The land on which we live looked much different 250 years ago when the first European settlers began setting foot in this area.

The people who lived here before those settlers arrived were Dakota Sioux American Indians. Many different American Indian tribes migrated or were forced through this area. It’s hard to put some sort of long-standing stamp on which native group lived in this area the longest. The Fox, Sac and Kickapoo American Indians, who were being pressured out of their areas, came after the Dakota Sioux. The Ho-Chunk are understood to be the most recent and American Indians to have been actively living in this area of Wisconsin before it was considered completely settled by Europeans. However, these statements, coming from sources like the History of Green County Wisconsin and Wisconsin State of the Tribes reports do not tell the whole story.

Wikipedia is not the most accurate source for everything, however, the Wikipedia page on the history of the land that has become the state of Wisconsin is concise and broad, especially moving forward after the last ice age. Still, what we know about the history of American Indian culture and the movement of people prior to the arrival and expansion of European settlers is incomplete.

What the land itself looked like was much like an unwooded prairie. Trees were not natural in great abundance to the landscape, unless located along a natural waterway. Rivers allowed seeds to be distributed, embedded in fertile soil and grow naturally. Otherwise the land was covered by prairie grasses and plants. One would have thought it was quite barren in appearance in comparison to what we see today, even considering modern agriculture.

Native prairie allowed for different types of animal life than we see today.

While in the northern forests there were moose, elk, deer, wolves, mountain lions — predators and prey large and small — the prairie lands were not particularly good habitat for animals such as white-tailed deer. The population of deer in Wisconsin today is far more abundant than before European settlers came. That’s because modern farming has created food, water and shelter deer need. Also, their natural predators have been eradicated from the area. The only things keeping the deer population in check are hunting and disease. Prior to the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease, only hunters stood between a healthy deer population and an unhealthy overpopulation of deer.

Further north in Wisconsin, there were great forests. As European settlers moved from east to west, the majority of these forests were harvested and timber was sent east for construction. The lives of lumberjacks were constantly threatened in unsafe work conditions. Yet it was the lumberjacks, and those who built the railroads, who made Wisconsin prepared for widespread settlement. In 1829, the state’s population was less than 20,000 with one-quarter of those being miners. By 1850, the state’s population was more than 300,000. The greatest European group of settlers were “Yankee” northeasterners of British origin. This was followed by settlers from Germany, Britain, the Scandinavian countries, Swiss and Dutch. As different waves of immigrants came to the United States, the population of Wisconsin’s immigrants continued to change.

The land quickly went from native prairie and forests, to agricultural use wherever the soil supported it. Land in northern Wisconsin largely was unsuitable for farming.

Although natural resources were being used, it wasn’t until the 1950s and 60s, well after Wisconsin had been settled, that the most substantial value of northern Wisconsin was discovered as a haven for tourism-related outdoor activities and fishing. The paper industry, of course, has been valuable to Wisconsin. Along with manufacturing, it helps anchor the economy in the northern part of the state.

Green County is much like its neighbors to the west and north. It is an agricultural region with significant manufacturing. It has a unique grouping of cheese manufacturers due to the high-quality milk and interest in cheese-making by its original settlers. It has a greater “Driftless” geography than areas further east.

— Matt Johnson is publisher of the Monroe Times. His column is published Wednesdays.