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1848

Greetings from the Badger State Greetings from Wisconsin! WISCONSIN isconsin achieved statehood in 1848 and is called the Badger State because some of the state’s original settlers were lead miners who Wburrowed holes into the ground, like badgers, to serve as makeshift homes.

1848 “Bucky Badger” is also the name of the mascot for the University of Wisconsin- Madison, the state’s flagship university and one of the top research universities in the world. Madison is Wisconsin’s capital, but Milwaukee is the largest city. Helpful Contacts: The majority of Wisconsin’s 5.8 million people live in the southern part of the The State of Wisconsin state, with the heaviest concentration along the southeastern corridor, including www.wisconsin.gov Milwaukee, Waukesha, Racine and Kenosha Counties.

Wisconsin Manufacturers Wisconsin is called “America’s Dairyland” because of the dairy industry. Wisconsin & Commerce is second in the U.S. in total cow milk production behind California, but produces www.wmc.org more whey and cheese than any other state, which is why Wisconsinites are sometimes called “Cheeseheads.” Wisconsin is also number one in goat milk Wisconsin Department production, mink pelts, corn for silage, cranberries, ginseng and snap beans. of Tourism PO Box 7976 Wisconsin is also a leader in oats, sweet corns, tart cherries, maple syrup, green Madison, WI 53707-7976 beans, carrots, potatoes, peas, onions and cabbage production. From within the state of Wisconsin, call: 1-800-372-2737 But agriculture is not Wisconsin’s number one industry; manufacturing is. In fact, From outside the state of Wisconsin has the second most manufacturing jobs in the nation on a per capita Wisconsin, call: 1-800-432-8747 basis. Among many other things, Wisconsin companies make motorcycles (Harley Email: [email protected] Davidson), bicycles (Trek), ships and yachts (Burger), boat engines (Mercury, www.tourism.state.wi.us -OR- Evinrude), snow blowers (Ariens), lawn mowers (Briggs & Stratton), military vehicles www.travelwisconsin.com and fire apparatus (Oshkosh Corporation), mining equipment (Komatsu), tractors (J. I. Case, John Deere), bathroom fixtures (Kohler), household consumer products Wisconsin Historical Society (S.C. Johnson), soy sauce (Kikkoman) and shoes (Allen-Edmonds). 816 State Street Madison, WI 53706 Phone: 608-264-6400 Our third largest industry is tourism. People come to Wisconsin primarily from www.wisconsinhistory.org around the American Midwest to enjoy more than 12,000 lakes and many other attractions. Wisconsin’s most popular tourist destination is the Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin Department which calls itself the Water Park Capital of the World. Door County (the “thumb” of of Agriculture the state) is also very popular. It has more shoreline than any other county in PO Box 8934 the U.S. Madison, WI 53708 Phone: 1-800-789-9277 www.datcp.state.wi.us

State Capitol Milwaukee

Apostle Islands Bucky Badger Bucky

Updated March 2019 Famous Wisconsinites

Wisconsin boasts many famous Americans in multiple fields, including the arts, science, architecture, politics and the military. MILITARY ENTERTAINERS Richard Bong was known as the greatest fighter ace of Don Ameche, Oscar winning actor World War II. Bong shot down 40 Japanese planes in Willem Dafoe, actor his P-38 Lighting. Heather Graham, actor James Lovell was born in Ohio, but grew up in Milwaukee. Chris Farley, comedian Lovell is best known for commanding the Apollo 13 lunar Harry Houdini, magician (born in Hungary) mission in 1970 that overcame a major malfunction. Liberace, musician Admiral Daniel Leahy was born in Iowa, but grew up Jackie Mason, comedian Wisconsin. He became the first Five-Star Fleet Admiral in Steve Miller, musician the U.S. Navy during World War II. After the war, Leahy Spencer Tracy, Oscar winning actor served as the first chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Les Paul, musician General William “Billy” Mitchell is considered the father Charles and John Ringling, circus entrepreneurs of the U.S. Air Force. He pioneered the use of aircraft as Tony Shalhoub, actor bombers, particularly against naval targets. Gene Wilder, actor Donald “Deke” Slayton was one of America’s original Orson Welles, actor/director Mercury astronauts. OTHERS GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS Stephen Ambrose, historian Les Aspin was a congressman and served as Secretary Jeanne Dixon, psychic of Defense from 1993-1994. Eric Heiden, five-time Olympic gold medalist speed skater Lawrence Eagleburger served as U.S. Secretary of State Aldo Leopold, author from 1992-1993. John Muir, naturalist (born in Scotland) George F. Kennan is credited with establishing the Georgia O’Keeffe, artist American Cold War policy of “containment.” Laura Ingalls Wilder, author Melvin Laird was a congressman and served as Thornton Wilder, author Secretary of Defense from 1969-1973. Frank Lloyd Wright, architect Golda Meir, the fourth prime minister of Israel, was born in Ukraine, but grew up in Milwaukee where she received a teaching degree and taught in the public schools. Today, there is a school in Milwaukee named in her honor. ABOUT WMC William Rehnquist served as Chief Justice of the U.S. Founded in 1911, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Supreme Court from 1986-2005. Commerce (WMC) is a combination of the Wisconsin Paul Ryan served as Speaker of the House of Chamber of Commerce, Wisconsin Manufacturers Representatives from 2017-2019, making him the highest Association and Wisconsin Safety Council. WMC is ranking member of the federal government from Wisconsin’s leading business association representing Wisconsin in state history. nearly 3,800 employers of all sizes and from every sector Tommy Thompson is Wisconsin’s longest serving governor of the economy. (1987-2001) who also served as U.S. Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services from 2001-2005.

