There’s plenty to cheese about in this Wisconsin town
Monroe is a small Wisconsin city where saying “cheese” means much more than putting on a smile. Cheesemaking is one of the things this community of about 10,700 is known for — it’s home to multiple award-winning manufacturers and is nicknamed the “Swiss cheese capital of the USA.” And if cheese is a foundation, the rest of the city continues to grow from it. Monroe is just 45 miles south of Madison, Wisconsin’s capital, but is packed with its own spots for shopping, dining and outdoor recreation, and an expanding housing market. “Monroe is just a great community. And I think we’re going to start growing very quickly,” says Carol Stamm, a Realtor with First Weber Hedeman Group and a lifelong resident of the area. “We have a new high school being built, a huge addition going on to our YMCA and several new home developments starting up.”
Due to its burgeoning dairy industry, Monroe is known as the “Gateway to Cheese Country” and the “Cheese Capital of the U.S.A."
As of the 2020 census, Monroe has a population of about 10,661.
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Diverse home selection in Monroe
Monroe was established in 1882, and houses date as far back as the mid-19th century, many clustered close to downtown. Price tags for the town’s oldest homes fall anywhere between $65,000 and $500,000 based on condition and square footage. New houses are popping up in spots for $300,000 to $440,000, including condos in the Haven Hills Estates development. “We have a wide variety of homes available, from starter homes up to executive, high-end homes,” Stamm says. “There are some beautiful ones available, close to million-dollar homes. And then we have some starter homes in the $100,000s.” Monroe’s median list price of about $275,000 is lower than what buyers will find in some communities closer to Madison. “The closer to Madison you get, the higher prices you’ll see,” Stamm says. “So if someone is willing to move to Monroe, you’ll get a lot more house for the money. More bang for the buck.”
Starter homes in Monroe begin in the $100,000 range, with smaller and older homes averaging $325,000.
Monroe also has some newer subdivisions with homes in the $400,000 and up range.
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The dairy industry is the backbone of the economy
Though cheese and other dairy products account for a significant chunk of Monroe’s economy, they’re far from the only major industries. The city’s largest employer is Colony Brands, a mail-order retailer selling food and home goods. The second-largest employer is Monroe Clinic & Hospital, which has 58 beds. Both are always looking for employees, Stamm says. It’s also common for some people to live in Monroe but commute to Madison for work, she says.
One of the largest employers in Monroe, Colony Brands, provides jobs to over 4,000 workers.
The Monroe Clinic Hospital system is a modern facility with over 58 beds, which also employs many locals.
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Downtown Monroe centers around the historic Green County Courthouse
Monroe’s downtown unfurls around the historic Green County Courthouse, which dates to 1891 and is a striking example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture with its tall turret roofs. This section of the city has dozens of restaurants and shops, including Baumgartner's Cheese Store & Tavern, which opened in 1931 and is the oldest cheese shop in Wisconsin.
Multiple events happen downtown, including a summer concert series from June to September and Saturday farmers markets from May to October. Cheese Days takes over downtown on the third weekend of September in even years and is known as the oldest food festival across the Midwest, with parades, live music and all sorts of cheese-related food vendors. “That is huge,” Stamm says. “Our little town will swell to about 100,000 people for that weekend.”
Baumgartner's is a cheese and specialty shop in downtown Monroe, which also has a lively pub for drinks and food.
The Green County Courthouse in Monroe was built in 1891, and was renovated in 2023.
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The Cheese County Trail connects to Mineral Point
Locals can burn off some of the cheese-related products they enjoy here by hitting one of the multiple trails in the area. The Cheese Country Trail is one of the most prominent, stretching 47 miles from Monroe to Mineral Point, Wisconsin. The 40-mile Badger State Trail runs through Monroe on its way from Madison to the Wisconsin-Illinois border. “The trail system throughout the city and the surrounding area is excellent,” Stamm says. “Walking trails, four-wheeling, just about anything you want to do. Bicycling. We’ve got great trails, and I feel that’s a huge draw.” The Badger State Trail runs by Twining Park, a prominent piece of Monroe’s park system. The park offers an 18-hole disc golf course and a splash pad open from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
The Green County Family YMCA borders Twining Park and is receiving a 40,000-square-foot addition scheduled to open in spring 2025. Monroe’s climate ensures people can take advantage of a range of activities, whether it's hiking during the warm summers or snowmobiling during the chilly winters. “If it’s somebody that wants to enjoy all four seasons, this is the perfect place,” Stamm says. “We have a mix.”
Monroe's Cheese Country Recreational Trail offers over 47 miles of multi-use terrain.
The Badger State Trail is a former rail line which connects several towns like Monticello and Belleville to Monroe.
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New high school will foster career-based education
The School District of Monroe gets a B-minus on Niche and serves around 2,400 students. The district's Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, which carries a B-minus grade, was a National Blue Ribbon awardee in 2024. The system is building a new $93 million high school scheduled to be finished in 2026. The new campus will focus on career and technical education.
Blackhawk Technical College has one of its two campuses in Monroe. The school offers almost 70 associate degrees with programs including agribusiness and phlebotomy.
Abraham Lincoln Elementary School in Monroe received a B- rating from Niche.
Blackhawk Technical College's Monroe Campus is home to the school's agricultural programs.
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Route 69 heads north to Madison
Wisconsin Highway 69 connects the nearly 45 miles north to Madison. The Dane County Regional Airport is north of Madison and is about 55 miles north of Monroe. The airport has flights to multiple major cities.
Crime
According to the FBI Crime Data Explorer, the city saw a drop in violent and property crime from 2022 to 2023. More data from the Wisconsin Department of Justice's Uniform Crime Reporting Data Dashboard, shows a 40% decrease in larceny in the same time frame.
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