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Wisconsin · East-Central Wisconsin · Lake Winnebago · #567 Most Populous County in the US
Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin
East-central Wisconsin's Lake Winnebago gateway - from Fond du Lac's manufacturing heritage and the Ripon College campus to the birthplace of the Republican Party in Ripon, Taycheedah's correctional facility and lake communities, and the sturgeon spearing tradition on the nation's largest freshwater lake entirely within one state. Property tax, courts, public records, and senior services for Fond du Lac County residents.
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Fond du Lac County's assessment ratio means effective tax rates are low — but incorrect appraisals still cost money. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Office: Fond du Lac County Emergency Management – City/County Government Center, 160 S. Macy Street, Fond du Lac, WI 54935 | (920) 929-2911 | Email: [email protected]
Services: Prepares for and minimizes the effects of disasters, ensures restoration of critical systems/infrastructure afterward, using the four phases of emergency management (preparedness, response, recovery, mitigation); serves as liaison between local, state, and federal authorities
Notes: The county maintains dedicated Sheltering In Place guidance, coordinated through the Fond du Lac County Health Department, located on the 3rd floor of the City/County Government Center.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-41 and WI-23 both serve the City of Fond du Lac, situated at the southern tip of Lake Winnebago
Transit: No dedicated fixed-route county transit identified; confirm current regional options directly with the county
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: City of Fond du Lac Inspection Services (for in-city projects) – first floor of the City/County Government Center
Services: Permits required for new buildings, additions, interior/exterior alterations, siding, roofing, garages, decks, windows, pools, sheds, patios, fences, electrical, plumbing, water heater/furnace replacement, signs, and most other improvements; minor alterations or maintenance repairs may be waived by the City Building Inspector at their discretion
Notes: Outside city limits, confirm whether your property falls under county or a specific town’s separate building inspection process – many towns (e.g., Town of Fond du Lac, Town of Metomen) contract their own building/zoning inspectors.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
County VSO: Fond du Lac County Veterans Service Office – Fond du Lac, WI
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Fond du Lac Public Library – 32 Sheboygan Street, Fond du Lac, WI 54935 | (920) 929-7080 (reference: (920) 322-3930, [email protected])
Services: A member of the Winnefox Library System, serving Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Marquette, Waushara, and Winnebago counties; the Main Library’s second floor holds the Seefeld Local History Room, a collection of over 2,600 items on Fond du Lac City/County history, including area newspapers dating to 1965, plat maps, cemetery records, and family histories; census records date back to the mid-1800s; hosts a monthly “History at Home” recorded program (2nd Thursday); the separate Fond du Lac County Historical Society operates the Adams House Library/Research Center, 336 Old Pioneer Road, (920) 922-1166
Related: The Area Research Center at UW-Oshkosh’s Forrest R. Polk Library holds naturalization/historical records for a 5-county region including Fond du Lac.
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Fond du Lac County, whose county seat and namesake city translates from French as “Foot of the Lake” – a genuinely literal description, as the city sits directly at the SOUTHERN TIP of Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin’s largest lake (35 miles long, 131,939 acres); the Winnebago Pool (Lake Winnebago plus the connected upper lakes and Fox/Wolf Rivers) was ranked by a 1989 Wisconsin DNR survey as the BUSIEST INLAND WATERWAY IN THE ENTIRE STATE, surpassing even the Mississippi River in boating intensity; Lakeside Park, a 400-acre municipal park on Fond du Lac’s Lake Winnebago shoreline, features picnic areas, a deer park, a marina, boat launches, an old-fashioned carousel, train rides, and bumper boats; Lake Horicon (home to the Horicon Marsh, shared with neighboring Dodge County) touches the county’s southern border; 19th-century historical accounts describe the county’s rich soil, abundant clean water, and strong water/rail transportation links as having made it an especially prosperous agricultural region early in Wisconsin statehood
Notes: The city’s literal French-derived name and its real position at Lake Winnebago’s documented busiest-in-the-state waterway are both distinctive, verifiable local facts.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Fond du Lac County GIS – accessible via fdlco.wi.gov
Parcel Search: Fond du Lac County Register of Deeds
Addressing/911: Coordinated through Fond du Lac County Emergency Management
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Fond du Lac Humane Society – 652 Triangle Rd, Fond du Lac, WI 54937 | (920) 922-8873
Services: A private, nonprofit organization providing care and shelter for stray and abandoned animals in the community; adoption requires an application and fee; dog viewing/adoptions are by appointment only; recently underwent a facility expansion to increase capacity
Notes: Confirm current hours directly, as the shelter has been undergoing construction/expansion.
Notes: Contact Fond du Lac County directly for current refuse collection and recycling program details.
NOTES
Fond du Lac County’s namesake city sits literally at the “foot” of Lake Winnebago, Wisconsin’s largest lake and, by state survey data, its busiest inland waterway for boating – a real defining geographic feature of local life. The Fond du Lac Humane Society has recently expanded its facility to better serve the community’s growing animal welfare needs. All contact information above was sourced from official county, city, library, and shelter pages as of this writing; phone numbers and hours should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit.
About Fond du Lac County
Fond du Lac County is an east-central Wisconsin county and the 567th most populous in the United States, covering 724 square miles at the southern end of Lake Winnebago.
Fond du Lac (the county seat, population ~42,000) is a French phrase meaning “bottom of the lake” – a reference to the city’s position at Lake Winnebago’s southern tip. The city is a significant manufacturing center – Mercury Marine (outboard motor manufacturer, part of Brunswick Corporation) has its world headquarters in Fond du Lac and is the city’s largest employer. The Galloway House and Village preserves a Victorian-era estate and collection of historic buildings as a regional heritage attraction.
Ripon (population ~8,000) carries national historical significance as the birthplace of the Republican Party. On March 20, 1854, in a one-room schoolhouse in Ripon, a group of anti-slavery Whigs, Free Soilers, and Democrats met to form a new political party dedicated to opposing the expansion of slavery – the meeting is recognized as the founding of the Republican Party. The Little White Schoolhouse is preserved as a National Historic Landmark. Ripon College (a private liberal arts institution, enrollment ~1,000) provides the city’s academic anchor.
Lake Winnebago – 137,000 acres, the largest lake entirely within one US state – anchors the county’s eastern border and provides significant recreational and ecological resources. The annual Lake Winnebago Sturgeon Spearing Season – in which licensed participants spear lake sturgeon through holes cut in winter ice – is one of Wisconsin’s most unusual sporting traditions, drawing thousands of participants and spectators each February.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Wisconsin municipalities assess at full value (100%). Appeal to your local municipality’s Board of Review between the first Monday in May and adjournment. If dissatisfied, appeal to the Wisconsin Tax Appeals Commission or Circuit Court. No WI estate or inheritance tax.
OWNWELL CTA: Fond du Lac County municipality Board of Review: first Monday in May. Lake Winnebago waterfront properties carry recreational premiums. No WI estate or inheritance tax. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Recommended
Fond du Lac County municipality Board of Review: first Monday in May. Lake Winnebago waterfront properties carry recreational premiums. No WI estate or inheritance tax. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
Circuit Court (Probate): The Fond du Lac County Circuit Court at 160 S. Macy Street, Fond du Lac, WI 54935, phone 920-929-3000, handles probate, estate administration, guardianships, and all civil and criminal matters.
Register of Deeds: The Fond du Lac County Register of Deeds at 160 S. Macy Street, phone 920-929-3028, maintains real property records. Land records searchable online.
Senior Services
The Fond du Lac County Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) at 160 S. Macy Street, Fond du Lac, WI 54935, phone 920-929-3466, serves the county’s senior population. SSM Health St. Agnes Hospital provides significant geriatric care.
Recommended
Assisted living, memory care, and independent living across Fond du Lac County - from Fond du Lac and Ripon to Oakfield, Waupun, and the Lake Winnebago communities.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
160 S Macy St, Fond du Lac, WI 54935
(920) 929-3005
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Fond du Lac County Register in Probate, Fond du Lac (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above).
