Population Notes
A look at the demography and
geography of Wisconsin
2, Issue 4
a look at wisconsin’s foreign- Volume
December 2007
born Population through time
06
00
20
90
20
80
19
70
19
60
19
50
19
40
19
30
19
20
19
10
19
00
19
90
19
80
18
70
18
60
18
18
18
50
Persons
Despite rapid increases in the past two decades,
immigrants combined with nativist fears about the
Wisconsin’s foreign-born population is approaching erosion of “American” culture and English language
just half what it was in the late 1800s and, in terms
caused a great deal of strife. However, immigration
of percent, today’s population does not come
had slowed considerably by 1900, helping to quell
close to previous highs. Figure 1 provides a 150
those tensions.
year record that helps to place the foreign-born
population of today into its historical context.
During the period of the World Wars and Great
Wisconsin’s
Depression,
Figure 1
immigrant
immigration
Native and Foreign Born Shares of Wisconsin Total
population peaked
to Wisconsin
Population: 1850-2006
around the year
remained low, yet
6,000,000
1890, when just
fear and animosity
over half a million
toward immigrants
5,000,000
Native
(519,000) residents
heightened once
Foreign
4,000,000
were foreignagain. New federal
born. However,
legislation, war,
3,000,000
when viewed as a
and diminished
share of the state’s
economic
2,000,000
total population,
opportunities
the foreign-born
worked together
1,000,000
population was
to curtail the once
largest at the state’s
strong immigrant
0
first Census in
stream at the
1850, when they
national level.
Year
constituted 36% of
Wisconsin’s foreignthe population.
born population
began to decline due to a lack of new immigrants
In 1900, the vast majority of the foreign-born
and also due to mortality among existing
arrived from European countries (Figure 2, next
immigrants.
page) with the most immigrants coming from
Germany. Though many in Wisconsin celebrate
Today, Wisconsin’s immigrant population is on the
their European ancestry today, throughout the last
rise again. Between 1990 and 2006 the foreignhalf of the 19th century, the large number of German born population has more than doubled (122,000
Continued on pg. 2
1
Continued from pg. 1
to 245,000). According to 2006 American
Community Survey estimates, the foreign-born
represent 4.4% of the state’s population. Without
including native-born children of foreign-born
parents (a figure sometimes included in census
volumes under the label of foreign stock),
increases in the foreign-born accounted for nearly
one fifth of the state’s population growth since
1990. Wisconsin’s foreign-born numbers are
still low compared with the U.S. total where they
comprise 12.5% of the population. But the recent
doubling of Wisconsin’s foreign-born reflects a
larger national trend: namely, there has been a
deconcentration in the share of immigrants who
live in traditional immigrant destination states, such
as New York, Texas, and California and with that
deconcentration has come growth in the share of
the immigrant population who live in what were
previously non-traditional destinations.
With the recent increase in Wisconsin’s foreignborn have come changes in their racial and ethnic
makeup. Important differences in European
groups not withstanding, the racial composition
of the immigrant population remained relatively
homogenous from early statehood up until a few
decades ago. As recently as 1970, those born in
Europe and Canada still accounted for over 85%
of the state’s foreign-born. Today persons born in
Asia and Latin America together constitute over
Mexico’s shared border with the U.S. and the
economic disparities that exist across that border
have factored into a long history of employmentrelated migration, both through authorized and
unauthorized channels. Seasonal migrants were
present in Wisconsin for much of the 20th century,
working as laborers in the agricultural sector, but
since 1970 migration from Mexico has become
increasingly permanent. In addition to working in
the agricultural sector, recent Mexican immigrants
have also come to fill wage-labor positions in
service and manufacturing industries.
Poland
Korea
China
Thailand
India
Canada
Laos
Germany
Mexico
Bohemia
Switzerland
Denmark
United Kingdom
2
Ireland
Germany
0
England
50,000
Poland
100,000
Sweden
150,000
Canada
Persons
200,000
Mexico and Laos stand out as being the countries
of birth for the first and second largest number of
immigrants in the year 2000 (Figure 2), though
their contributions are markedly smaller than those
of Germany and Norway a century prior. Factors
that contribute to immigrants leaving their place
of birth vary from one country to the next, but a
simple contrasting of Mexico to Laos is illustrative
of radically different circumstances leading to
immigration to Wisconsin.
The process connecting Laotian (predominantly
Hmong) immigrants with Wisconsin has its roots
in the Vietnam War, where the
Figure 2
Hmong were recruited to fight on
Top Ten Countries of Birth among Wisconsin's
behalf of U.S. interests. With the
Foreign-Born 1900 & 2000
U.S. withdrawal many of the Hmong
struggled for survival as refugees
of the war, uprooted from ancestral
lands and fleeing to Thailand to
1900
2000
avoid the retribution wrought by their
adversaries in the conflict. Federal
legislation provided a vehicle for
the Hmong to legally immigrate to
the U.S. as political asylum seekers.
Through the work of relocation
programs, many Hmong families
arrived in Wisconsin directly from
refugee camps in Thailand. Today
Wisconsin has the third largest
Hmong population in the U.S., after
California and Minnesota.
Norway
250,000
70% of the foreign-born population. Figure 3
highlights the dramatic diversification in region of
birth occurring mostly within the last thirty years.
Continued from pg. 2
200,000
Europe & Russia
Asia
Africa
Latin America
Canada
150,000
Persons
Like immigration channels of the
previous centuries, Hmong and
Mexican populations continue to grow
today in part due to a process called
chain migration that connects families
(and communities) across borders.
