Wisconsin Facts

Wisconsin entered the Union on May 29, 1848, as the 30th state. Manufacturing became the state's chief economic activity following World War II, but at the start of the 1990s Wisconsin remained the nation's leading dairy state and also a major producer of corn. Milwaukee and Madison, the capital, were the state's largest cities and among its many important industrial and commercial centers. The state is named for the Wisconsin River, the name of which is derived from the French version of an Ojibwa Indian term that may mean “gathering of the waters” or “place of the beaver.” Wisconsin's nickname, the Badger State, refers not to the badgers that live there but to miners who burrowed like badgers into the hillsides in search of lead in the 1820s.

Land and Resources
Wisconsin, with an area of 169,653 sq km (65,503 sq mi), is the 23d largest state in the U.S.; 5.4% of the land area is owned by the federal government. The state is roughly rectangular in shape, and its extreme dimensions are about 515 km (about 320 mi) from north to south and about 475 km (about 295 mi) from east to west. Elevations range from 177 m (581 ft), along the shore of Lake Michigan, to 595 m (1952 ft), atop Timms Hill in the north central part of the state; the approximate mean elevation is 320 m (1050 ft). The state has a shoreline of some 1085 km (some 675 mi).

Physical Geography
The physical landscape of Wisconsin can be divided into four major regions. Northern Wisconsin lies in the Superior Upland, a southern extension of the Canadian Shield. The hard, crystalline rocks that form the bedrock are covered by stony glacial drifts. The landscape contains many prominent glacial moraines, numerous glacial lakes, and rounded granite and quartzite hills that rise about 30 to 90 m (about 100 to 300 ft) above the general level of the upland.

To the southwest of the Superior Upland is the Till Plains region, a level to gently rolling area with older, less stony glacial materials. At the southern end of this section is the flat plain that was covered by Lake Wisconsin during glacial times. A scenic gorge, The Dells of the Wisconsin River, is in the region in the southern part of the state. A separate area of the Till Plains occurs along the state's southern boundary.

The southwestern part of Wisconsin is part of the Driftless Region, in which glacial deposits are largely absent; outwash materials from melting glaciers filled most of the valleys, however. It is one of the most rugged and scenic areas of the state, particularly where the Mississippi River flows in a bluff-lined gorge, some 60 to 180 m (some 200 to 600 ft) deep.

The Eastern Great Lakes Lowlands region makes up most of the eastern half of Wisconsin. Gently rolling glacial plains with excellent soil make this the state's best agricultural area. Inland from Lake Michigan lies the north-south trending Kettle Moraine, one of the world's most striking collections of glacial features.

Rivers and Lakes

In the western half of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin, Flambeau, Black, Chippewa, and St. Croix rivers flow into the Mississippi River. A number of short streams flow north into Lake Superior, and the Menominee, Peshtigo, Wolf, and the Fox, and a number of smaller streams flow east into Lake Michigan. A substantial portion (19,132 sq km/7387 sq mi) of Lake Michigan and a smaller portion (6928 sq km/2675 sq mi) of Lake Superior are part of Wisconsin. In addition, the state has more than 8000 interior lakes, of which Lake Winnebago is the largest, with an area of about 555 sq km (about 215 sq mi). Many lakes are in northern Wisconsin. Green Bay is an arm of Lake Michigan bordered in part by the Door Peninsula.

Climate

Wisconsin has a humid continental climate with warm summers in the south and cool summers elsewhere. Winters are cold in most parts of the state. The waters of Lake Michigan have a moderating effect on nearby areas, so that summers are somewhat cooler and winters somewhat warmer along the lake. Milwaukee, in the southeast, has an average January temperature of -7‹ C (19.4‹ F) and an average July temperature of 21.1‹ C (70‹ F); La Crosse, in the west, has a mean January temperature of -8.9‹ C (16‹ F) and a mean July temperature of 22.8‹ C (73‹ F). The recorded temperature in Wisconsin has ranged from -47.8‹ C (-54‹ F), in 1922 at Danbury in the northwest, to 45.6‹ C (114‹ F), in 1936 at Wisconsin Dells in the south.

