The most widely accepted origin of the name Milwaukee is that it is derived from the Algonquian phrase for "The Good Land".

Native Americans raised corn throughout the region and harvested wild rice from the marshes that were once common. The area was heavily forested and had a plentiful supply of wild game too of course.

Many French explorers passed through the area. In the early 1800's, a sizable portion of the earliest European settlers of Milwaukee were of French ancestry. The city hosts one of the largest celebrations of French independence called Bastille Days.

One of the city's nicknames is "Cream City", referring to the abundant cream colored clay used to make the bricks used extensively in early, historic buildings.

One of the first trading posts was located at the corner of Water Street and Wisconsin Avenue - an intersection which is still the business center of the city.

Milwaukee has a large park system, much of which was designed by the renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted who designed Central Park in New York City.

The natural divisions created by the Milwaukee and Menomonee Rivers as well as the uncoordinated efforts of competing developers resulted in street systems that did not align at all - thus the angled river bridges throughout the city.

What do Harry Houdini, Golda Meir, and Oprah Winfrey have in common? None were born in Milwaukee but all three spent part of their childhood in the city.

So many German immigrants came to Milwaukee that it became known as the German Athens of America with 1/3 of its citizens boasting German ancestry in the late 1800's.

In the early 1900's, the percent of foreign-born citizens in Milwaukee was almost as large as New York City.

In the 1880's, the Grain Exchange was the most important wheat trading exchange in the world.

Gimbel's Department store started off as a general store in Indiana. However, the sons of the founder made a big bet on Milwaukee. They built their first large department store here and it was a huge success, leading to more stores throughout the US. Within a few years they relocated to New York.

Milwaukee was once the largest beer producing city in the world. It had 4 of the 10 largest breweries in the early 1900's. Until the early 1980's, it had the largest brewing capacity.

Theodore Roosevelt was shot in October 1912 by a deranged stalker near the corner of Kilborn Avenue and N. Old World 3rd Street. The impact of the bullet was greatly diminished by the folded speech in his coat. It lodged in his chest muscles and would remain there the rest of his life. He gave his speech, bleeding throughout its delivery.

Summerfest is the world's largest music festival. It last around 10-12 days and features over 700 live music acts.

Milwaukee's Mitchell Airport is named after General Billy Mitchell, the 'father' of US Air Force. He was the grandson of the Scottish immigrant and financier Alexander Mitchell who built the Mitchell building.

Famous Milwaukeans include Spencer Tracy, Gene Wilder, astronaut Jim Lovell, Steve Miller, and Rachel Brosnahan.