Midwest Lambeau Field Cheese

Manufacturing A Summary of Wisconsin History

rior to the arrival of Europeans, Wisconsin was inhabited by various Indian tribes, Pincluding the Menominee, Kickapoo, Miami, Winnebago, Dakota (Sioux), Iowa, Fox, Sauk, Potawatomi and Ojibewa (Chippewa).

In 1634, Frenchman Jean Nicolet was the first European explorer to reach Wisconsin via Green Bay. France lost control of Wisconsin after its defeat to Great Britain in the French and Indian War (1754-1763). Wisconsin officially became part 1910 painting of Jean Nicolet’s 1634 arrival in Wisconsin. of the United States after the British surrender at the Battle of Yorktown (1781), which ended the American Revolutionary War.

Most of Wisconsin’s white settlers were fur traders until the 1820s when lead miners came to what is now the southwestern part of the state. These miners built makeshift homes by burrowing into the ground and were nicknamed “badgers.” The miners displaced native Sauk Indians who eventually attempted to return to their lands sparking the Black Hawk War in 1832. The war ended with a crushing Indian defeat at the Battle of Bad Axe.

Wisconsin became the 30th state on May 29, 1848. In the early 1840s, Norwegian immigrants settled in central Wisconsin. By the late 1840s, large numbers of German immigrants made their way to the state, many settling in Milwaukee.

Prior to the American Civil War, Wisconsin was a hotbed of the anti-slave or abolitionist movement, which led to the founding of the Republican Party Wisconsin lead miners, in Ripon in 1854. nicknamed “badgers,” in the 1800s. The Civil War began in 1861. Many Wisconsin units served with distinction, including the 2nd, 6th and 7th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiments that, along with the 19th Indiana and 24th Michigan Regiments, formed the famous “Iron Brigade” or “Black Hat Brigade.” By war’s end, more than 90,000 Wisconsinites fought for the Union.

During the Battle of Chattanooga in 1863, 18-year-old Lieutenant Arthur MacArthur, Jr. of the 24th Wisconsin Regiment rallied his troops during a charge up Missionary Ridge by crying “On Wisconsin!” MacArthur, who was the son of Wisconsin’s lieutenant governor and the future father of Five Star General Douglas MacArthur of World War II fame, was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroics. Member of the After the war, logging dominated the economy of northern Wisconsin, while “Black Hat Brigade.” Milwaukee was fast becoming a manufacturing center that would eventually be dubbed the “machine tool capital of the world.” In much of the rest of the state dairy overtook wheat as the state’s primary agricultural product. ~ continued ~ Wisconsin championed the Progressive Era at the beginning of the 20th century. Under Governor Robert “Fighting Bob” La Follette, Wisconsin became the first state to enact a statewide primary election system, the first workers compensation law and the first state-level income tax. In 1932, Wisconsin was the first state to enact an Former American Motors Lake Front Plant, Kenosha. unemployment compensation law.

Wisconsin’s manufacturing sector continued to grow leading up to the beginning of World War I. Factories in Beloit, Milwaukee and Racine recruited large numbers of African American workers from the American South as part of the Great Migration.

When war was declared with Germany, Wisconsin became the first state to meet its draft requirement. More than 120,000 Wisconsinites served in the military during the “Great War.”

