This week in 1967, residents of Winneconne, Wisconsin launched a protest against being left out of the latest state road map, and announced it was time to strike out on their own.
Winneconne is in east central Wisconsin; earlier, in an area that was home to the Menominee.
It’s said that in the 60s, a salesman from Milwaukee showed up and explained that he’d had a very hard time getting to town because Winneconne wasn’t on the state’s highway map.
People took a look, and there was a dot where Winneconne would be, but the name wasn’t there.
The local Chamber of Commerce appealed to the state, but apparently a fix didn’t come as fast as they wanted, because Winneconne then asked residents for ideas of how they could get their win back from these errant mapmakers.
Somebody suggested that they just stay off the map for good, by leaving Wisconsin and becoming their own independent entity.
One day at 10 am, they held a ceremony.
They lowered the Wisconsin flag, and put up a new one featuring a sheep’s head, a skunk, a dodo bird, and poison ivy.
They also introduced the new president and prime minister of the Sovereign State of Winneconne.
By 4pm that day, they got a call from the governor’s office.
He told the Winneconneans that he would make sure they were on the next state map.
Until that came out, the governor promised to add new signs on the highways and put some Visit Winneconne brochures in all the state’s visitors centers.
Having made their point, the people of Winneconne decided to rejoin Wisconsin, but they continue to remember their big stand with an annual festival.
This year’s Sovereign State Days includes food, music, fireworks and a parade, plus a chance to visit the local historical museum to find out more about the time the town broke up with the state.
Downtown Pittsburgh has a new name this weekend.
From now through Sunday, it’s home to Picklesburgh.
The event is a tribute to the area’s history with pickles complete with lots of food options, live music, games and a pickle juice drinking contest.
50 Years Ago, Small Wisconsin Town Made Plans To Secede From The State (NPR)
History of the Sovereign State of Winneconne
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Photo by Royalbroil – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikicommons
