Western Upland

The Western Upland is a geographical region covering much of the western half of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It stretches from southern Polk County, Wisconsin in the north to the state border with Illinois in the south, and from Rock County in the east to the Mississippi River in the west.^{[citation needed]}

Geography

Wisconsin's Western Upland is a rugged, hilly region deeply dissected by rivers and streams. The area is characterized by rocky outcroppings and numerous small caves, as well as sharp and frequent changes in altitude. The elevation in the region ranges from about 600 feet (180 m) above sea level in the Mississippi River Valley to more than 1,700 feet (520 m) above sea level at Blue Mound State Park, in Iowa County. The Mississippi, Wisconsin, Kickapoo, Black, and Chippewa rivers all carve deep gorges through the upland. Even most small creeks and streams have coulees penetrating some 200 to 300 feet (61 to 91 m) deeper than the surrounding land. Meanwhile, highlands like Military Ridge, the Baraboo Range, and a host of unnamed ridges have elevations that are in excess of 1,200 feet (370 m) above sea level. Before the last ice age, most of the land in the northern United States was similar to the land of today’s Western Upland, with rugged ridges and valleys. But as glaciers came to cover the continent, they toppled the ridges and filled in the valleys, creating smooth plains. The Western Upland of Wisconsin is part of the Driftless Area, a region that has avoided being covered by glaciers for the past several million years. This explains why the region has retained its rugged landscape.^{[citation needed]}

Farmland is prevalent in the Western Upland anywhere where the slope of the land is gradual enough to permit it, generally on the ridge tops and the valley bottoms. Both fields and pastureland are common in the region. The hillsides and narrow ravines that are unsuitable for agriculture are covered in forests. Oak, hickory, maple, and birch trees dominate the woodlands of the Western Upland. Several small cities are scattered along the ridges and valleys. With a population of 59,498, the largest city in the Western Upland is Janesville in the extreme southeast corner of the region. La Crosse, with a population of 51,818, occupies a more central position along the Mississippi River. Other principal cities include Beloit, Monroe, Platteville, Dodgeville, Richland Center, Prairie du Chien, and Sparta.^{[citation needed]}

Counties in the Western Upland

Part or all of the land in the following counties is included in the Western Upland of Wisconsin:^{[citation needed]}

References

^ WiscOnline: The Geographical Provinces of Wisconsin

Bibliography

External links

43°45′N 90°40′W / 43.750°N 90.667°W / 43.750; -90.667

[1] WiscOnline: The Geographical Provinces of Wisconsin

[1]

v t e State of Wisconsin
Madison (capital)
Topics	Outline Agriculture Dairy industry Climate change Geography Islands Lakes Governors Delegations History People Sports Symbols Tourist attractions
Society	Abortion Administrative divisions Cannabis Crime Culture Demographics Economy Education Gun laws LGBT rights Politics
Regions	Apostle Islands Central Plain Chippewa Valley Door Peninsula Driftless Area Eastern Ridges and Lowlands Fox River Valley Great River Road Lake Superior Lowland Northern Highland Western Upland
Major metropolitan areas (pop. over 500,000)	Chicago metropolitan area Madison metropolitan area Milwaukee metropolitan area Twin Cities metropolitan area
Largest cities (pop. over 50,000)	Appleton Eau Claire Green Bay Janesville Kenosha La Crosse Madison Milwaukee Oshkosh Racine Waukesha West Allis
Smaller cities (pop. 15,000 to 50,000)	Beaver Dam Beloit Brookfield Cudahy De Pere Fitchburg Fond du Lac Franklin Greenfield Hartford Hudson Kaukauna Manitowoc Marshfield Menasha Menomonie Mequon Middleton Muskego Neenah New Berlin Oak Creek Oconomowoc Onalaska River Falls Sheboygan South Milwaukee Stevens Point Sun Prairie Superior Watertown Wausau Wauwatosa West Bend Wisconsin Rapids
Largest villages (pop. over 15,000)	Ashwaubenon Bellevue Caledonia Fox Crossing Germantown Howard Menomonee Falls Mount Pleasant Pleasant Prairie
Counties	Adams Ashland Barron Bayfield Brown Buffalo Burnett Calumet Chippewa Clark Columbia Crawford Dane Dodge Door Douglas Dunn Eau Claire Florence Fond du Lac Forest Grant Green Green Lake Iowa Iron Jackson Jefferson Juneau Kenosha Kewaunee La Crosse Lafayette Langlade Lincoln Manitowoc Marathon Marinette Marquette Menominee Milwaukee Monroe Oconto Oneida Outagamie Ozaukee Pepin Pierce Polk Portage Price Racine Richland Rock Rusk Sauk Sawyer Shawano Sheboygan St. Croix Taylor Trempealeau Vernon Vilas Walworth Washburn Washington Waukesha Waupaca Waushara Winnebago Wood
Wisconsin portal

Geography

Counties in the Western Upland

See also

References

Bibliography

External links