Dodge County was named for Henry Dodge, first Territorial governor of Wisconsin (q.v.).

Description from John W. Hunt's 1853 Wisconsin Gazetteer: "DODGE, County, is bounded on the north by Marquette and Fond du Lac, on the east by Fond du Lac and Washington, on the south by Waukesha and Jefferson, and on the west by Dane and Columbia; and is 30 miles square. It was so named in honor of General [Henry] Dodge, first Governor of the territory, and was set off from Brown, December 7, 1836... It was fully organized Jan, 20, 1844. The seat of justice is at the village of Juneau, formerly known as Dodge Centre. The surface of the country, west of Rock river, is diversified with openings, prairie, and good hay marsh; and the soil being good, it is well adapted to the raising of wheat and the summer grains, and to grazing. East of the river it is timbered with a heavy growth of maple and other hard woods, and the soil produces the grain crop with equal advantage with the other side, while it is more naturally adapted to the growth of the cultivated grasses. Near the banks of Rock river are beds of iron ore, which are success fully worked. ¿ It is watered by the Crawfish, Rock and Beaver Dam rivers, and their tributaries. The population in 1838 was 18; 1840, 67; 1842, 149; 1846, 7,787; 1847,14,905; and 1850, 19,140. Dwellings, 3,561; farms, 2,338; manufactories, 30."

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Dodge County, Wisconsin

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[Source: Kellogg, Louise Phelps. "Derivation of County Names" in Proceedings of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin for 1909, pages 219-231.]