Omro

History

OMRO, P. V., on section 17 and 18, in town of Bloomingdale, Winnebago county, at the junction of the Manitowoc and Menasha, (extended), and the Waupun and Liberty Prairie plank roads. It is pleasantly situated on the south side of the Neenah [Fox] river, 11 miles west from Oshkosh, and 75 miles northeast from Madison. It has a heavy body of timber on the north, with a rich soil of openings and prairie on the south, and has excellent facilities by water for obtaining pine logs from the immense pinery of Wolf river, a great quantity of which is here manufactured into lumber. Population 600, with 100 dwellings, 5 stores, 2 hotels, 3 mills, and 4 religious denominations. A Company has been organized and is now completing the proper buildings for the manufacture of glass. The area encompassing present day Omro was Winnebago Indian Territory when it was first visited by French explorers in 1639. Omro's location gave it two advantages from the beginning, which were a position on one of the few natural transportation and communications routes of the time and an abundant amount of water for industrial use. The first modern settlers visited in 1847. There are at least three differing accounts of how the town was named. One widely held version is that it was named for Charles Amereau, a French trader and blacksmith who started a fur trading post there. By 1880, Omro was a stop on the railroad line and was home to the county fairgrounds, several mills, a glass factory, carriage factories, several machine works, and had a population greater than 2,000. Eventually most of the manufacturers either relocated to nearby Oshkosh, or faded away. Since Omro began a revitalization process in 1986, it has seen growth. Several projects pay respects to Omro's past, including a historical…

Geography

Omro is located at (44.038959, -88.74014). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• West High
  High · Oshkosh · 1,627 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• North High
  High · Oshkosh · 1,265 students · 12.4:1 ratio
• Winneconne Elementary
  Elementary · Winneconne · 874 students · 14.8:1 ratio
• Ready 4 Learning School
  Other · Oshkosh · 574 students · 35.9:1 ratio
• Winneconne High
  High · Winneconne · 539 students · 13.8:1 ratio
• Merrill Middle
  Middle · Oshkosh · 453 students · 10.5:1 ratio
• Traeger Elementary
  Elementary · Oshkosh · 439 students · 12.2:1 ratio
• Traeger Middle
  Middle · Oshkosh · 431 students · 12.7:1 ratio