Badger Boys State adopted a program based upon the experience of the Illinois Boys State which was sponsored by the Illinois American Legion and had been in operation since 1935. Four hundred eighty-four high school juniors attended the first session of Badger Boys State at St. John's Military Academy in Delafield, Wisconsin, June 16–23, 1939. The project proved very successful and was unanimously authorized to proceed as a state program by the Wisconsin American Legion Convention in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The individuals responsible for founding the Badger Boys State program officially on April 8, 1939 were: Due to the limited capacity of St. John's
Badger Boys State its program now requires a full-time volunteer staff of over one hundred people, plus a part-time special lecture staff of 45. Attendance has grown from 484 in 1939 to an all-time high of 1,066 in 1982. Ripon College was forced to place some restrictions on space in the late 1980s whereby total citizen attendance is restricted to 973 per session. Many Badger Boys State graduates serve public office or work in business, the professions, industry, and the armed forces. First Day - SATURDAY, June 21 - Registration • Election of Ward/City, and County Committeeman • Party Caucuses, city and county.