Annual precipitation in Wisconsin is rather uniformly distributed, averaging about 850 mm (about 33.5 in) in the southwestern and north central areas. The remainder of the state receives about 685 to 840 mm (about 27 to 33 in) each year. Overall, Wisconsin gets about 760 mm (about 30 in) of precipitation annually. Snowfall averages about 915 mm (about 36 in) per year in the extreme south, whereas most northern areas receive an annual average of about 1400 mm (about 55 in). Thunderstorms, sometimes accompanied by devastating tornadoes, are common in spring and summer, particularly in the southern part of the state.

Plants and Animals

About 43% of Wisconsin's land area is covered with forest, most of which is in the northern part of the state. Northern Wisconsin was once covered by a mixed forest dominated by maple, yellow birch, hemlock, and pine. Today, a large part of the north remains in second-growth forests that produce pulpwood and lumber. In the south, broadleaf deciduous forests of maple, basswood, oak, and hickory covered the land. Some oak-hickory forests contained prairies of bluestem grass. Most of the southern woodlands and prairies have been cleared for agriculture because they occupied the best soils. Blueberries, Juneberries, and huckleberries are common shrubs. Wildflowers include over 40 types of orchids and 20 kinds of violets; the wood violet is the state flower.

White-tailed deer are found in most areas of Wisconsin and abound in the northern cut-over areas, which supply excellent browse. Other mammals include black bear, badger, red and gray fox, porcupine, woodchuck, coyote, snowshoe hare, skunk, mink, beaver, and muskrat. Endangered species include the timber wolf, pine marten, and Canadian lynx. Among Wisconsin's game birds are pheasant, bobwhite, ruffed grouse, and partridge; the wild turkey has been reintroduced. Other common birds include the robin, wren, swallow, nuthatch, and chickadee. Endangered species include the barn owl, prairie chicken, and bald eagle. Pike, sturgeon, muskellunge, walleye, and trout are among the many game fish of Wisconsin's lakes and streams, and migratory waterfowl cross the state along the Mississippi flyway each year. Lake Michigan and Lake Superior offer valuable sport and commercial fishing.

Mineral Resources

Sand and gravel, mined in almost every county, are among Wisconsin's most valuable mineral resources. Building stone of good quality is plentiful. Other minerals include iron ore from the Superior Upland and limestone for cement, as well as lead, zinc, clay, and peat.

Conservation

Wisconsin is a leader in fish and wildlife preservation and propagation. The state has also pioneered in the reforestation of land devastated by destructive logging practices during the 19th century.

Population

According to the 1990 census, Wisconsin had 4,891,769 inhabitants, an increase of 4% over 1980. The average population density in 1990 was 29 people per sq km (75 per sq mi); most of the northern third of the state, however, had a much lower density of inhabitants. Whites made up 92.2% of Wisconsin's population and blacks 5%; additional population groups included 38,986 American Indians, 7354 persons of Chinese ancestry, 6914 persons of Asian Indian origin, 5618 persons of Korean extraction, and 3690 persons of Filipino descent. Approximately 93,200 persons were of Hispanic background. Roman Catholics (38.6%) and Lutherans (26.2%) formed the state's largest religious groups. In 1990 about 66% of all the residents of Wisconsin lived in areas defined as urban, and the rest lived in rural areas. The state's largest cities were Milwaukee; Madison, the capital; Green Bay; Racine; and Kenosha.

Education and Cultural Activity

Wisconsin has extensive systems of elementary, secondary, and higher education, a rich cultural life, and a great variety of outdoor recreational opportunities.

Education

The first public elementary school in Wisconsin was opened in 1845, and the first public high school in 1849. In 1856, Margaretta Schurz (the wife of the politician Carl Schurz) established the first kindergarten in the U.S., in Watertown. Another national first for Wisconsin was the establishment of a statewide vocational and adult educational network, in 1911. By the early 20th century the public education system of Wisconsin had been well developed. In the late 1980s, Wisconsin had a total of 2019 public elementary and secondary schools, with an annual enrollment of some 549,100 elementary pupils and 233,800 secondary students. In addition, about 119,200 students attended private elementary and secondary schools.

The first institution of higher education in the state was Milton College, in Milton, founded in 1844. In the late 1980s Wisconsin had 61 institutions of higher learning, with a combined annual enrollment of about 290,700 students. By far the largest institution was the University of Wisconsin system, with 13 major campuses, including those at Madison (1849), Milwaukee (1955), Eau Claire (1916), and Oshkosh (1871). Other notable schools included Marquette University and Mount Mary College (1913), in Milwaukee; Lawrence University (1847), in Appleton; Beloit College (1846), in Beloit; Ripon College (1851), in Ripon; and Carroll College (1846), in Waukesha.

Cultural Institutions

Milwaukee and Madison are the most important cultural centers in the state, but other cities, especially those with university ties, also have notable cultural and artistic institutions. One of the nation's outstanding natural science and history museums is the Milwaukee Public Museum. The Milwaukee Art Center, in Milwaukee, and the Elvehjem Museum of Art, in Madison, contain extensive collections of paintings and sculpture. Exhibits relating to the state's history can be found in the Wisconsin State History Museum in Madison. The Circus World Museum, in Baraboo, contains items used by the Ringling brothers, who founded a circus in Baraboo in 1884. Also of interest are the National Railroad Museum, in Green Bay; the Manitowoc Maritime Museum, in Manitowoc; the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum, in Neenah; and the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, in Sheboygan.

Wisconsin has about 380 public libraries, the largest of which is in Milwaukee. Madison has several outstanding research libraries: the Legislative Reference Library; the State Library (also known as Law Library), dating from 1836; and the library of the State Historical Society. The largest academic library is that of the University of Wisconsin in Madison.

The University of Wisconsin sponsors the Fine Arts Quartet in Milwaukee and the Pro Arte String Quartet in Madison. The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra has a national reputation. Theater and dance groups perform in many cities. The Milwaukee Performing Arts Center has several theaters, and the Pabst Theater (1897), also in Milwaukee, is known for its lavish decoration.

Historical Sites

Wisconsin has a number of historical sites that commemorate the state's Indian past and pioneer days. Aztalan State Park near Lake Mills is the site of a former Indian village, and Lizard Mound State Park near West Bend has Indian burial mounds. Old Wade House in Greenbush is a restored stagecoach inn and includes a museum of antique carriages, wagons, and sleighs. Old World Wisconsin, near Eagle, is an outdoor museum containing examples of farmhouses erected by German, Norwegian, Danish, and Finnish immigrants to Wisconsin in the 19th century. Notable buildings in the state designed by the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright include his own home, Taliesin East, near Spring Green; the First Unitarian Church, in Madison; and the Johnson Wax Company Administration Building, in Racine. The brewing of beer, important to Wisconsin's economy, may be viewed on tours of Milwaukee breweries.

Sports and Recreation

The many inland lakes and streams of Wisconsin, its shorelines along Lakes Michigan and Superior, and its extensive system of parks and forests provide a variety of recreational opportunities. Hiking, camping, swimming, boating, golfing, hunting, and fishing are among Wisconsin's foremost outdoor recreational activities. In winter, skating, skiing, snowmobiling, and tobogganing are popular sports. Numerous ethnic festivals and fairs take place here each year. The Green Bay Packers are a well-known professional football team, and the Green Bay Packer Hall of Fame contains displays relating to the team. Milwaukee is the home of major league baseball and basketball teams. The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame is in Hayward.

Communications

In the early 1990s, Wisconsin had 110 AM and 151 FM radiobroadcasting stations and 39 television stations. The first radio station in the U.S., 9XM, was established in Madison in 1916 and licensed as WHA in 1922. Wisconsin's first newspaper, the Green Bay Intelligencer, appeared in 1833. In the early 1990s Wisconsin had 36 daily newspapers with a total daily circulation of more than 1.1 million. Leading newspapers included the Milwaukee Journal and the Milwaukee Sentinel; the Wisconsin State Journal and the Capital Times, both published in Madison; and the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

Government and Politics

Wisconsin is governed under a constitution adopted in 1848, as amended. An amendment to the constitution may be proposed by the legislature or by a constitutional convention. To become effective, an amendment must be approved by a majority of persons voting on the issue in a general election.

Executive

The chief executive of Wisconsin is a governor, who is popularly elected to a 4-year term, with no limitation on the number of terms to which he or she may be reelected. In case of death, removal from office, or incapacity to serve, the governor is succeeded by the lieutenant governor, who is also elected to a 4-year term with no limitation on the number of reelections. Other major elected state officials, all serving 4-year terms, include the secretary of state, attorney general, treasurer, and superintendent of public instruction.

Legislature

The bicameral Wisconsin legislature consists of a 33-member senate and a 99-member assembly. Senators are popularly elected to 4-year terms and representatives to 2-year terms. The president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly are chosen by all members of their respective chambers.

Judiciary

The highest tribunal in Wisconsin is the supreme court, which has seven judges popularly elected to 10-year terms. The judge with seniority of service becomes chief justice. The state's intermediate appellate court, called the court of appeals, is made up of 13 judges popularly elected to 6-year terms. The major trial courts, called circuit courts, have a total of 210 judges, and below them are the county courts. Circuit and county court judges are popularly elected to 6-year terms. All judges in Wisconsin are elected on nonpartisan ballots.

Local Government

Wisconsin has 72 counties, each governed by a popularly elected board of supervisors. Other elected county officials include the sheriff, treasurer, coroner, surveyor, and district attorney. Several counties have county executives. In the early 1990s Wisconsin had 188 incorporated cities and about 400 incorporated villages. Most Wisconsin cities use the mayor-council form of government, and others use the council-manager system.

National Representation

Wisconsin sends two senators and nine representatives to the U.S. Congress and has 11 electoral votes in presidential elections.

Politics

From 1854, when one of the first meetings of the Republican party was held in Ripon, until the 1950s, the state was mostly controlled by Republicans. While serving (1901-6) as Republican governor of Wisconsin, Robert M. La Follette gained a national reputation for his reform program; he subsequently served in the U.S. Senate and was the Progressive party's presidential candidate in 1924. Another Wisconsin Republican, Joseph R. McCarthy, received national attention for his anti-Communist crusade while serving as a U.S. senator in the 1950s. In the 1990s, Wisconsin was a two-party state, with Democrats living mainly in urban centers and Republicans in rural areas. In presidential elections since 1856, Wisconsin has voted for more Republicans than Democrats; the state supported Franklin D. Roosevelt in his first three races (1932-40) but has usually favored the Republican nominees since that time. The 1992 election favored the Democrats.

Economy>

Wisconsin, “America's Dairyland,” was originally the home of several Indian tribes. Colonists brought European agricultural techniques with them, and over the years, dairying and crop farming have been vital parts of Wisconsin's economy. Rich forests generated a lumber industry. Extensive water resources spurred fishing, transportation, and tourism. Manufacturing grew rapidly in the 20th century, becoming a dominant segment of the state's economy.

Agriculture

Wisconsin is an important agricultural state, typically ranking among the top ten states in annual farm income. Nevertheless, agriculture ranks behind services and manufacturing in Wisconsin's economy. The value of the state's agricultural output exceeds $6 billion annually. Wisconsin has some 79,000 farms, which average 90 hectares (222 acres) in size.

The sale of livestock and livestock products accounts for about 70 percent of the value of Wisconsin's yearly farm production; crops supply the remainder. The annual milk production is nearly 11 million metric tons. Substantial numbers of beef cattle, hogs, turkeys, and broiler chickens are raised in the state. Wisconsin's leading crops are corn, hay, potatoes, and soybeans. Other important crops include wheat, barley, tobacco, beets, beans, peas, cucumbers, apples, cherries, and cranberries. Wisconsin also produces much honey and has a mink-farming industry. Agriculture is mainly pursued in the southern and eastern parts of the state.

Forestry

Forest resources are extensive, with the densest stands located in the north. About two-thirds of the forest is privately owned. Nearly 70% of the annual timber harvest is made up of hardwood, most of which is sawed into lumber. The hardwoods include maple, elm, basswood, cottonwood, aspen, and birch. Major softwoods are white, red, and jack pine; spruce; and hemlock. Industrially owned forest is predominantly softwood for use in the pulp and paper industry.

Fishing

Wisconsin has developed a small fishing industry, with a commercial catch valued in the early 1990s at $5 million annually. Most commercial fisheries make use of Lake Michigan; although fish in the lake were depleted by the sea lamprey, a restoration program has been mounted. Major catches are whitefish, lake trout, perch, chubs, alewives, and carp. Commercial river fishing yields mainly catfish, bullheads, and buffalo fish.

