The Eastern Ridges and Lowlands is a geographical region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, between Green Bay in the north, and the border with

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

in the south.

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that ...

lies to the east of the region. The Eastern Ridges and Lowlands region is primarily a plain with

elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...

s between 700 and 900 feet above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

, but the region slopes to form two broad ridges running from north to south that exceed 1,000 feet above sea level in some places. One ridge runs along Lake Michigan from the

Door Peninsula The Door Peninsula is a peninsula in eastern Wisconsin, separating the southern part of the Green Bay from Lake Michigan. The peninsula includes northern Kewaunee County, northeastern Brown County, and the mainland portion of Door Cou ...

to the Illinois border. The other ridge is on the western edge of the region, stretching from Marinette County in the north to

Dane County Dane County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 561,504, making it the second-most populous county in Wisconsin. The county seat is Madison, which is also the state capital. Dane County is the ...

. Between the two ridges is a lowland carved out by the glaciers of the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gre ...

. The lowland includes the Green Bay,

Lake Winnebago Lake Winnebago ( mez, Wenepekōw Nepēhsæh, oj, Wiinibiigoo-zaaga'igan, one, kanyataláheleˀ) is a shallow freshwater lake in the north central United States, located in east central Wisconsin. At 137,700 acres it is the largest lake entire ...

, and several other small rivers and lakes. While there are some

escarpment An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations. The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''esca ...

s along the ridges, the region is primarily flat and the changes in elevation are usually gradual. The flatness of the Eastern Ridges and Lowlands region makes it especially suitable for agriculture. The majority of the region is covered by farmland. Forests are scarce except for in the far northern part of the region. Besides farmland, the area includes a significant amount of urban and suburban development, and a large proportion of Wisconsin's population. Many of Wisconsin's largest cities are located in the Eastern Ridges and Lowlands region, including

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

, Green Bay, Kenosha, Racine,

Appleton Appleton may refer to: People *Appleton (surname) Places Australia * Appleton Dock Canada * Appleton, Newfoundland and Labrador * Appleton, Ontario United Kingdom * Appleton, a deserted medieval village site in the parish of Flitcham w ...

, Sheboygan, and others. The abundance of cities in the area make it Wisconsin's most populous region. The largest city in this region is Milwaukee with a population of 592,025 (2018).

Counties and Cities in the Eastern Ridges and Lowlands region

Part or all of the land in the following counties is included in the Eastern Ridges and Lowlands region: * Brown County * Calumet County * Columbia County *

* Dodge County *

Door County Door County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,066. Its county seat is Sturgeon Bay. It is named after the strait between the Door Peninsula and Washington Island. The dange ...

* Fond du Lac County * Green Lake County *

Jefferson County Jefferson County may refer to one of several counties or parishes in the United States, all of which are named directly or indirectly after Thomas Jefferson: *Jefferson County, Alabama *Jefferson County, Arkansas *Jefferson County, Colorado **Jeffe ...

* Kenosha County * Kewaunee County * Manitowoc County * Marinette County *

Milwaukee County Milwaukee County is located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At the 2020 census, the population was 939,489, down from 947,735 in 2010. It is both the most populous and most densely populated county in Wisconsin, and the 45th most populous cou ...

* Oconto County *

Outagamie County Outagamie County is a county in the northeast region of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 190,705. Its county seat is Appleton. Outagamie County is included in the Appleton, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area ...

Ozaukee County Ozaukee County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 91,503. Its county seat is Port Washington, Wisconsin, Port Washington, making it one of thre ...

Racine County Racine County (, sometimes also ) is a county in southeastern Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, its population was 197,727, making it Wisconsin's fifth-most populous county. Its county seat is Racine. The county was founded in 1836, then a p ...

* Rock County *

Shawano County Shawano County (pronounced SHAW-no) (originally Shawanaw County) is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,881. Its county seat is Shawano. Shawano County is included in the Shawano, WI ...

Sheboygan County Sheboygan County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is named after the Sheboygan River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 118,034. Its county seat is Sheboygan. The county was created in 1836 and organized in 1846. At t ...

* Walworth County * Washington County * Waukesha County * Winnebago County

Selected Cities in Eastern Ridges and Lowlands region

In Southeastern and South Central Wisconsin

* Waukesha *

* Janesville * Port Washington * Kenosha

In Northeastern and East Central Wisconsin

* Green Bay *

Oshkosh Oshkosh may refer to: Places in the United States * Oshkosh, Wisconsin, city and the largest place with the name * Oshkosh (town), Wisconsin * Oshkosh Township, Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota * Oshkosh, Nebraska * Oshkosh Township, Wells County ...

* Fond du Lac * Manitowoc *

Sturgeon Bay Sturgeon Bay is an arm of Green Bay extending southeastward approximately 10 miles into the Door Peninsula at the city of Sturgeon Bay, located approximately halfway up the Door Peninsula. The bay is connected to Lake Michigan by the Sturgeo ...

References

{{Chicago metropolitan area Regions of Wisconsin