Wisconsin continued its patriotic reputation during World War II by sending more than 332,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines to fight in the European The “Dow Day Protests” at the and Pacific theatres. University of Wisconsin-Madison, October 1967.

In the late 1960s, the University of Wisconsin-Madison became one of the centers of the anti-Vietnam War movement, which culminated with the bombing of the Army Math Research Center (Sterling Hall) on campus in 1970. One graduate student was killed in the blast, which was the largest act of domestic terror in the U.S. until Oklahoma City in 1995.

In 2011, Madison was again the location of massive protests, this time against Republican Governor Scott Walker’s reforms to limit collective bargaining privileges for public employees to address a $3.6 billion budget deficit. Act 10 protests in Madison, 2011. The backlash led to an attempt to recall Walker. But in 2012, Walker became the first U.S. governor to win a recall election. Wisconsin Maps

Wisconsin Facts & Trivia

FACTS TRIVIA Population: 5,711,767 in 2011 (20th in the U.S.) Wisconsin has more than 12,000 lakes and more State Capital: Madison (population 245,691) than 7,400 rivers and streams. Largest City: Milwaukee (population 594,833) The first hydroelectric plant in the U.S. was built on Median Household Income: $47,220 (15th in the U.S.) the Fox River near Appleton in 1882. Governor: Tony Evers, Democrat The first practical typewriter was designed in U.S. Senators: Ron Johnson, Republican; Tammy Baldwin, Democrat Milwaukee in 1867. U.S. House Delegation: 5 Republicans, 3 Democrats Wausau is the Ginseng Capital of the World. Electoral Votes: 10 Wisconsin has more than 15,000 miles of Statehood: May 29, 1848 (30th State) snowmobile trails. Nickname: Badger State, America’s Dairyland The first kindergarten in the U.S. was established in Name Origin: Wisconsin is an Indian word, but the origins are Watertown in 1856. disputed. Some say it is an Algonquian word meaning “long river.” The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame in Others say it is a Chippewa/Ojibwa word that means “grassy Hayward is shaped like a Muskie. place” or “gathering of the waters.” The first ice cream sundae was made in Two Rivers Highest Point: Tim’s Hill; 1,952 ft, 595 m in 1881. Land Area: 65,497.82 sq. mi.; 169,639 km (23rd largest in U.S.) The Republican Party was founded in Ripon in 1854. Number of Counties: 72 The Hamburger was first created in Seymour in 1885. Animal: Badger With an average of 2,500 performers, Milwaukee’s Wild Life Animal: White-tailed deer Summerfest is the nation’s largest music festival. Domestic Animal: Dairy cow Green Bay is Wisconsin’s oldest city and the smallest Bird: Robin city in the U.S. with a major professional sports Flower: Wood Violet franchise, the Green Bay Packers. Tree: Sugar Maple The Packers have won more NFL championships Song: “On Wisconsin” than any other team, including four Super Bowls. Fish: Muskie (muskellunge) Wisconsin has two national parks (Apostle Islands Beverage: Milk National Lakeshore; St. Croix National Scenic Dance: Polka Riverway), two national forests, 13 state forests, Mineral: Galena 46 state parks and 11 recreation areas. Rock: Red Granite Wisconsin has 2,231 National Register of Historic Insect: Honeybee Places listings. Grain: Corn The first formal observance of Flag Day was held in Waubeka in 1896. Wisconsin State Flag Created during the American Civil War, Wisconsin’s state flag was officially adopted in 1913. BADGER: Wisconsin is PLOW: The plow represents agriculture. FORWARD: State motto. known as the “Badger State.” PICK/SHOVEL: The pick and SAILOR: Wisconsin borders Lake Superior — shovel represent mining. the largest of the Great Lakes — to the north and Lake Michigan to the east. The Mississippi MINER: Early European settlers River serves as Wisconsin’s western border. were lead miners. Wisconsin has These bodies of water are important for other mineral resources, including transportation, fishing and recreation. iron, zinc, copper and even gold.

E PLURIBUS UNUM: The U.S. ARM/HAMMER: The arm and motto “Out of Many, One.” hammer represent industry. ANCHOR: The anchor CORNUCOPIA: Cornucopia represents shipping. symbolizes a bountiful harvest. LEAD INGOTS: Lead ingots CENTER SHIELD: 1848: Year Wisconsin represent Wisconsin’s mining U.S. Coat of Arms. became a state. heritage.