The city is located at the junction of U.S. Highway 2 and Wisconsin Highway 13, and is the home of Northland College and the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute.
There is also a Town of Ashland in Ashland County located about 15 miles (24 km) southeast of the city.
As of the census of 2000, there were 8,620 people, 3,513 households, and 2,027 families residing in the city. The population density was 643.3 people per square mile (248.4/km²). There were 3,777 housing units at an average density of 108.8 persons/km² (281.9 persons/sq mi). The racial makeup of the city was 90.17% White, 0.32% African American, 6.30% Native American, 0.49% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.43% from other races, and 2.23% from two or more races. 1.37% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 3,513 households out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% were married couples living together, 11.7% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 42.3% were non-families. 35.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.91.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 15.4% from 18 to 24, 24.7% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,853, and the median income for a family was $40,549. Males had a median income of $30,122 versus $20,926 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,330. 12.7% of the population and 7.5% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 9.9% are under the age of 18 and 10.0% are 65 or older.
The two major highways in the city are U.S. Highway 2 and Wisconsin Highway 13. The city is one of the northern termini in Wisconsin for the Canadian National Railway, parent company of the formerWisconsin Central Ltd., which assumed former SOO Line trackage in 1987.
Airports certified for carrier operations near Ashland:
Other public-use airports near Ashland: