When Badgers Came to Wisconsin

by Oliver Zink, age 14
Wisconsin is known for its farming industry, but its roots are in mining. In the early 19th century, there was a lead-mining boom in the Midwest. This brought miners from various backgrounds to Wisconsin to seek their fortunes. Many dug shallow holes in steep hills for shelter, earning them the nickname Badger, which eventually became the state's mascot.
The existence of lead in the Wisconsin area was known by Native Americans for hundreds of years. When Europeans first explored the North American frontier, they traded for lead and eventually bought the locations of the mines. Later, this became a pattern. During Westward Expansion, wherever the U.S. military needed materials, they seized the local mines.
The lead boom started in the 1820s. Miners came from Missouri, which experienced a similar lead boom years earlier. For most men during the lead-boom era, mining was more promising than either farming or the fur trade. With the hope of quick and easy money, 4,000 miners moved to northern Illinois and southwest Wisconsin. As mining communities started to pop up and grow, shops and other industries followed. [Read More]