Mining

Although the aggregate value of Wisconsin's mineral output exceeds $185 million a year, mining is relatively insignificant in the state's total economy. Once considered important for lead production, the state now concentrates on nonmetallic minerals. Sand and gravel and stone dominate, and lime is of some importance. Wisconsin usually leads the nation in the production of abrasive stone. Deposits of copper, gold, and silver were being developed in the early 1990s.

Manufacturing

Wisconsin is a diversified industrial state that has developed a reputation for product leadership and quality. In the late 1980s more than 550,000 people were employed in manufacturing in Wisconsin; value added by manufacture totaled $31.7 billion, and the value of shipments exceeded $69 billion. The leading category of manufactured goods, ranked by annual payroll, was industrial machinery, especially engines, turbines, tractors and other farm machinery, and construction equipment. Paper and paper products came second, followed by fabricated metal goods. Food products ranked fourth, with milk, cheese, and other dairy products, beer, and packed meat being especially important. Other major manufactures of Wisconsin included transportation equipment, electronic equipment, primary metals, printed materials, chemicals, wood products, plastics, and precision instruments. The Milwaukee area accounts for a major share of Wisconsin's manufacturing income. Other important industrial centers are Racine, Kenosha, Beloit, Madison, La Crosse, Oshkosh, Sheboygan, Green Bay, Wausau, Eau Claire, and Superior.

Tourism

Spending by travelers in Wisconsin exceeds $5.8 billion annually and accounts for more than 177,000 jobs. Tourism in the state is a year-round business, focused especially on winter sports. In other seasons, fishing, hunting, hiking, camping, swimming, and boating are emphasized. The Dells of the Wisconsin River are a major tourist attraction, offering a variety of family activities. More than 50 state parks (among the most popular are Devil's Lake and Interstate), Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, and the state's many lakes and rivers also attract tourists with a variety of recreational and educational opportunities.

Transportation

Wisconsin has an excellent transportation system. The state is served by about 176,825 km (about 109,875 mi) of roads, including 930 km (578 mi) of interstate highways. An extensive network of truck, bus, and motor carriers serves the state. In addition, an excellent rail system operates in Wisconsin, with some 3305 km (some 2055 mi) of Class I track in service. Railroad ferries cross Lake Michigan. With frontage on two of the Great Lakes, which are part of the Saint Lawrence Seaway System, Wisconsin makes extensive use of water transportation. The Superior, Wisconsin-Duluth, Minnesota, harbor is the largest port. Other major Wisconsin ports include Green Bay and Milwaukee. Barges carry goods on the Mississippi. Wisconsin has 401 airports and 64 heliports. The busiest air terminal is Mitchell International Airport, serving Milwaukee.

Energy

In the early 1990s electricity generating plants in Wisconsin had an installed capacity of about 10.6 million kw; their annual output was 45.6 billion kwh. Conventional plants burning fossil fuels accounted for more than 70% of the electric output; almost 25% was generated in nuclear facilities, and 4% in hydroelectric installations.

History

From at least 7000 bc until ad 1600 the region that is now Wisconsin was inhabited by a succession of Mississippi Valley Indian cultures. Most of them lived by hunting and fishing, supplemented by agriculture. Among the distinctive remnants from these times are thousands of effigy burial mounds in the shapes of mammals, birds, and reptiles. Artifacts excavated from these mounds testify to an extensive trade network that reached as far as the Allegheny Mountains in the east and the Rocky Mountains in the west.

In the 17th century, tribal warfare in the east led to the migration of many Indian groups to Wisconsin. Among these were the Sac, or Sauk, the Fox, and the Potawatomi. The already established Menominee and Winnebago were probably descended from earlier local cultures.

The first Europeans to reach Wisconsin were probably the Frenchmen Étienne Brûlé, who explored the shores of Lake Superior sometime between 1621 and 1623, and Jean Nicolet (1598-1642), who is believed to have reached Green Bay in 1634. They were followed by other explorers and by missionaries. In 1673 Louis Jolliet and Father Jacques Marquette traveled the Fox-Wisconsin waterways connecting the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River. The fur trade in Wisconsin was dominated by the French until 1763, then briefly by the British, and in the early 19th century by Americans. Wisconsin's Indians became increasingly dependent on the trade and were inevitably drawn into the imperial wars of the late 1700s, fighting in the French and Indian War (1754-63) and on the side of the British during the American Revolution. By the time of the United States occupation of Wisconsin, the indigenous Indian cultures were on the verge of extinction.