Local societies
No dedicated Fond du Lac County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Fond du Lac County Register in Probate City & County Government Center, 160 South Macy Street, Fond du Lac, WI 54935 (920) 929-3084
Fond du Lac County was incorporated in 1836, along Lake Winnebago, county seat Fond du Lac, Wisconsin’s 16th largest county by population. Wisconsin has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code and has NO separate probate court – probate is handled by the CIRCUIT COURT (Probate Division) for the county where the decedent lived, administered day-to-day by that county’s REGISTER IN PROBATE. Wisconsin runs two main tracks: FORMAL administration, supervised directly by a circuit court judge, and INFORMAL administration, supervised by the Register in Probate without continuous judicial oversight. Informal administration is the default path for most straightforward estates.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Wisconsin Statutes Chapters 851 through 882 govern probate. Wisconsin is also a MARITAL PROPERTY state (similar to community property) – under the Wisconsin Marital Property Act, most assets acquired during marriage are co-owned by both spouses, so a surviving spouse may already own half of all marital property outright; only the decedent’s half passes through the estate.
Transfer by Affidavit (Wis. Stat. §867.03) – available when the decedent’s ENTIRE probate estate (personal property only; real estate is not covered by this shortcut) has a gross value of $50,000 or less. Available 30 days after death to an heir, a trustee of a revocable trust, a beneficiary named in the will, or a guardian of the decedent.
Summary Settlement (Wis. Stat. §867.01) – geared toward estates of $50,000 or less where there is a surviving spouse, domestic partner, or minor children, or where the estate would otherwise be absorbed by allowances and expenses.
Summary Assignment – another shortcut for estates too small to pay debts in full.
Formal or Informal Administration – required for larger or more complex estates. Begins with a Petition for Administration (Form PR-1801) filed with the county Register in Probate to admit the will (if any) and appoint a personal representative.
Step 2: filing for administration
File a Petition for Administration (Form PR-1801) with the Fond du Lac County Register in Probate.
Mail notice of the hearing to all heirs, beneficiaries, and interested parties at least 20 days before the hearing; publish notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county for three successive weeks.
Once appointed, the personal representative inventories assets, and the court (for formal administration) or Register in Probate (for informal) sets a creditor claims deadline – generally 3 to 4 months from the date of the court’s order, with first publication of that notice required within 15 days of the order.
The personal representative pays valid debts and expenses, then distributes remaining assets to heirs/beneficiaries.
File a final accounting with the Circuit Court (Probate) showing all assets received, debts paid, and distributions made; once approved, the estate is closed.
Wisconsin Circuit Courts require attorneys to e-file; pro se (self-represented) filers are encouraged to use the Wisconsin Circuit Court eFiling system as well.
Death certificates for decedents who died before September 1, 2013 are obtained from the Register of Deeds in the county where the death occurred; for deaths after that date, any Wisconsin Register of Deeds office can issue a certified copy.
What it costs
Personal representative compensation: presumptive statutory rate of 2% of inventory value (Wis. Stat. §857.05), though the will or the parties can agree to a different amount.
Filing fees, publication costs, and (for real estate transfers under the small-estate process) an Affidavit of Heirship and Affidavit of Service, notarized and filed with the court.
Typical timeline: simple estates 6-12 months; complex or contested estates 18 months or longer.
Wisconsin does NOT impose a state estate tax or inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax may apply, with a $15,000,000 per-person exemption for 2026 – meaning the vast majority of Wisconsin estates owe nothing.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
160 S Macy St, Fond du Lac, WI 54935
(920) 929-3388
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
(920) 929-3005
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
Fond du Lac County Health Department, 160 S Macy St, Fond du Lac, WI 54935
(920) 929-3085
Economic Support Office
Fond du Lac County Economic Support Office, 160 S Macy St, Fond du Lac, WI 54935
(920) 929-3400
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Fond du Lac County Health Department – 160 S. Macy St, Fond du Lac, WI 54935 | (920) 929-3085 | Fax: (920) 929-3102
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