Archive for October, 2009

Where exactly was Dead Lake Ridge?

October 22, 2009

See two stunning 1870 stereoscopic photos of Dead Lake Ridge, plus maps of today’s streets superimposed on 1901 Madison. Dead Lake Ridge was still a high and formidable feature in 1901, though quarrying was well underway.

Note the wetlands on both sides of the ridge — lakes Wingra and Monona did not have distinct shorelines. Park St., West Shore Drive, and N. Wingra Drive are built on fill.

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Dead Lake Ridge podcast

October 20, 2009

Our new podcast could be about a humble and charming Madison landmark — but it’s not. Listen to the story of a dramatic place, Dead Lake Ridge, with a dramatic appearance: “a ridge of considerable elevation the crest of which is serrated by a series of ancient monuments of earthwork.” The ridge was in the middle of the city and overlooked Madison’s lakes and isthmus until the early 1900s. Its destruction was “a crime which should never have been perpetrated.”

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More excerpts from Effigy Tree ceremony

October 8, 2009

Bill Barker, President of the Madison Parks Commission, talks about the sculpture’s significance to himself and to the neighborhood as a whole.

Gordon Thunder, brother of Effigy Tree sculptor Harry Whitehorse and master of ceremonies at the re-dedication event, talks about the history and cultural traditions of the Ho-Chunk nation.

Traditional drumming and singing by the Thundercloud Singers, with an introduction by Gordon Thunder.

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