Discover Milwaukee: 11 Unbelievable Fun Facts You Never Knew About Brew City!

1. Cheesy Foam Hat Factory

Looking to have your cheese and foam it, too? Say cheese, and hold on to your hats, literally: Milwaukee's Cheesehead Factory lets you create your very own foam cheesehead hats and quirky shapes, while diving into the company's history and witnessing the magic of manual foam-making for a tastefully cheesy souvenir that's sure to make you smile.
Source => tripadvisor.com

2. Les Paul's Musical Legacy

Whoever said "rock and roll hails from the heartland" must have had a premonition of Milwaukee's melodic maestro, guitar guru and inventor extraordinaire who was struck with more than a lightning bolt of creativity: Les Paul, born in neighboring Waukesha, invented the solid-body electric guitar and shaped music history forever, earning himself a spot in both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the National Inventors Hall of Fame, ultimately leaving us nothing but a rich musical legacy and an electrifying display at the Waukesha County Museum.
Source => emke.uwm.edu

Did you know Chicago's founding father, Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, was a French-African explorer who transformed the city into the thriving metropolis it is today? Dive into the fascinating history of where the Chicago River meets Lake Michigan. 🌊🏙️

=> Fun Facts about Chicago

3. Harley-Davidson Museum Magic

What do architects, bikers, and museum enthusiasts all have in common? The answer will surely rev your engines and purr like a well-tuned motorcycle into your heart: Milwaukee's Harley-Davidson Museum, a 20-acre must-visit destination, showcases over 450 iconic motorcycles and their fascinating history through multiple galleries and the company's corporate archives, all under the watchful eye of a 5.2-meter-tall steel Harley-Davidson sign.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

4. Pabst Brewing Company Origins

In a city where the booze once flowed as freely as the Milwaukee River and "Pabst" was a household name like "Bieber" today: Milwaukee, home to the famed Pabst Brewing Company, originated in 1844 as The Empire Brewery, then became Best and Company, and finally adopted the name Pabst in 1889. Producing over two dozen brands of beer and malt liquor, Pabst Blue Ribbon made up half of their production—but alas, the beer giant no longer brews in Milwaukee and operates through contracts with other breweries.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

5. Racing Sausages Showdown

In a land brimming with bratwurst and bubbling with beer, there exists an epic battle of encased meats: Milwaukee is home to the Racing Sausages, a tradition where five costumed sausages - bratwurst, Polish sausage, Italian sausage, hot dog, and chorizo - sprint their way to glory during Milwaukee Brewers games. The race began in the early 1990s as animated scoreboard characters but transitioned to a live event in 1993, and is now occasionally brought to life by Marquette University students, like Adam Frisk, Jacob Rose, and Michael Garven, who take on the mantle of these iconic wurst warriors for the ultimate unscripted showdown.
Source => marquettewire.org

6. Dueling Milwaukee Universities

When two universities walk into a city, the punchline is education: Milwaukee houses not one, but two prestigious institutions - Marquette University and Milwaukee School of Engineering - turning this beer town into a scholarly hotspot, preparing students for diverse professional and academic advancements.
Source => univstats.com

7. Cream City Brick History

Move over, dairy enthusiasts: Milwaukee's had its own "cream" since way before cheese was a thing! This midwestern metropolis wasn't filled with undulating cow udders, but rather, it became known as "Cream City" due to the distinctive cream-colored bricks that were crafted and utilized throughout the 19th century. Don't be fooled by their decadent appearance, though; these bricks were softer than others and prone to soot absorption, making them less than ideal for structural stability. Yet, the nostalgic moniker lives on in various local businesses and products, continually paying homage to Milwaukee's Cream City roots.
Source => wuwm.com

8. Weather-Predicting Gas Flame

Watch out, Milwaukee's got the hots... for weather forecasting? Believe it or not: The Wisconsin Gas Building, a 250-feet tall Art Deco masterpiece completed in 1930, flaunts a weather beacon resembling a gas flame at its apex, which changes color – red for warm, gold for cold, and blue for no change – to predict the weather, and replaces a Prohibition-era speakeasy whose patrons surely found the forecasts intoxicating.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

9. Bobblehead Wonderland

In a city that's all shook up with bobbling fever, expect to see thousands of mighty fine, supremely nodworthy celebrities, athletes, and adorable critters: Milwaukee's National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is home to a whopping collection of over 10,000 bobbleheads from around the world, a life-size bobblehead, and even boasts a fundraising bobblehead featuring Carson King that supported University of Iowa Stead Family Children's Hospital.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

10. Architectural Bird Masterpiece

If Frank Lloyd Wright and a Transformer had a baby, it would probably look like the Milwaukee Art Museum's Quadracci Pavilion: designed by the legendary Santiago Calatrava, this stunning piece of architecture features a movable sunscreen called the Burke Brise Soleil, with 72 steel fins that span a whopping 217 feet, and can adjust to wind direction, taking just 3.5 minutes to open or close, all while looking like a beautiful modernist bird soaring over Lake Michigan.
Source => mam.org

11. Dan Harmon's Wisconsinite Roots

If you've ever pondered the origins of your favorite bizarre TV shows while engulfed in a cloud of Cheetos dust and existential crisis, look no further than the land of cheese itself: Milwaukee is the birthplace of Dan Harmon, the creative powerhouse behind outrageously successful television hits "Community" and "Rick and Morty." Born on January 3, 1973, this Wisconsinite mastermind cut his teeth on comedy shows like "Computerman" and "Laser Fart," while also being a skilled musician and once being married to Erin McGathy.
Source => imdb.com