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Jefferson County, Wisconsin, is located between the metropolitan areas of Madison and Milwaukee. The city of Jefferson, located in the geographic center of the county, is the county seat with a population of 6,736. The ten largest municipalities range in population from approximately 2,700 to 21,000. Watertown, with a population of just over 21,000 is the largest municipality in the county. The county has approximately 74,000 residents, and over 95 percent are Caucasian. Latinos officially comprise just over four percent of the population and constitute the largest minority group in the county. The population has increased over nine percent since the 1990 census. This population increase is the result of natural increase (birth exceeding deaths) and migrations from other areas of the state and nation. The largest increase was seen in the smaller villages and towns near Interstate 94 where there is easy access to Madison and Milwaukee.
Almost 30 percent of all employed Jefferson County residents work outside of the county. One-half of those outbound commuters travel to the Milwaukee area, while 20 percent travel to Madison and Dane County. The quality of life they enjoy in Jefferson County more than compensates for the commute to the metropolitan areas.
Jefferson County is a manufacturing county. Thirty-six percent of all workers are employed in the manufacturing industry. Thus, permanent, full-time jobs are the norm. Services and retail trade are the second and third largest industries in the county. Jefferson County's per capita income ranks 25th of the 72 Wisconsin counties. Among employed persons in Jefferson County, approximately 81 percent in the private sector.
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