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Wait … you mean to tell me there isn’t an overwhelming population of badger animals in the state of Wisconsin?
That’s right. The nickname actually has nothing to do with the amount of animals living in the Badger State. In fact, there are no more badgers in Wisconsin than any surrounding state!
The name has its roots in the mining days of the early 1800s. In search of lead and iron ore in the Midwest, many workers dug caves into the mines to serve as temporary homes. The caves resembled the burrowing of badgers, and locals nicknamed the miners “Badger-boys.”
– Margot Calmar, The 100 Companies