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Demographics of Eau Claire County
Affluence Level in Eau Claire County
A middle-class area roughly in line with national averages across income, home values, education, and employment.
People of Eau Claire County
Eau Claire County is home to 106,328 residents, a population that remains predominantly white (87.8%) but is gradually diversifying through small but growing Hispanic (3.0%) and East/Southeast Asian (3.6%) communities. The county’s identity is rooted in its 19th-century lumber boom and Scandinavian and German settlement, with a modern character shaped by the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire and a steady influx of domestic migrants drawn to the region’s outdoor amenities and lower cost of living. While still less diverse than Wisconsin as a whole, the county is seeing its most notable demographic shifts in the city of Eau Claire and along the I-94 corridor.
Settlement & growth (pre-1960)
Before European settlement, the area now known as Eau Claire County was inhabited by the Ojibwe (Chippewa) and Dakota (Sioux) nations, who used the confluence of the Chippewa and Eau Claire Rivers as a seasonal gathering and trading site. The region was part of the vast fur trade network controlled by French and later British traders, but no permanent European settlements existed until the mid-19th century. The 1837 Treaty of St. Peters ceded Ojibwe lands in western Wisconsin to the United States, opening the area to American logging interests.
The first major wave of American settlers arrived in the 1840s and 1850s, drawn by the region’s white pine forests. Lumber barons established sawmills at the river confluence, and the city of Eau Claire was incorporated in 1872, quickly becoming one of the largest lumber-producing centers in the world. The workforce was overwhelmingly native-born white Americans from New England and New York, along with a significant number of German immigrants who arrived in the 1850s–1880s. These Germans settled primarily in the town of Washington and the village of Fall Creek, where they established dairy farms and Catholic parishes that remain active today.
Norwegian immigrants arrived in the 1860s–1890s, concentrating in the towns of Clear Creek and Ludington, where they built Lutheran churches and maintained their language well into the 20th century. A smaller wave of Polish and Irish immigrants came in the 1880s–1900s, working in the sawmills and settling in Eau Claire’s Third Ward and the village of Altoona. By 1900, the county was nearly entirely white, with a population of about 32,000. The lumber industry collapsed after 1910, but the county transitioned to manufacturing (tires, auto parts) and dairy farming, which stabilized the population through the Great Depression and World War II.
From 1945 to 1960, the county grew modestly as returning veterans and their families moved into new subdivisions in Lake Hallie and Seymour. The founding of the Wisconsin State College (now UW–Eau Claire) in 1916 began to shift the economy toward education and healthcare, but the population remained overwhelmingly native-born and white through the 1960 census.
Modern era (post-1965)
The 1965 Hart-Cellar Act had a minimal immediate impact on Eau Claire County, as the region did not attract the large-scale immigration seen in coastal cities or the Upper Midwest’s industrial centers. The foreign-born population today is just 1.3%, far below the national average of 13.6%. However, the county has experienced two significant demographic shifts since the 1970s.
First, domestic migration from the Rust Belt — particularly from Chicago, Milwaukee, and the Twin Cities — has steadily increased since the 1980s. These newcomers are predominantly white, college-educated, and drawn by lower housing costs and outdoor recreation. They have concentrated in the city of Eau Claire (especially the revitalized downtown and Water Street area) and in newer subdivisions in Lake Hallie and the town of Wheaton. This inflow has raised the county’s college-educated share to 35.7%, above the Wisconsin average.
Second, the county has seen modest growth in its Hispanic and East/Southeast Asian populations. The Hispanic share rose from 0.6% in 1990 to 3.0% today, driven by Mexican and Central American immigrants working in dairy farming, food processing, and construction. These families are concentrated in the towns of Fairchild and Augusta, where they have established small Spanish-language churches and tiendas. The East/Southeast Asian population (3.6%) is largely Hmong, part of a secondary migration from the Twin Cities and La Crosse since 2000. Hmong families have settled primarily in Eau Claire’s north side and in Altoona, where they operate small businesses and have formed a community center. The Black population remains small at 1.1%, concentrated in Eau Claire city, while the Indian-subcontinent population is negligible at 0.4%.
Suburbanization has reshaped the county since 1990. The city of Eau Claire’s population has grown slowly (about 69,000 today), while the surrounding towns — Lake Hallie, Washington, and Wheaton — have absorbed most new housing construction. This pattern mirrors national trends of white, middle-class families moving to outer-ring suburbs while the urban core becomes slightly more diverse.
The future
Eau Claire County is projected to grow slowly, reaching roughly 110,000–115,000 by 2040, driven primarily by domestic migration from the Twin Cities and Chicago rather than natural increase or international immigration. The white share will likely decline gradually — to perhaps 82–84% — as the Hispanic and Hmong populations continue to grow through higher birth rates and secondary migration. The county’s foreign-born share may rise to 2–3%, still far below national averages but a meaningful shift for the region.
New development will continue to concentrate in Lake Hallie and along the US-12 corridor toward Augusta, while the city of Eau Claire will see infill and redevelopment of former industrial sites near the riverfront. The county’s cultural identity — historically Scandinavian and German, with a strong outdoor-recreation ethos — is slowly broadening as Hispanic and Hmong festivals, restaurants, and religious institutions become more visible. However, the county remains one of the least diverse in Wisconsin, and its political and social character is likely to remain center-right, reflecting its rural and exurban base.
For someone moving in now, Eau Claire County offers a stable, safe, and increasingly well-educated community with a growing but still small multicultural presence. The population is aging slightly (median age 36.7), but the university and healthcare sectors provide a steady inflow of younger residents. The county is becoming more suburban and more connected to the Twin Cities economy, but it retains a distinctly small-town, Midwestern character that appeals to families seeking lower crime rates, good schools, and access to nature.
* Values derived from national, state, county, city and local statistics and may differ in a specific area. Last updated: 2026-06-30T19:56:03.000Z
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