Milwaukee

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Industrial city and port in southeastern Wisconsin, USA, at the mouth of the Milwaukee River, on the western shore of Lake Michigan, 128 km/79 mi north of Chicago; seat of Milwaukee County; population (2000 est) 597,000. It is the centre of a dairying and beef-producing region, and an important port of entry on the Great Lakes–St Lawrence Seaway system; industries include brewing (there are two major breweries, including Millers, the second largest brewery in the USA), engineering, machinery, motorcyles (the Harley-Davidson factory was founded here in 1906), electronic and electrical equipment, and chemicals.

History
Originally an American Indian settlement, the name is derived from an American Indian word, millocki, meaning ‘gathering of the waters’. Milwaukee grew up around a French-Canadian fur-trading post established at the river mouth in 1818; full economic development began in 1833, when the American Indians gave up their land claims. Beginning in the 1840s the city drew a large influx of German settlers, followed by a succession of Irish, Polish, Italian, and Scandinavian immigrants. After the American Civil War the economy diversified and Milwaukee became America's leading producer of beer. Milwaukee began redeveloping its harbour after World War II, and the opening of the St Lawrence Seaway in 1959 turned it into an international port. Milwaukee was incorporated as a city in 1846.

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