Settlement and Economic Development

Wisconsin became part of the United States in 1783 at the end of the American Revolution, but U.S. control was not effectively established until the building of forts at Green Bay and Prairie du Chien in 1816. In the 1820s miners from Kentucky, Missouri, and other regions to the south were attracted to the rich lead deposits in southwestern Wisconsin, and there they established the area's first permanent white settlements. The Black Hawk War of 1832 was the last organized Indian resistance to American occupation, and in a series of treaties between 1829 and 1848 the U.S. acquired title to all the land in Wisconsin. As this land was opened to public sale in the 1830s, a second and larger wave of whites settled the lakeshore, many of them Yankee farmers and townsite promoters from New England and upstate New York. When Wisconsin was organized as a territory in 1836, its population was 11,700; by 1850 it had grown to 305,400. Southerners and Yankees contested for control of the territorial government. In 1848, however, they agreed to a state constitution that proved liberal and flexible enough in its provisions to have remained in effect ever since.

In the years between 1848 and 1915, immigration to the state from Europe and Canada wrought extensive changes in Wisconsin. Germans, Norwegians, and Poles were the most numerous of the new settlers. In 1870 the population exceeded 1 million for the first time. Many of the newcomers possessed particular skills and training that contributed to the growth of dairying, brewing, tanning, ironworking, and the manufacture of machinery. Large numbers of them were Roman Catholics and Lutherans, which diversified the state's population. Some immigrants and their children chose to integrate as rapidly as possible into the mainstream of Wisconsin society, whereas others have maintained their distinctive identity until the present day.

The basic structure of the state's economy took shape in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Beginning in the 1880s, farmers of wheat and other cash grains converted to dairying, which provided a more stable base for the state's agricultural economy. Small family-owned and family-operated dairy farms also provided the basis for a strong rural society. During the same period heavy industry and manufacturing expanded rapidly in Milwaukee and other cities along the southern lakeshore. When lumbering declined in the late 19th century, diversified paper manufacturing took its place along the Wisconsin and Fox rivers.

Wisconsin's Political Tradition

At the turn of the century, Wisconsin politics began to respond to these social and economic developments. The Republican party had reigned in Wisconsin since the American Civil War, but in the 1890s a growing discontent with conservative and sometimes corrupt Republican government—particularly in the cities and in distressed agricultural counties—led to the rise of a progressive faction within the party. This faction, which called for extensive reform of the political system and public regulation of the economy, came to power with the election of Robert M. La Follette as governor in 1900. During his three administrations and those of his progressive successors, Wisconsin became a laboratory for political and economic experimentation. Drawing on expertise from the University of Wisconsin, in a partnership between state government and the university that was known as the Wisconsin Idea, the progressive Republicans instituted direct primary elections, railroad rate regulation, civil service and conservation programs, workers' compensation, and many other pioneering reform measures.

Immigration declined as a source of new population after World War I, but by 1940 the total population of Wisconsin had grown to more than 3 million. In 1930 the urban population exceeded the rural population for the first time. The Great Depression brought a resurgence of the state's reform tradition. In 1934 Robert La Follette, Jr. (1895-1953), who had succeeded his father in the U.S. Senate, and his brother Philip La Follette (1897-1965), who served three terms as governor, formed an independent Progressive party. Combating the depression at the state level, the Progressives instituted a little New Deal in Wisconsin, which gave stronger bargaining power to labor unions, provided relief from farm indebtedness, undertook public works projects, and passed the first unemployment compensation law in the nation.

In 1946 the Progressives disbanded as an independent party and attempted unsuccessfully to regain control of the Republican party. In the course of this effort, Senator La Follette was defeated by Joseph McCarthy, who subsequently became one of the most controversial figures in Wisconsin and U.S. politics. Younger progressives thereafter gravitated to the Democratic party. In company with organized labor, they succeeded by the late 1950s in building the party to a position of equality with the Republicans, and in so doing they helped establish a strong and permanent two-party system in the state for the first time since the turn of the century. As they entered the 1990s, both parties had incorporated major elements of the independence and individualism that were the most distinctive hallmarks of Wisconsin's political tradition.

Copyright (c) 1993 Funk & Wagnall's Corporation