Wisconsin Tourism Facts 

• Wisconsin Symbols
• Vital Statistics 
• History 
• Geography 
• Economics 
• Agriculture 
• Education
• Sports
• State Parks
• Other Fun Facts
• Famous Names from Wisconsin

WISCONSIN SYMBOLS

4 State Animal: Badger	State Tree: Maple	State Flower: Wood Violet
State Wildlife Animal: White-tailed Deer	State Domestic Animal: Dairy Cow	State Bird:  Robin
State Fish: Muskellunge	State Insect: Honey Bee	State Motto: "Forward"
State Dance: Polka	State Nickname: "Gathering of the Waters"	State Flag

VITAL STATISTICS

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HISTORY

The area known as Wisconsin was first inhabited by various Indian tribes. The Chippewa, Menominee, Oneida, Potawatomi and Winnebago tribes lived in the area until the late 1800's.

Wisconsin was “discovered” by Jean Nicolet in 1634, while looking for the Northwest Passage to China. In 1763, Wisconsin was part of the territory ceded by France to Great Britain in the Treaty of Paris. Twenty years later, the British released their claim to Wisconsin.

In 1848, Wisconsin became the 30th state in the Union.

The present Capitol building in Madison was erected between 1906 and 1917, and is the third on this site.

The Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc is the largest nautical museum on the Great Lakes, showcasing 100 years of Great Lakes waterfront history. 

 Founded in 1839, Prescott is one of the oldest river towns in Wisconsin. It is located at the confluence of the St. Croix and Mississippi rivers. 

Built by Swiss settlers in 1848 on a narrow strip of land between the Mississippi River and steep wooded bluffs, Alma was once an important logging stop. Now the entire city is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  

Founded in 1845 by Swiss immigrants, New Glarus is a popular destination for Swiss visitors. 

Pepin County was the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the classic “Little House” books. Her legacy can be explored at the Little House Wayside, which features a replica of her childhood log cabin, and at the Pepin Historical Museum.

Inspired by the great outdoor museums of Europe, Old World Wisconsin in Eagle is a living history museum comprised of more than 60 historic buildings – relocated from throughout the state and reassembled in authentically landscaped settings.  

Nineteenth century photographer (and Wisconsin Dells resident) H.H. Bennett invented parts of the modern camera. His groundbreaking photos can be seen today at the H.H. Bennett Museum in Wisconsin Dells.

Wisconsin, like many great lakes states, is rich in harbor towns and their signature lighthouses. Pictured here is one of the oldest and tallest lighthouses in the state, the Wind Point Lighthouse in Racine. It was built in 1880, and is 108’ high.

Famous architect, Frank Lloyd Wright was born on June 8, 1867, in or near Richland Center, Wisconsin. Spring Green is home to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin estate, which served as his residence, workshop and architectural laboratory for more than 48 years. 

The Wollersheim Winery in Prairie du Sac is a National Historic Site overlooking the Wisconsin River Valley. Both the winery and vineyard were established before the Civil War by the Hungarian Count Haraszthy, who later became known as “the father of California winemaking.”

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GEOGRAPHY

The total land area of the state is 56,154 square miles, which includes 1,439 square miles of inland water.

Wisconsin has nearly 15,000 inland lakes and 33,000 miles of rivers and streams. It is bordered by two of the Great Lakes (Michigan and Superior) and the Mississippi River.

Door County has more miles of shoreline (250 mi.), more lighthouses (10), and more state parks (five) than any other county in the United States.

Big Manitou Falls at Pattison State Park in Superior is the highest waterfall in Wisconsin at 165 feet. 

Northeastern Wisconsin’s Fox River is one of the few rivers in the nation that flows north. 

The largest Indian reservation in Wisconsin is the Menominee Reservation with 234,900 acres. 

The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is a scenic chain of 21 islands in Lake Superior just off the tip of Bayfield County.  

Located near Ogema, Timm’s Hill is the state’s highest elevation at 1,951.5 feet. 

The Kickapoo River, located in Crawford County, is known as “the crookedest river" in the world.

ECONOMICS

Accounting for nearly $13 billion in travel expenditures per year,  Wisconsin's tourism industry is one of the state's top three industries along with manufacturing and agriculture. 

While Wisconsin is well known as an agricultural state, it also rates among the Top 15 in industrial output. Today Wisconsin leads the nation in the production of low-horsepower gasoline engines, power cranes, shovel hoists, mining machinery and other types of industrial equipment along with industrial controls and x-ray equipment. It is also home to one of the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturers, Harley-Davidson, and brewers Miller, Sprecher and Leinenkugel’s. 

Wisconsin is the largest producer of cheese in the nation, producing more than 350 different varieties of cheese.

Wisconsin is also one of the top-ranking states in canned and processed vegetables, and is known as the “Beer Capital of the United States.” 

