WI · Badger State · Midwest · admitted 1848 (#30)
Wisconsin map
Wisconsin highlighted on the US map, between Lake Michigan and the Mississippi River. Madison, the capital, sits on an isthmus between two lakes; Milwaukee, the largest city, is on the Lake Michigan shore.
- Capital
- Madison
- Largest city
- Milwaukee
- Population (2020)
- 5,893,718
- Area
- 65,496 sq mi
- Counties
- 72
- Time zone
- Central
- Region
- Midwest · East North Central
- Statehood
- May 29, 1848
Where Wisconsin is
Wisconsin is the upper Midwestern state between two Great Lakes and the Mississippi. It measures about 310 miles north to south and about 260 miles east to west. Clockwise from the north: Lake Superior, Michigan's Upper Peninsula along the Montreal and Menominee rivers to the northeast, Lake Michigan and Green Bay to the east, Illinois along a surveyed line at 42°30'N to the south, Iowa across the Mississippi to the southwest, and Minnesota across the Mississippi and St. Croix rivers to the west. It is the 23rd-largest state by area and 20th by population.
Major cities
| City | Region of state | Population (2020) |
|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee | Southeast, on Lake Michigan | 577,222 |
| Madison (capital) | South-central, between Lakes Mendota and Monona | 269,840 |
| Green Bay | Northeast, at the head of Green Bay | 107,395 |
| Kenosha | Southeast, on Lake Michigan near Illinois | 99,986 |
| Racine | Southeast, on Lake Michigan | 77,816 |
| Appleton | Fox Valley, northeast | 75,644 |
The southeastern corner from Milwaukee south to Kenosha, together with Madison and the Fox Valley from Green Bay to Oshkosh, holds most of the state's people. The north is forested and thinly settled.
Geography
- Highest point — Timms Hill, 1,951 ft, in Price County in the north-central part of the state; the lowest point is Lake Michigan's surface at about 579 ft.
- Great Lakes — about 820 miles of shoreline on Lake Michigan (including Door County peninsula and Green Bay) and Lake Superior (the Apostle Islands). See the Great Lakes map.
- Mississippi River — the western border for about 200 miles, with La Crosse and Prairie du Chien on the bluffs. See the Mississippi River map.
- Wisconsin River — the longest river in the state at about 430 miles, flowing south from the northern lakes through the Wisconsin Dells to the Mississippi below Prairie du Chien. The Fox, Chippewa, Black and St. Croix are the other principal rivers.
- Lakes — about 15,000 inland lakes; Lake Winnebago, about 137,000 acres, is the largest entirely within the state. See the lakes map.
- Driftless Area — the rugged, unglaciated southwest of deep valleys and coulees, in contrast with the flat glaciated plains elsewhere.
Borders
Water forms most of Wisconsin's perimeter: the Mississippi with Iowa and most of Minnesota, the St. Croix with northern Minnesota, the two Great Lakes, and the Menominee, Brule and Montreal rivers with Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The only long surveyed line is the Illinois border at 42°30'N, which the 1818 Illinois enabling act moved north from the southern tip of Lake Michigan so that Illinois would have a lake shore, taking Chicago's site with it. The Minnesota line runs from the St. Croix headwaters straight to Lake Superior. In the lakes the boundaries with Michigan run through mid-lake.
Regions of Wisconsin
Southeastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Waukesha), South-Central (Madison), the Fox Valley and Northeast (Green Bay, Appleton, Oshkosh, Door County), Central Wisconsin (Wausau, Stevens Point), the Northwoods (Rhinelander, Minocqua, the Lake Superior shore), Western Wisconsin (Eau Claire, La Crosse) and the Driftless Area of the southwest.
Related maps
- Wisconsin county map — all 72 counties with seats.
- Blank Wisconsin map — outline for printing.
- Printable Wisconsin map.
- Madison — the capital, chosen in 1836 before the town existed.
- Milwaukee — the largest city.
- Neighbors: Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota.
- Midwest, East North Central division, Great Lakes, Central Time Zone.
- Geography: Great Lakes, Mississippi River, lakes.