Lincoln County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 28,415. Its county seat is Merrill. The county was created in 1875 and named after President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln County comprises the Merrill, WI Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Wausau-Stevens Point-Wisconsin Rapids, WI Combined Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 907 sqmi, of which 879 sqmi is land and 28 sqmi (3.1%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Major highways

Railroads

Buses

Airports

Demographics

2020 census

As of the census of 2020, the population was 28,415. The population density was 32.3 /mi2. There were 16,034 housing units at an average density of 18.2 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 94.7% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 3.3% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 1.9% Hispanic or Latino of any race.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 29,641 people, 11,721 households, and 8,228 families residing in the county. The population density was 34 /mi2. There were 14,681 housing units at an average density of 17 /mi2. The racial makeup of the county was 97.76% White, 0.41% Black or African American, 0.44% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 0.68% from two or more races. 0.82% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 55.9% were of German, 5.7% Polish and 5.3% Norwegian ancestry. 96.9% spoke English, 1.3% German and 1.2% Spanish as their first language. There were 11,721 households, out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.4% were married couples living together, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.94. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 28% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 99.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males. In 2017, there were 270 births, giving a general fertility rate of 62.6 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 34th lowest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

Politics

Between 1964 and 2016, Lincoln County supported the nationwide winner in every election except for 1988. In 2020, Donald Trump received the highest share of the vote for any candidate in the county since 1960 and won by an even bigger margin in 2024, possibly indicating that this bellwether has shifted to the right.