US and Wisconsin Flags on Our Flagpole

Wisconsin – The Badger State

Introduction:

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States, in the Midwest and Great Lakes regions.

Wisconsin in the United States
Wisconsin in the United States

It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north.  The state capital is Madison, and its largest city is Milwaukee, which is located on the western shore of Lake Michigan.

Wisconsin - The Badger State 1
State Capitol in Madison

Wisconsin’s geography is diverse, having been greatly impacted by glaciers during the Ice Age with the exception of the Driftless Area.  The Northern Highland and Western Upland along with a part of the Central Plain occupies the western part of the state, with lowlands stretching to the shore of Lake Michigan.  Wisconsin is second to Michigan in the length of its Great Lakes coastline.

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, a large number of European settlers entered the state, many of whom emigrated from Germany and Scandinavia.  Like neighboring Minnesota, the state remains a center of German American and Scandinavian American culture.

Wisconsin is known as “America’s Dairyland” because it is one of the nation’s leading dairy producers, particularly famous for its cheese.

Wisconsin Cheese
Wisconsin Cheese

Manufacturing, especially paper products, information technology (IT), cranberries, ginseng, and tourism are also major contributors to the state’s economy.

Origin of the State Name:

The word Wisconsin originates from the name given to the Wisconsin River by one of the Algonquian-speaking Native American groups living in the region at the time of European contact.  French explorer Jacques Marquette was the first European to reach the Wisconsin River, arriving in 1673 and calling the river Meskousing in his journal.  Subsequent French writers changed the spelling from Meskousing to Ouisconsin, and over time this became the name for both the Wisconsin River and the surrounding lands.  English speakers anglicized the spelling from Ouisconsin to Wisconsin when they began to arrive in large numbers during the early 19th century.  The legislature of Wisconsin Territory made the current spelling official in 1845.

Wisconsin River
Wisconsin River

The Algonquin word for Wisconsin and its original meaning have both grown obscure.  Interpretations vary, but most implicate the river and the red sandstone that lines its banks.  One leading theory holds that the name originated from the Miami word Meskonsing, meaning “it lies red”, a reference to the setting of the Wisconsin River as it flows through the reddish sandstone of the Wisconsin Dells.  Other theories include claims that the name originated from one of a variety of Ojibwa words meaning “red stone place”, “where the waters gather”, or “great rock”.

History:

Early History:

Wisconsin has been home to a wide variety of cultures over the past 14,000 years.  The first people arrived around 10,000 BCE during the Wisconsin Glaciation.  These early inhabitants, called Paleo-Indians, hunted now-extinct ice age animals such as the Boaz mastodon, a prehistoric mastodon skeleton unearthed along with spear points in southwest Wisconsin.

Scroll to Top