A wide variety of wood products come from the state’s 15 million acres of forests, which also make the state a leading paper producer. Forest-dependent industries are among the leading employers in the northern part of the state.

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AGRICULTURE

Known as “America’s Dairyland,” Wisconsin’s 1.3 million dairy cows produce a year’s supply of milk for nearly 42 million people, butter for 68 million, and cheese for 86 million.

Wisconsin is first in the nation in total cheese production.

Chalet Cheese Co-op in Monroe is the only cheese factory in the United States that still makes the notoriously odd-smelling limburger variety of cheese.

Wisconsin is the nation’s leading cranberry producer, accounting for nearly 48 percent of the nation’s total crop. 

Wisconsin is the nation’s leading producer of ginseng and 8th in honey production.

The Dane County Farmers’ Market in Madison is a 30-year old farmers market held on Capitol Square from April through November, and is the largest farmers’ market in the United States.

EDUCATION

The University of Wisconsin System consists of 13 campuses and 13 Freshman/Sophomore UW Colleges. Currently, nearly 160,000 students are enrolled in the state’s university system..

The University of Wisconsin – Madison is one of the world’s leading centers in the research and development of biotechnology. 

SPORTS 

The Green Bay Packers, the last remaining publicly owned pro sports team, have won more NFL titles and retained their team name longer than any other in history (since 1919). With season-ticket holders from around the world, the team's waiting list has more than 67,500 names, and the legendary Lambeau Field has been in continuous use since 1957.

Each year more than 1.3 million fishing licenses are sold and more than 61 million fish are caught, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. 

Wisconsin has 171 species of fish and is continually ranked among the top 10 states for overall fishing activity. 

On premier muskie lakes it takes an average of 25 hours to catch a muskie.

Whistling Straits golf course, northeast of Kohler, Wis., will be the site of the 2004 PGA Championship. 

The University of Wisconsin Badgers are the only Big Ten team ever to win back-to-back Rose Bowls (1999 & 2000). The Badgers also won the Rose Bowl in 1994.

With 43 statewide auto racetracks, Wisconsin is one of the top racing destinations in the country, with The Milwaukee Mile being the oldest major racetrack in the world. 

The International Snowmobile Racing Hall of Fame is located in St. Germain. 

Ranked third in the nation for the number of ski areas, the state offers 36 downhill sites for skiing enthusiasts. 

Wisconsin hosts the largest cross-country ski race in North America, the American Birkebeiner, which brings upwards of 6,000 competitors to Cable.

Wisconsin hosts one of the largest snowmobile races in the world, the World’s Championship Snowmobile Derby in Eagle River.

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STATE PARKS

Peninsula State Park in Fish Creek has the largest annual attendance of any Wisconsin State Park and is the only one with a golf course.

Interstate State Park in St. Croix Falls was Wisconsin’s first state park.

Aztalan State Park near Lake Mills was the location of a 12th century Indian village. Pieces of 19th century ships are occasionally found on the beach at Point Beach State Park near Two Rivers.

The Tuscobia State Trail, spanning from Rice Lake to Park Falls, covers 74 miles through the Flambeau State Forest and the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest.

Explorers Hennepin and LaSalle landed at the future site of Rock Island State Park in Door County.

In 1673, Father Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet first discovered the upper Mississippi River where Wyalusing State Park in Bagley is now located.

The Elroy-Sparta State Trail, the nation’s first rails-to-trails conversion, features three century-old railroad tunnels that are now part of a bicycle trail. 

Door County has five state parks, the greatest number of any county in Wisconsin. They are Potawatomi, Peninsula, Whitefish Dunes, Newport and Rock Island state parks.

The Wild Goose State Trail, running from Fond du Lac to Clyman Junction, skirts the western edge of the Horicon Marsh, where more than 200,000 birds stop during their annual migration.

Heritage Hill State Park in Green Bay is a 40-acre “living history” museum.

Southeastern Wisconsin’s Kettle Moraine State Forest is known for its glacial land features including eskers, drumlins and kettles.

Mirror Lake State Park, near Baraboo, is home to the only Frank Lloyd Wright-designed cottage in the world available for public rental. 

Northern Highland-American Legion State Forest, near Boulder Junction, is Wisconsin’s largest state forest with 225,000 acres.

Big Bay State Park is located on Madeline Island, the only one of the 22 Apostle Islands that isn’t part of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. 

Copper Falls State Park in Ashland County is known for its waterfalls and canyons.

The Brule River State Forest, near Brule, is famous for its canoeing.

The Military Ridge State Trail follows an 1855 military road between Verona and Dodgeville. 

Roche-A-Cri State Park, near Friendship, is named for a French term that refers to the 300-foot-tall rock outcropping in the park.

The Hank Aaron State Trail in Milwaukee is named for the Hall of Fame baseball player who began his major league career with the Milwaukee Braves and finished it with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Gandy Dancer State Trail crosses the Wisconsin/Minnesota border twice on its way from St. Croix Falls to Superior.

