History

The first free public school in the Badger State opened in 1845, thanks to the ingenuity of cheesehead Michael Frank.

The Badger State’s inaugural train trundled west on tracks between Milwaukee and Waukesha in 1847 – giving rise to reliable rail service across a scant 18 miles.

In 1857, an American named Joseph Gayetty invented the first purpose-made toilet paper, but most Americans continued to use pages from the Sears Catalog or Farmer’s Almanac (the latter was even printed with a hole for hanging in an outhouse).

Wisconsin’s favorite foam triangle and corresponding nickname didn’t originate here, or even in America.

In 1848, the first paper mill opened on the Lower Fox River in Appleton, launching the industry that put Wisconsin on the map. In 12 years, the state became the Midwest’s top paper producer.

The Pfister Hotel is “a place where things happen,” says chief concierge Peter Mortensen. In his 30 years at the landmark hotel, he’s seen it all — Mortensen likens choosing a standout memory to deciding on a favorite child.

Even before Jean Nicolet, the first European to explore the Great Lakes while seeking passage to the Orient, impressed Green Bay’s native Ho-Chunk with his Chinese silk robes and a pistol in each hand in 1634, the people of this land have known it’s more than fly-over (or paddle-through) country. It’s a place of notable, historical “firsts,” including the following six: