Racine, Wisconsin
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| Racine, Wisconsin | |
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| Nickname(s): The Belle City of the Lakes[1] | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Wisconsin |
| County | Racine |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Gary Becker (D) |
| Area | |
| - Total | 18.7 sq mi (48.4 km²) |
| - Land | 15.5 sq mi (40.2 km²) |
| - Water | 3.1 sq mi (8.1 km²) |
| Elevation | 617 ft (188 m) |
| Population (2006) | |
| - Total | 79,592 |
| - Density | 5,267.5/sq mi (2,033.8/km²) |
| Time zone | CST (UTC-6) |
| - Summer (DST) | CDT (UTC-5) |
| FIPS code | 55-66000[2] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1572015[3] |
| Website: www.cityofracine.org/ | |
Racine is a city in Racine County, Wisconsin, United States, located beside Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River.[4] As of the 2006 census, the city had a total population of 79,592.[5] It is the county seat of Racine County.[6]
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[edit] History
On October 10, 1699, a fleet of eight canoes bearing a party of French explorers entered the mouth of Root River. These were the first known Europeans to visit what is now Racine County. Led by a man named Jonathan Paradise, they founded a French trading post in the area which eventually became a small settlement on Lake Michigan near where the Root River empties into Lake Michigan. "Racine" is French for "root."
In 1832, just after the Blackhawk War, the area surrounding Racine was settled by Yankees from upstate New York.
Gilbert Knapp, a Lake boat captain in 1834, founded the settlement of Port Gilbert at the place where the Root River empties into Lake Michigan. The area was previously called Kipi Kawi and Chippecotton by the indigenous peoples, both names for the Root River. The name "Port Gilbert" was never really accepted, and in 1841 the community was incorporated as the village of Racine. After Wisconsin's statehood was granted in 1848 the new legislature voted in August to incorporate Racine as a city.
Before the American Civil War, Racine was well known for its strong opposition to slavery. Many slaves escaping to freedom via the Underground Railroad passed through the city. In 1854 Joshua Glover, an escaped slave who had made a home in Racine, was arrested by federal marshals and taken to a jail in Milwaukee. One hundred men from Racine, and ultimately 5,000 Wisconsinites, rallied and broke into the jail to free him. He was helped to escape to Canada. Glover's rescue gave rise to many legal complications and a great deal of litigation. This eventually led to the Wisconsin Supreme Court declaring the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850 unconstitutional, and later, the Wisconsin State Legislature refusing to recognize the authority of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Waves of immigrants, including Danes, Germans, and Czechs, began to settle in Racine between the Civil War and the First World War. African Americans started arriving in large numbers during World War I, as they did in other Midwestern industrial towns, and Mexicans started migrating to Racine from roughly 1925 onward.
Unitarians from New England initially dominated Racine's religious life, as they did in other parts of the Upper Midwest before 1880. Racine's Emmaus Lutheran Church is the oldest Danish Lutheran Church in North America, founded on August 22, 1851. Emmaus Lutheran, originally a founding member of the Danish American Lutheran Church, has subsequently been a member of the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (UDELCA), the American Lutheran Church (ALC), and, since 1988, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).Also there was a large Catholic movement to the city opening up churches for their own ethnicity such as, St. Stanislaus (polish), St. Rose (Irish), Holy Name (German), St. Patrick (Irish), Sacred Heart (Italian), St. Joeseph (German), St. Mary (German), Holy Trinity (Slovak), St. Casimir (Lithuainian), and many more. As years passed populations moved and St. Stanislaus, Holy Name, Holy Trinity, St. Rose, and St. Casimir, all came togeter in 1998 to form St. Richard. With new waves of people coming in older parishes got a new lift by the hispanic community forming Cristo Rey and re-energizing St. Patrick's into the strong catholic communtity of today.
Racine was a factory town almost from the very beginning. The first industry in Racine County included the manufacture of Fanning mills, machines that separated wheat grain from chaff. Racine also had its share of captains of industry, including J. I. Case (heavy equipment), and S.C. Johnson (cleaning and chemical products). Racine's harbor was very central to the shipping industry in the late 1800s. Racine furthermore was an early car manufacturing center. One of the world's first automobiles was allegedly built there in 1871 or 1872 by Dr. J. W. Cathcart,[7], as was the Pennington Victoria tricycle,[8] the Mitchell,[9] and the Case[10]
In 1887, malted milk was invented by Englishman William Horlick in Racine, and Horlicks remains a global brand. The garbage disposal was invented in 1927 by architect John Hammes of Racine. He founded the company InSinkErator in Racine, which still produces millions of garbage disposers a year. In addition, Racine is the home of Johnson Wax, with its headquarters designed in 1936 by Frank Lloyd Wright, who also designed the Wingspread Conference Center and two homes in Racine. The city is also home to the Dremel Corporation as well as Twin Disc.
Racine claims to be the largest North American settlement of Danes outside of Greenland. Racine is particularly known for its Danish pastries, especially kringle. Several bakeries have been featured on the Food Network.[11][12]Some of the bakeries in Racine are: O&H and Lehman's.
The city is also known for its large prom celebration, which combines the students from all the high schools in the city at an after party. This was featured in the radio show This American Life in Episode #186 "Prom", originally aired on June 8, 2001.[13]
[edit] Geography
Racine is located at (42.726052, -87.805873).[14]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 18.7 square miles (48.4 km²), of which, 15.5 square miles (40.2 km²) of it is land and 3.1 square miles (8.1 km²) of it (16.76%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
| City of Racine Population by year [15] |
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| 1880 | 29,105 |
| 1890 | 32,934 |
| 1900 | 38,076 |
| 1910 | 46,532 |
| 192 | |