Page "History of Wisconsin" Paragraph 10

In parts of northern Wisconsin, farmers cultivated cranberries and in a few counties in south central Wisconsin, farmers had success growing tobacco, but the most popular replacement for wheat was dairy farming.

As wheat fell out of favor, many Wisconsin farmers started raising dairy cattle and growing feed crops, which were better suited to Wisconsin's climate and soil.

One reason for the popularity of dairy farming was that many of Wisconsin ’ s farmers had come to the state from New York, the leading producer of dairy products at the time.

In addition, many immigrants from Europe brought an extensive knowledge of cheese making.

Dairying was also promoted by the University of Wisconsin – Madison's school of agriculture, which offered education to dairy farmers and researched ways to produce better dairy products.

The first test of butterfat content in milk was developed at the University, which allowed for consistency in the quality of butter and cheese.

By 1899, over ninety percent of Wisconsin farms raised dairy cows and by 1915, Wisconsin had become the leading producer of dairy products in the United States, a position it held until the 1990s.

Wisconsin continues to promote itself as " America's Dairyland ", Wisconsinites are referred to as cheeseheads in some parts of the country, including Wisconsin, and foam cheesehead hats are associated with Wisconsin and its NFL team, the Green Bay Packers.