Poplar
Richard Bong's hometown, twenty minutes east of Superior on US 2.
Poplar at a glance
Poplar is a village in Douglas County, Wisconsin, about twenty minutes east of Superior on US 2, and it is best known as the hometown of Richard Bong, the top-scoring American fighter ace of all time. A P-38 Lightning stands on permanent display in the village bearing his name. It offers inland Wisconsin prices, the Maple School District, and a genuinely short run into Superior.
Poplar sits on US 2 about twenty minutes east of Superior, in the inland farm and forest country of Douglas County. It is a small village with a highway through it, and the highway is what makes it work: Superior is a straightforward twenty-minute drive, and Duluth about thirty-five.
Its claim to fame is real and unusually large for a village this size. Richard Ira Bong, born in 1920, grew up here and became the highest-scoring American fighter ace in history with 40 confirmed aerial victories flying the P-38 Lightning in the Pacific before his death in 1945. A P-38 stands on permanent display in Poplar, and the Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center in Superior carries his name.
For buyers, Poplar offers inland Douglas County pricing, which sits below Superior's and well below the Minnesota side, with village lots in the core and township acreage around it. Private well and septic are common outside the village centre and should be confirmed per parcel.
Schools are the Maple School District, whose office is at 4751 S County Road F in Maple, with Northwestern High School as its high school. As with Lake Nebagamon, this catches cross-border buyers who assume the nearest city's district applies.
Poplar also sits inland of the heaviest Lake Superior snow, which along with the Wisconsin tax structure is the usual reason people from the Minnesota side end up looking here.
Schools: Maple School District. The Village of Poplar is in the Maple School District, office at 4751 S County Road F, Maple WI 54854, with Northwestern High School as the district high school.
Typical range: $150k to $320k. Sale volume here is too low for a reliable published median.
Recent coverage of Poplar
A local history column revisiting old Douglas County headlines, including the building of the Poplar dam.
The village finalized an international sister city partnership.
Village officials moved toward what would become Poplar's first sister city agreement.
The village dance studio staged its seasonal production.
The state asked for public comment on planned highway work through the two townships.
Headlines link to the original publisher. We summarise and attribute, we do not republish. Last checked 14 Aug 2026.
Communities with full guides
Twenty minutes west on US 2, the nearest city with full services.
Lake NebagamonSouth, in the same Maple school district, built around its lake.
Solon SpringsSoutheast, another inland Douglas County community.
Allouez-Itasca (Superior)Superior's far east end, on the way into the city.