Wisconsin Forums

[AJE]

Ethnicity in Wisconsin

Today’s Wisconsinites means to us that we're 100% born and raised here, but what we really don’t take the time to consider is where did our families heritage originate from? Ethnicity is a critical element in Wisconsin's social fabric; in the 19th Century more likely than not, ethnicity determined one's religion, politics, and even such mundane aspects of life as dress or diet. Wisconsin became a favored location for hundreds of thousands of immigrants because it offered abundant, inexpensive land, jobs, and a free political climate. For these immigrants, ethnicity was a key factor in choosing a place to live, as settlers of different ethnicities tended to cluster together, often in communities named for locations in the old country. These ethnic enclaves offered the comfort of familiar languages and folk customs in Wisconsin definitely deserves the “Melting Pot” definition we are a patchwork quilt of ethnically homogenous urban and rural villages populated by different ethnic and racial groups

Most people in Wisconsin now have a mixed ethnic heritage, and some customs, once the sole factor of a ethnic group, have become diffused throughout Wiscosin: anyone today may not recognize a certain ethic group but we are familiar with certain customs such as Polish-style polka, wild rice, a lutefisk dinner, or a Cinco-de- Mayo celebration to name a few. Ethnic revivals have spurred new interest in ethnic roots, and events such as Milwaukee's Germanfest, Madison's Greekfest, Two River’s Ethnic Festival or Ojibwa powwows, attract visitors of all backgrounds.

In short, the culture and folklore of any of Wisconsin's ethnic groups does not belong solely to the descendants of that group but rather to all people of Wisconsin who can appreciate and learn from the diverse cultures of the state. Ethnicity once served to separate different peoples, but now ethnicity can provide opportunities of understanding those different from ourselves.

Since taking many college courses on this subject I'm very interested in knowing just how much we do know about our heritage.


- Native Americans in Wisconsin six tribes
Menominee
Oneida,
Potawatomi,
Ojibwe
Stockbridge and Munsee
Ho-Chunk

- British Immigrants to Wisconsin
English:
south-central Wisconsin: Cities such as Exeter, Leeds, Albion, Manchester, and Sussex, among others.
Scottish: locations such as Caledonia, Argyle, and Scots Junction.
French Canadians: Northern Wisconsin
Cornwall and Welsh: southwestern Lead Region of Dodge, Columbia, Iowa, and La Crosse Counties
Mineral Point and Dodgeville
Irish: southwest and through Milwaukee

- Germans in Wisconsin-
Milwaukee, Dane, Brown, and Taylor Counties

-Scandinavians in Wisconsin·
Norwegians Rock Prairie and Jefferson Prairie, in Rock County
Swedish: St. Croix River, particularly in Burnett and Polk Counties
Danish: Waupaca and Polk Counties
Iceland: Washinton Island, Door County
Finns: Douglas, Bayfield, Iron, Ashland, and Price Counties

- Immigrants from Western Europe
Netherlands: Sheboygan and Fond du Lac Counties
Belgians: Brown, Door, and Kewaunee Counties
Luxembourg: Lakeshore Counties of eastern Wisconsin
Switzerland: Green County

- Immigrants from Eastern Europe
Czechs, or Bohemians: Kewaunee, Manitowoc Counties, Richland and La Crosse Counties
Slovaks: Milwaukee, Kenosha, and Racine
Russians: including groups from Lithuanians, Latvians, Ukrainians, Poles, Estonians, Finns, Armenians, and Rumanians in Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, and Sheboygan Counties

- Immigrants from Southern Europe
Italians: Milwaukee, Kenosha, Racine, Waukesha, Rock, and Dane Counties
Greeks: Fond du Lac, Janesville, Superior, and Madison
Slavic immigrants: Austro-Hungarian Empire--Serbs, Croats, Slovenes in southeast

- Immigrants from Latin America: Hispanics Mexicans
Puerto Ricans
Cuban

- African-Americans

- Immigrants from Asia