Editing Wisconsin (section)

===U.S. territory===
{{Main|American Revolutionary War|Treaty of Paris (1783)|Northwest Ordinance|Northwest Territory|Indiana Territory|Illinois Territory|Michigan Territory|Organic act#List of organic acts|Wisconsin Territory}}
[[File:Vertefeuille.JPG|thumb|The [[Francois Vertefeuille House]] in [[Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin|Prairie du Chien]] was built in the 1810s by fur traders.]]

Wisconsin became a territorial possession of the United States in 1783 after the [[American Revolutionary War]]. In 1787, it became part of the [[Northwest Territory]]. As territorial boundaries subsequently developed, it was then part of [[Indiana Territory]] from 1800 to 1809, [[Illinois Territory]] from 1809 to 1818, and [[Michigan Territory]] from 1818 to 1836. However, the British remained in control until after the [[War of 1812]], the outcome of which finally established an American presence in the area.<ref>{{cite book|title=Wisconsin: A History|last=Nesbit|first=Robert|year=1973|publisher=University of Wisconsin Press|location=Madison, WI|isbn=978-0-299-06370-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/wisconsinhistory0000nesb/page/62 62–64]|url=https://archive.org/details/wisconsinhistory0000nesb/page/62}}</ref> Under American control, the economy of the territory shifted from fur trading to lead mining. The prospect of easy mineral wealth drew immigrants from throughout the U.S. and Europe to the lead deposits at [[Mineral Point, Wisconsin|Mineral Point]], [[Dodgeville, Wisconsin|Dodgeville]], and nearby areas. Some miners found shelter in the holes they had dug, and earned the nickname "badgers", leading to Wisconsin's identity as the "Badger State".<ref>{{cite web|title=Badger Nickname|url=http://www.uwbadgers.com/trads/nickname.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110323002815/http://www.uwbadgers.com/trads/nickname.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 23, 2011|publisher=University of Wisconsin|access-date=March 14, 2010}}</ref> The sudden influx of white miners prompted tension with the local Native American population. The [[Winnebago War]] of 1827 and the [[Black Hawk War]] of 1832 culminated in the forced [[Indian removal|removal of Native Americans]] from most parts of the state.<ref>{{cite book|last=Nesbit|year=1973|isbn=978-0-299-06370-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/wisconsinhistory0000nesb/page/95 95–97]|title=Wisconsin: a history|publisher=University of Wisconsin Press |url=https://archive.org/details/wisconsinhistory0000nesb/page/95}}</ref>

Following these conflicts, [[Wisconsin Territory]] was created by an act of the [[United States Congress]] on April 20, 1836. By fall of that year, the best prairie groves of the counties surrounding what is now Milwaukee were occupied by farmers from the [[New England]] states.<ref>Wisconsin, a Guide to the Badger State page 197</ref>