 A Packers fan wearing Cheesehead hat | |
| Origin/etymology | Sports |
|---|---|
| Meaning |
|
| Original form | Derogatory term, now a common nickname |
| Context | Wisconsin is "America's Dairyland" |
Cheesehead is a nickname in the United States for a person from Wisconsin [1] or for a fan of the Green Bay Packers.
Wisconsin is associated with cheese because the state historically produced more dairy products than other American states, giving it the nickname "America's Dairyland". [2] The use of the term "Cheesehead" as a derogatory word for Wisconsinites originated with Illinois football and baseball fans to refer to opposing Wisconsin sports fans. The term, however, was quickly embraced by Wisconsinites and is now a point of pride. [3]
During World War II, German soldiers mockingly referred to the Dutch as cheeseheads because of the Netherlands' extensive dairy farming industry. The Dutch term kaaskop, literally "cheese head", is considered a profanity to refer to a person as stupid or dense. [4]
In the 1969 novel Papillon , the term was used to describe the unsophisticated jurors who voted to convict the main character. [5]
Rose Bruno first saw a cardboard "Cheesehead" hat at a Milwaukee Brewers vs. Chicago White Sox game in Chicago in 1987 worn by fellow Milwaukeean Amerik Wojciechowski. [6] [7] Ralph Bruno later made the first one out of foam while he was cutting up his mother's couch. It was made popular by centerfielder Rick Manning, who saw the hat while playing. [8] [9] Bruno started a multi-million-dollar business to sell the hats as novelties. The "Cheesehead" trademark is owned by Foamation, Inc. of St. Francis, Wisconsin, which began manufacture of the wearable, foam "Cheesehead" in 1987. [10] Along with the original Cheesehead "wedge", Foamation has made other similar "cheese" apparel, including baseball caps, cowboy hats, and earrings. In 2023, Bruno sold Foamation to the Green Bay Packers, making the Cheesehead official Packers merchandise. [11] [12]
The Cheesehead gained attention in 1995, when Packers fan Frank Emmert Jr. was flying on a private plane back to Wisconsin after attending a Packers game against the Cleveland Browns and the plane crashed due to ice accumulation. Emmert suffered a broken ankle and other minor injuries but was saved from further serious injury when he used his Cheesehead for protection in the crash. [13] In 2013, sports fans of Chicago replied to their rivals by wearing cheese graters. [14]
Cheesehead hats have evolved beyond sports to become a cultural and political symbol of Wisconsin. Notably, Wisconsin delegates wore Cheesehead hats at both the 2024 Republican National Convention [15] [16] and the 2024 Democratic National Convention [17] [18] to represent their state.
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. They are the third-oldest franchise in the NFL, established in 1919, and are the only non-profit, community-owned major league professional sports team based in the United States. Since 1957, home games have been played at Lambeau Field. They hold the record for the most wins in NFL history.
Wisconsin is a state in the Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin is the 20th-largest state by population and 23rd-largest by area. It has 72 counties and as of the 2020 census had a population of nearly 5.9 million. Its most populous city is Milwaukee; its capital and second-most populous city is Madison. Other urban areas include Green Bay, Kenosha, Racine, Eau Claire, and the Fox Cities.
Lambeau Field is an outdoor athletic stadium in the north central United States, located in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The home field of the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL), it opened in 1957 as City Stadium, replacing the original City Stadium at Green Bay East High School as the Packers' home field. Informally known as New City Stadium for its first eight seasons, it was renamed in August 1965 in memory of Packers founder, player, and long-time head coach, Earl “Curly” Lambeau, who had died two months earlier.
The history of Wisconsin encompasses the story not only of the people who have lived in Wisconsin since it became a state of the U.S., but also that of the Native American tribes who made their homeland in Wisconsin, the French and British colonists who were the first Europeans to live there, and the American settlers who lived in Wisconsin when it was a territory.
WPXE-TV is a television station licensed to Kenosha, Wisconsin, United States, broadcasting the Ion Television network to the Milwaukee area. It is owned and operated by the Ion Media subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company alongside NBC affiliate WTMJ-TV, with engineering and some master control operations run out of WTMJ-TV's Radio City facility on East Capitol Drive in Milwaukee. WPXE's transmitter is located on the WITI TV Tower on East Capitol Drive in Shorewood, Wisconsin.
Gilbert Jesse Brown is an American former professional football nose tackle who played for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League, Brown played 125 Packers games recording 292 tackles and seven sacks. Nicknamed "The Gravedigger" in honor of his celebratory dance following a thunderous tackle, Brown played in 15 Packers playoff games. He was a major contributor on strong defenses during the mid-1990s. His most successful season was in 1996, when he started all 16 games and Green Bay won Super Bowl XXXI. He was also part of the Kansas team that won the 1992 Aloha Bowl and was selected for the All-Academic Big Eight team in 1991.
Saputo Inc. is a Canadian dairy company based in Montreal, Quebec, founded in 1954 by the Saputo family. It produces, markets, and distributes a wide array of dairy products, including cheese, fluid milk, extended shelf-life milk and cream products, cultured products and dairy ingredients and is one of the top ten dairy processors in the world.
Schreiber Foods Inc., is a dairy company which produces and distributes natural cheese, processed cheese, cream cheese and yogurt. It is an employee-owned customer brand dairy company headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin. With more than $5 billion in annual sales, Forbes ranked Schreiber Foods as the 81st largest private employer in 2016.
Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk. During production, milk is usually acidified and either the enzymes of rennet or bacterial enzymes with similar activity are added to cause the casein to coagulate. The solid curds are then separated from the liquid whey and pressed into finished cheese. Some cheeses have aromatic molds on the rind, the outer layer, or throughout.
The Melonheads are a group of fans of the Los Angeles Rams that attend games with a carved out watermelon placed on their head. The Melonheads are similar to the Cheeseheads of the Green Bay Packers with their usage of food memorabilia on their heads—though Wisconsin is known for cheese products, while Los Angeles is not known for watermelons.
Wisconsin cheese is cheese made in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Wisconsin has a long tradition and history of cheese production and it is widely associated in popular culture with cheese and the dairy industry.
The cuisine of Wisconsin is a type of Midwestern cuisine found throughout the state of Wisconsin in the United States of America. Known as "America's Dairyland", Wisconsin is famous for its cheese as well as other dairy products, such as cheese curds and frozen custard. Other notable foods common to the region include bratwursts, beer, brandy Old Fashioned cocktails, butter burgers, fish fries and fish boils, cranberries, and booyah stew.
Adrian Battles is a retired American football offensive guard. He played college football for Minnesota State University, Mankato from 2005 to 2009.
Mars Cheese Castle is a specialty food store, delicatessen, and taproom which sells a variety of consumable products in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Located along Interstate 94, the shop is popular among Wisconsin visitors and has been called a "cheese landmark", "one of Wisconsin's most recognizable cheese stores", and "an icon for generations of I-94 travelers". While the store is best known for its cheese, it also sells sausages and other foods, beer, wine, specialty condiments, soft drinks and Wisconsin souvenirs such as cheesehead hats.
Agriculture is a significant sector in Wisconsin's economy, producing nearly $104 billion in revenue annually. The significance of the state's agricultural production is exemplified by the depiction of a Holstein cow, an ear of corn, and a wheel of cheese on Wisconsin's state quarter design. In 2017 there were 64,800 farms in the state, operating across 14.3 million acres of land.
Dairy is a major industry in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Being known for its dairy production, the state is often called "America's Dairyland." The industry is prominent in official state symbols—being displayed on the state's license plates, state's slogan, and on the state quarter.
Commercial cheesemaking in Wisconsin dates back to the nineteenth century. Early cheesemaking operations began on farmsteads in the Michigan and Wisconsin territories, with large-scale production starting in the mid-1800s. Wisconsin became the largest producer of cheese in the United States in the early 1900s, and in 2019 produced 3.36 billion pounds of cheese in more than 600 varieties, accounting for 27% of all cheese made in the country that year.
Wisconsin – America's Dairyland, The Badger State ... The Copper State ...