Wisconsin

A Geography

Ingolf Vogeler

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781000011289
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Sociology
• Index: Social Sciences

Originally published in 1980, Wisconsin: A Geography is a thematic study of the physical, cultural, and economic geography of the state. It is illustrated with Black and White photos, maps, architectural drawings, and economic charts. The book is a valuable survey of the state's regions.

CHAPTER 1 IMAGES OF WISCONSIN

DOI: 10.4324/9780429267772-2

Wisconsin! What an intriguing state: "Lakes," "beer," and "cows" are the three words that capture the popular images of the state for residents and visitors alike. These images are fostered by the Wisconsin Division of Tourism's recreational advertisements, by private commercial promotional literature available at interstate rest stops and restaurants, and by the actual experiences of visitors while traveling through the state. A less well known but equally distinctive image of Wisconsin is as the birthplace and home of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

WATER RECREATION

Wisconsin is Chicago's playground. In every county of the state residents of metropolitan Chicago are the single largest group of travelers. In fact, 56 percent of all vacationers in the state come from Illinois, and of these, 80 percent are from the Chicago metropolitan area (Figure 1.1). For Illinois tourists, "going north" means Wisconsin, although Wisconsinites go north to Canada! "Going north" means going fishing and camping, motor boating, sailing, and sightseeing and staying at one's cottage. Visitors are lured north, in the words of the Wisconsin Division of Tourism, to "Escape to Wisconsin."

Canoe down lazy winding rivers or test your skills on white water. Row your family across a moon-streaked pond, making silent ripples. Watch your bobber sink, or see it dance with the nibble of a crappie, or challenge a musky to a one-on-one battle. The variety of your catch will amaze you. Large and smallmouth bass, northern pike, brown, rainbow and brook trout, walleyes and their equally tasty cousins, the perch. Cooked over a crackling campfire, the flavor becomes a memory to lure you back season after season. (Wisconsin Division of Tourism 1982, p. 3)

The large number of rivers and lakes indeed allows residents and visitors to escape to a water wonderland. The state has 14,949 lakes, or nearly 1 million acres (404,700 ha) of water. Wisconsin also has 2,444 cold-water trout streams and another 5,002 warm-water streams. The total mileage of these streams is greater than the distance between Milwaukee and Perth, Australia—fishing in Wisconsin can get you almost halfway around the world without leaving the state! In addition, Wisconsin has 860 mi (1,384 km) of shoreline, including islands, along Lake Superior and Lake Michigan.

Wisconsin has three large distinctive lake districts. About 3,000 lakes are concentrated at the headwaters of the Wisconsin River near Rhinelander. This is a prime resort country, where Milwaukee and Chicago residents are frequent visitors. The second lake district, with about 2,000 lakes, lies between the St. Croix and Chippewa rivers in the area around Hayward. This area has many cottages owned by residents of Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Iowa. The concentration of travelers in these two northern districts results from fishing and camping sites in national forests, state parks and forests, and county parks and forests. Indeed, tourist advertisements promote the idea that Wisconsin is one big fishing hole (Figure 1.2). A third, smaller lake district lies in the southeastern corner of the state. Numerous summer camps, expensive resorts, summer homes, and two state parks are located around or near such lakes as Lake Geneva, Lake Koshkonong, Pewaukee Lake, and Lake Mendota. Chicago visitors predominate here. In addition to these lake districts, two other popular water resort areas are Wisconsin Dells and Door County.

FIGURE 1.1 Chicago recreational travelers per average summer day. (Based on data from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation files, Madison)

Fishing or water-related festivals are held throughout the state. Fond du Lac on Lake Winnebago holds the national walleye fishing championships in June, including the "world's largest fish fry." Lake Geneva holds the Venetian Festival, including a parade of boats, in August to celebrate the aquatic recreation associated with the Lake Geneva region. Boulder Junction honors the world's most ferocious fish at the city's August

Clip this and put it in your tackle box

FIGURE 1.2 Government fishing advertisement. The Wisconsin Division of Tourism lures anglers from other states by means of these magazine ads. (Courtesy of Wisconsin Division of Tourism)

FIGURE 1.3 National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, Hayward. Giant models of several common fish, including a 200-ft (61-m) long muskellunge with open jaws, 60 ft (18 m) above the ground, constitute an angler's Disneyland. (Ingolf Vogeler)

Musky Jamboree, but Hayward is the center for musky "fever." In June the Musky Festival there includes a fishing contest, carnival, and a parade. Hayward is also the site of the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, where the official world records on freshwater fish are kept and where unsuccessful anglers can see the really big ones that got away (Figure 1.3).

Wisconsin issues the third-largest number of resident fishing licenses in the United States. Every third adult is a licensed angler! The state ranks first in the nation for nonresident fishing licenses, about 400,000 being sold each year. The places where nonresident fishing licenses are sold and usually used and where Chicago recreational travelers stay are more or less the same, but fishing is also concentrated in "remote" counties: Polk in the west and Waupaca in the center. The largest number of nonresident fishing licenses is sold in the Lake Geneva region, which is closest to the Illinois tourist market.

Door County

Of all the recreational areas in the state, the Door Peninsula and Wisconsin Dells are the most distinctive, and they are very different from each other. Door County appeals to the well-to-do who enjoy—and can afford—sailing, expensive shops and restaurants, rural vegetable and fruit stands, and summer theater. Despite four state parks, many private campgrounds, lodges, motels, and cabins, Door County is rural. For urbanites from Milwaukee, Chicago, and Minneapolis, the Door countryside is appealing for four major reasons. The foremost appeal is probably the seascape (Figure 1.4). The county has sandy beaches, limestone cliffs, rocky and stony shorelines, many islands, numerous bays with villages and hamlets, and more lighthouses per mile of coast than any other county in the United States. Commercial fishing boats and sailboat docks further add to the attractiveness and charm of the county. Almost all harbors and settlements are on the steeper-sloped Green Bay side of the county; the Lake Michigan side is low-lying with many fewer coastline settlements.

FIGURE 1.4 A Door Peninsula scene. Water recreation, small villages, and bold physical landscapes make the coastal areas of Door County very appealing to urbanites.

A second reason for Door County's appeal is the architecture of the county, which resembles that of New England. Wisconsin writer Mike Link said, "Vermont reminded me of a Door County in the East." White clapboard houses and commercial buildings predominate, but in the countryside log and stovewood buildings are common. Various log notches—dovetail, square, saddle, and V—can be found on barns. Door County has the largest concentration of stovewood buildings in the state. Shingled houses and barns and field-stone walls around cropland further add to the distinctive flavor of the Door Peninsula.

The mark left by many European immigrants who settled in Door County also adds to the area's appeal. Washington Island has the largest community of Icelandic people in the United States. The Belgian communities in southern Door are characterized by their brick houses and roadside shrines. The log buildings and the grasscovered roof of Al Johnson's Swedish Restaurant in Sister Bay remind people of yet another ethnic group. Although fish boils are not distinctive to any ethnic group, they have become a tradition in the county and give tourists yet another reason for coming to the peninsula. Cherry orchards, which once covered much of the county, are the fourth major reason for visiting the Door Peninsula. Sufficient numbers of them still remain for visitors to enjoy the spring cherry-blossom season.

Wisconsin Dells

Although much less spectacular than Door County, the physical features of the Wisconsin Dells initially also attracted tourists. But today mo...