Delavan

History

Delavan sits in the middle of what was once an inland sea. During the last ice age, the final glaciation, named the Michigan tongue, covered this region. The Michigan tongue descended along the area of Lake Michigan. The "Delavan lobe" of this glacier broke off, pushing southwest into the area of Walworth County. The first humans known to inhabit the Delavan area were Native Americans around 1000 BCE. Later, between 500 and 1000 CE, Mound Builders lived in what is now the Delavan Lake area. Mound Builders were of the Woodland culture. The effigy mounds they erected along the shores of Delavan Lake numbered well over 200, according to an archeological survey done in the late 19th century by Beloit College. Many were along the north shore of the lake where Lake Lawn Resort now stands. The Potawotomi Indians settled around the lake in the late 18th century, although there were only an estimated 240 in the county. Some of their burial mounds are preserved in what is now Assembly Park. From the mid-17th century through the mid-18th century, Delavan was part of "New France". It came under British rule in the Province of Quebec following the French and Indian War. In accordance with the Treaty of Paris (1783), it was turned over to the United States and became part of the newly established Northwest Territory. Between 1800 and 1836, the Delavan area was part of the Indiana Territory, followed by the Illinois Territory, finally becoming part of the Wisconsin Territory in 1836. Statehood was granted to Wisconsin in 1848. Between 1847 and 1894, Delavan was home to 26 circus companies. The Mabie Brothers U.S. Olympic Circus, then the largest in America, arrived in 1847, to become the first circus to quarter in the territory of Wisconsin. Its famous rogue elephant, "Romeo",…

Geography

Delavan is located at (42.630689, -88.638108). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land (%) and is water (%).

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,563
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  1,482
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,389
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  1,365
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  1,118
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,111
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,104
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,082

Most recent

• M 2.9 — 2015-03-25
  3 km WNW of Lake in the Hills, Illinois
• M 2.6 — 2013-06-10
  4 km NNE of Virgil, Illinois
• M 3.8 — 2010-02-10
  2 km NW of Lily Lake, Illinois