The Land
The Town of Underhill is a rural township in the southwest corner of Oconto County in northeastern Wisconsin. It is a 6 mile by 6 mile square area of woodlands, agricultural fields, lake lots, and widely dispersed isolated homes. It is in the Central Standard time zone. Average elevation is 837 feet. Geographically, Underhill Township is described as Township 28 North, Range 17 West (T28N R17W). It is bordered on the north by the Town of How, on the east by the Town of Gillett, on the south by Shawano County, and on the west by the Menominee Tribal lands.
Most of Berry Lake in within the Township of Underhill. Berry Lake with many year around homes and summer places, plus a youth camp and a campgrounds. The Oconto River flows generally north to south in the eastern portion of the township, with bridges at Hintz and the village of Underhill. Both Hintz and Underhill have parks and boat landings unto the Oconto River. Almost the entire township is privately owned lands.
The People
According to the 2000 Census, there were 846 people, 329 households, and 235 families residing in the town. The population density was 24.1/mi². There were 468 housing units. The racial makeup of the town was 93.5% White, 5.9 Native American, 0.3% Asian, and 2.7% from two or more races. The township has as broad sampling of nationalities. They are: German (48%), Norwegian (5%), French (10%), English (5%), Swedish (5%), Polish (5%), Irish (4%), Menominee (4%), plus many others.
There were 329 households out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% were married couples living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.3% were non-families. 22.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the town the population was spread out with 25.5% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 109.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.6 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $31,905, and the median income for a family was $39,844. The per capita income for the town was $16,503. About 6.2% of families and 10.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.8% of those under age 18 and 4.4% of those age 65 or over.
Schools
The entire township is in the Gillett School District. The High School’s phone number is (920) 855-2119. The Elementary School’s is (920) 855-2137.
Back in the day, the Town of Underhill had 4 primary schools. They were named: Berry Lake, Frank, Mosling, and Sunny Lawn. Also, there were 2 primary schools, Four Towns and Linzy Brook, on the edge of the township that educated town residents.
The Local Government
The local unit of government in the Township is the Town of Underhill. The Town of Underhill is governed by elected representatives - a Town Chair, two Supervisors, Town Clerk, and Town Treasurer. All positions are elected for two year terms in April of the odd numbered years. New officers are sworn into office at the April meeting of Town Board.
The Community Center
The Underhill Community Center serves as a meeting place for the town board and some other organizations. It is located 5597 Cardinal Rd – off of County Road V near the bridge crossing the Oconto River and the Underhill Park.
Fire Department
The Town of Underhill has a volunteer fire department. The Department has 4 trucks. The equipment is housed in a building next to the Community Center.
Recycling Center
The Recycling Center is located on County Road V near it’s intersection with County Road VV. It is open every Saturday from 9 AM to 4 PM. It is also open on Wednesdays (1 PM to 3 PM) from May 1st to October 1st.
The community was named after William Underhill, a settler from Vermont