Mill Bluff State Park, near Ontario, is part of the Ice Age National Scientific Reserve.

The Old Abe State Trail in Chippewa County connects Lake Wissota State Park and Brunet Island State Park.

Potawatomi State Park, near Sturgeon Bay in Door County, is known for its great walleye and bass fishing.

Amnicon Falls State Park, near Superior, is named for the waterfalls on the Amnicon River.

The Kettle Moraine State Forest-Southern Unit, near Eagle, is home of the famous Scuppernong bike and ski trail.

Natural Bridge State Park in Baraboo is named for a stone arch that sheltered Native Americans for 500 generations.

Pattison State Park, near Superior, is the home of 165-foot Big Manitou Falls, Wisconsin’s highest waterfall.

Tower Hill State Park in Spring Green has a shot tower, where miners once dropped melted lead to prepare it for finishing. 

Rib Mountain State Park in Wausau has a ski slope with the second-longest vertical drop in the Midwest.

Copper Culture State Park near Oconto contains a 2,000-year-old Indian burial ground.

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OTHER WISCONSIN FACTS

The first circus in the United States was performed in Delavan. The Ringling Brothers put on their first circus performance in 1884 in Baraboo, Wisconsin.

Each August, Wisconsin hosts the largest experimental aviation event in the world, the EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh.

Hayward is the home to the largest muskie in the world, a four-story replica at the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. The world's largest carousel is located at House on the Rock in Spring Green.

Wisconsin boasts three nationally known outdoor theaters: American Players Theatre in Spring Green, Peninsula Players Theatre in Fish Creek and Lake Superior Big Top Chautauqua.

More than 800,000 deer roam Wisconsin’s woods each year. 

America’s largest waterpark, Noah’s Ark, is located in Wisconsin Dells. 

One of the two remaining Russian Mir space station core modules is on display in the Wisconsin Dells, with the other located in Russia. 

Sheboygan is the “Bratwurst Capital of the World.” 

The first ice cream sundae was concocted in Two Rivers in 1881.

Milwaukee’s Summerfest is the world’s biggest outdoor music festival, drawing nearly one million visitors per year. 

Elmwood, Wisconsin, where a number of reported UFO sightings have occurred, hosts “UFO Days” every July. 

Mount Horeb’s internationally known Mustard Museum holds the world’s largest collection of mustards, totaling more than 3,500 varieties. 

Port Washington is home to the world's largest one-day, outdoor fish fry, which takes place every July.

Sun Prairie’s Sweet Corn Festival, held in August, is one of the largest of its kind in the nation. 

The Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw draws nearly 40,000 spectators to Sauk Prairie during Labor Day weekend every year. 

The U.S. Watermelon Seed-Spitting and Speed-Eating Championships are held every September in Pardeeville. Sauk City and Prairie du Sac are home to North America’s largest population of wintering eagles.

Kewaunee is home to the world's largest grandfather clock, which stands 35 feet tall.

Milwaukee derives its name from the Algonquin word mahn-a-wauk-ee meaning "gathering place by the waters."

The Milwaukee Public Museum has the world's largest collection of typewriters, totaling more than 700.

Lake Geneva has the only postal route in Wisconsin for which mail is delivered by boat.

Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant in Door County draws people not only for the food but those who want to catch a glimpse of the goats that graze on the restaurant's sod roof.

More than 2,000 tops are on display at the Spinning Top Exploratory Museum in Burlington.

Muscoda is the self-proclaimed "Morel Mushroom Capital." 

Al Capone retreated from Chicago to his vacation getaway in Wisconsin's Northwoods. Known as "The Hideout, the lakeside home in Couderay is complete with machine-gun portals, a gun tower and 18-inch thick walls.  

The exact geographic center of the northwest hemisphere is located in Poniatowski, just a few miles west of Wausau. Poniatowski is half way between the Equator and the North Pole and half way between Greenwich Meridian and the International Date Line. There are only four places like this in the entire world with two being under water and the other in China. The site is located in a cornfield and marked with the Reitbrock Geographical Marker. 

FAMOUS NAMES FROM WISCONSIN

Laura Ingalls Wilder was born in 1867 in Pepin in the famous "little house in the big woods."

World-renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright was born in Richland Center in 1867.

Artist Georgia O'Keefe was born in Sun Prairie in 1887.

Actor, director and writer Orson Welles was born in Kenosha in 1915.

The famous escape artist Harry Houdini spent his childhood in Appleton.

Liberace was born in West Allis in 1919 and went on to become an internationally-recognized pianist.

Actor, writer, director, and producer Gene Wilder was born in Milwaukee where he grew up.

Pulitzer prize-winning novelist and playwright Thornton Wilder was born in Madison in 1897.

Comedian and actor Chris Farley grew up in Madison and graduated from Marquette University.

Actress Jane Kaczmarek was born in Milwaukee.

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