The Hart-Celler immigration act of
1965 allowed for family reunification
as a basis for legal immigration to the
U.S., thereby encoding a centuriesold informal process and facilitating
continued immigration mediated in
part by familial ties.
Figure 3
Foreign Born Persons by Region of Birth: 1950 - 2006
100,000
50,000
0
Today’s immigration law also allows
1950
for legal immigration of highly trained
professionals whose skills in the U.S.
are deemed in short supply. Immigrants who fall
into this category hail from many parts of the world
and help explain the socioeconomic diversity of
the foreign-born population; for instance, foreignborn persons are both three times more likely to
lack a high school diploma (31% versus 11%) than
native-born Wisconsinites and, at the same time,
nearly twice as likely (14% versus 8%) to have a
graduate or professional degree. The picture is also
complicated by the fact that a portion of the foreign
born are not immigrants per se, but temporary
residents of the U.S. here principally for educational
reasons. Ultimately such differences in the process
by which immigrants arrive to Wisconsin along with
differences in their origins make the foreign-born
population impossible to characterize as a single
homogenous group.
Wisconsinites’ response to immigrants is as diverse
as the immigrant populations themselves. For
instance, they are regarded by some as the salvation
for an impending labor shortage as Wisconsin
baby boomers head into retirement. Others view
immigrants as a strain on Wisconsin communities,
citing concerns over such issues as the increased
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
Year
demand that young immigrant families place on
schools. Whatever the impact, recent trends in
immigration suggest that Wisconsin’s share of
immigrants is likely to grow.
New immigrants are likely to settle close to existing
immigrant communities, but new employment
opportunities, such as those in the dairying industry,
are also drawing immigrants to communities that
have limited recent experience with immigration.
As Wisconsin communities plan for their futures,
building the social infrastructure and capacity to
integrate recent arrivals will be an increasingly
important factor in the success of their unfolding
development.
Starting Places for Additional Information:
US Census Bureau American FactFinder
http://factfinder.census.gov/
WI Historical Society: Turning Points
http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/
WI Legislative Reference Bureau: Immigration to
Wisconsin
http://www.legis.state.wi.us/LRB/pubs/ttp/ttp-062006.html
On the Horizon
Wisconsin Land Information Association Annual Conference, February 27-29, 2008, Lake Geneva,
WI.
Wisconsin State Education Convention, January 22–25, 2008, Milwaukee, WI.
3
staff spotlight: katherine white
Katherine White was recently hired
as an assistant professor
for the Department of
Rural Sociology and
is serving as a faculty
affiliate for the APL.
Katherine earned her
B.A. in Sociology
from the University of
Montana, and proceeded
to earn her Ph.D.
from the University
of Washington in
2003. She then came
to UW-Madison as a
postdoctoral fellow and
worked with the Center
for Demography and Ecology until
2006. After working a year as an
assistant professor at
Brown University,
Katherine returned to
Wisconsin through
Rural Sociology.
Her interests include
spatial statistics,
migration, inequality
and specific regions,
including the Great
Plains, Puerto Rico
and the American
South. She is also
chair of our Social
Committee and ejoys a
good party. Welcome,
Katherine!
From The Director’s Desk
4
Trivia Question:
Which Wisconsin county
has the largest foreign-born
population?
Milwaukee County has the
most foreign born as judged by
population total and percent.
Dane County comes in second
(also in population and
percent). Waukesha County
comes in third in population,
while Walworth comes in
third in percent. A plurality
of Milwaukee’s foreign born
come from Latin America,
especially Mexico, while most
of Dane’s foreign born are
from Asia, best represented by
China, but with many other
countries sending substantial
numbers. This is likely due to
the influence of UW-Madison.
Even though Walworth and
Waukesha rate third on two
different scales, the countries
of origin of their foreign-born
are markedly different. The
majority of Walworth’s foreign
born come from Latin America
(mostly from Mexico) while
Europe is best represented
in Waukesha, with Germany
leading the pack, followed by
the United Kingdom.
As 2007 draws to a close, we here at the APL are reflecting on a year
filled with interesting projects, challenges, and issues. We tackled projects
ranging from projecting prison populations to mapping community health
data; from developing county-based information retrieval systems to
exploring trends in Wisconsin school enrollment. In September, APL
staff presented some research on Wisconsin immigration trends at a rural
immigration conference in western Wisconsin and a continuation of
that work is the focus of this issue of Population Notes. Many aspects
of immigration are front and center these days and, in some circles,
discussions about immigration can become political and highly charged.
In Wisconsin, there is no question that new immigrant populations are
becoming part of the tapestry that makes up our communities. And, while
the changes that are happening in communities may sometimes pose
challenges and require cultural understanding, it has been illuminating
to apply an historical perspective and to understand that Wisconsin’s
immigration “story” today is not all that different from previous eras in
the state’s history. Much of what we present relies on the sparse published
data on immigration and immigrants from the census or other sources,
and we recognize that much of today’s story is probably better told by
U.S. Census 2000—SF3
capturing local community experiences and knowledge about immigration.
While we have just started our thinking about how to do this,
we look forward to collaborations with many of you on how to
Applied Population Lab
approach and explore those stories.
UW-Madison/Extension 316 Ag Hall
1450
Linden Dr.
Regards, Dan
Madison, WI 53706
(608) 265-9545
www.apl.wisc.edu