A Short History of Wisconsin

Swift, authoritative, and compulsively readable, A Short History of Wisconsin commences with the glaciers that hewed the region's breathtaking terrain, the Native American communities that first called it home, and French explorers and traders who mapped what was once called Mescousing. Janik moves through the Civil War and two world wars; covers advances in the rights of women, workers, African Americans, and Native Americans; and examines more recent shifts involving the environmental movement and the conservative revolution of the late twentieth century. Wisconsin has hosted industries from fur-trapping to mining to dairying, and its political landscape sprouted figures both renowned and reviled, from Fighting Bob La Follette to Joseph McCarthy.

But only part of the story lies in sweeping societal change: Janik finds the story of a state not only in the broad strokes of immigration and politics, but in the daily lives shaped by work, leisure, sports, and culture. A Short History of Wisconsin offers a fresh understanding of how Wisconsin came into being and how Wisconsinites past and present share a deep connection to the land itself.

"A Short History of Wisconsin is thorough and completely self-contained. It tells its story from beginning to end in a comprehensive yet breezy manner. Equally important, however, the book is an invitation to the reader to delve deeper into Wisconsin history."

—ForeWord Reviews

“This exemplary book would make any Wisconsinite proud, and enlighten others as to why our state is a unique and welcoming place to live and experience.”

—Jessica Doyle, former First Lady of Wisconsin

"A Short History of Wisconsin is a lively introduction to the people and issues of a state whose past and present transcend its cheesehead stereotype."

"Janik is obviously a storyteller, and this is what makes her book easy to read and understand. If you are looking for a book that puts historical facts into a list, this is not it. Janik organizes the facts so they tell a story by which readers are moved. Readers feel the frustration as disagreements about the Wisconsin constitution prevent it from becoming a state, pride as Wisconsin abolitionists break a runaway slave out of jail, and enthusiasm as the Packers are formed."

—Mary Parsons, Wisconsin People & Ideas

“From the Woodland mound builders to W-2, Erika Janik packs two thousand years of history into two hundred enjoyable pages. This is required reading for any Wisconsinite, old or new.”

—William P. Jones, Department of History, University of Wisconsin–Madison