys |
| Angelo | — | Spring Bank Park |
| New Lyme | — | — |
| Scott | — | — |
| Lafayette | — | — |
Wisconsin’s civil township system gives Monroe County 24 towns surrounding its 2 cities and 8 villages; township-level 2020 population figures are not confirmed here and are omitted rather than estimated.
ZIP Codes
- 54656 — Sparta (also serves Fort McCoy and the surrounding town of Sparta)
- 54660 — Tomah (also serves North Tomah)
- 54619 — Cashton
- 54638 — Kendall
- 54648 — Norwalk (also serves Cataract)
- 54649 — Oakdale
- 54666 — Warrens
- 54670 — Wilton
Most of the county’s smaller unincorporated communities and the villages of Melvina and Wyeville use a neighboring post office town’s ZIP code rather than one of their own.
Geography
Monroe County sits on the western edge of Wisconsin’s Central Sand Plain, where the flat outwash of glacial Lake Wisconsin gives way to the ridge-and-coulee driftless terrain along its southern and western edges. Of the county’s 908 square miles, 901 square miles are land and 7.4 square miles are water. The Lemonweir River and Little La Crosse River both cross the county, and the Army’s Fort McCoy training reservation occupies a large block of its north-central sand-plain terrain.
Monroe County borders Jackson County to the north, Juneau County to the east, Vernon County to the south, and La Crosse County to the west.
Demographics
Monroe County’s population was 46,274 at the 2020 census. Sparta (9,522) and Tomah (9,362) are its two largest communities, together holding more than 40 percent of the county’s residents. The county’s median household income runs below the Wisconsin median of $74,631, reflecting its largely rural, agricultural and military-installation economic base. At 908 square miles, the county’s overall population density is roughly 51 people per square mile, well under the statewide average.
Economy & Local Life
Fort McCoy, a U.S. Army training installation spanning parts of Greenfield, Angelo, La Grange, and other townships, is the county’s largest single employer and drives much of its local economy, from housing to retail to seasonal training-cycle spending. Outside the fort, agriculture (dairy, cranberries on the sandy lowlands, and beef cattle) and light manufacturing anchor Sparta and Tomah. Sparta markets itself as the “Bicycling Capital of America,” home to the eastern trailhead of the rail-trail network built on the old Chicago and North Western right-of-way, and hosts an annual Butterfest each June.
History
Monroe County was organized in 1854 and named for James Monroe, the fifth U.S. president. Early settlement followed the region’s pineries and the rail lines that reached Sparta and Tomah in the 1850s and 1870s. Fort McCoy traces to a 1909 National Guard training ground and was greatly expanded during both World Wars, becoming a permanent Army installation and, in more recent decades, a processing and housing site for refugee resettlement operations.
Getting There
Interstate 90 and Interstate 94 cross the county together through Tomah before splitting, and U.S. Route 12 and several state highways (16, 21, 27, 33, 71, 131, 162, 173) fan out from Sparta and Tomah to the surrounding towns.
- La Crosse — 25 miles west
- Wisconsin Dells — 45 miles east
- Eau Claire — 60 miles north
- Madison — 100 miles southeast
La Crosse Regional Airport, about 25 miles west of Sparta, is the nearest commercial airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Monroe County, Wisconsin?
It is in west-central Wisconsin, along the boundary between the state’s Central Sand Plain and its driftless southwestern hill country, between La Crosse and Wisconsin Dells.
What is the population of Monroe County?
46,274 residents at the 2020 census.
How big is Monroe County?
908 square miles (2,350 km2), of which 901 square miles is land and 7.4 square miles is water.
What is the county seat of Monroe County?
Sparta is the county seat.
How many towns and villages are in Monroe County?
2 cities, 8 villages, 24 towns, and a number of unincorporated communities and CDPs.
What ZIP codes are in Monroe County?
Chiefly 54656 (Sparta) and 54660 (Tomah), plus 54619 (Cashton), 54638 (Kendall), 54648 (Norwalk), 54649 (Oakdale), 54666 (Warrens), and 54670 (Wilton).
What is Fort McCoy?
Fort McCoy is a U.S. Army training installation in the county’s north-central towns, the county’s largest single employer and a major driver of its local economy.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Wisconsin.