Waukesha prides itself on having an identity that sets it apart from Milwaukee.

U.S.|Waukesha prides itself connected having an individuality that sets it isolated from Milwaukee.

By Kay Nolan and Ron DePasquale

Waukesha, a metropolis of astir 70,000 people, is lone astir 20 miles westbound of Milwaukee, but its residents person agelong taken pridefulness successful their hometown having its ain identity.

Waukesha was established on the Fox River successful 1834, successful an country famed for earthy springs that were touted arsenic having healing properties. In the mid-1800s, those springs drew affluent visitors, including Mary Todd Lincoln.

And though it is inactive known arsenic “Spring City,” Waukesha aboriginal developed arsenic a mostly blue-collar community, with factories including Waukesha Foundry, SPX Transformers, MetalTek and others.

In caller years, the surrounding region has go much politically conservative. Waukesha is known arsenic 1 of the “WOW” counties surrounding Milwaukee (the others are Ozaukee and Washington) that are a cardinal battleground successful Wisconsin, itself the narrowest of battleground states.

“If Wisconsin is the bellwether authorities for November’s wide election, past Waukesha County mightiness beryllium the astir important country of the astir important state,” Astead W. Herndon, a New York Times governmental correspondent, wrote successful July 2020

Waukesha and different well-educated, affluent counties northbound and westbound of Milwaukee person for decades delivered Republican landslides, defying a Democratic displacement successful suburbia successful different Northern states. Yet portion then-President Trump easy won Waukesha County successful 2020, his borderline fell by implicit 5 percent points compared with 2016, and President Biden came retired up successful the metropolis of Waukesha.

The metropolis made headlines successful 2014, erstwhile 2 12-year-old girls who wanted to summation the favour of a sinister fictional quality called Slender Man lured a classmate to a parkland and stabbed her 19 times, shocking parents successful Waukesha.

The girls told the authorities that they believed Slender Man was real, that helium lived successful a mansion successful the Northwoods of Wisconsin and that they needed to termination to beryllium themselves worthy to him. They were charged arsenic adults with attempted murder.