Iowa County Historical Society

06/17/2026

We asked Dodgeville, Wisconsin, “What does it mean to you that America is celebrating its 250th anniversary?”

Thank you to the Dodgeville Public Library and the Iowa County Historical Society for helping us host community callout sessions for MyAmerica@250, a social media campaign designed to capture and amplify a variety of perspectives from Wisconsinites on what America’s 250th anniversary means to them.

MyAmerica@250 is a part of PBS Wisconsin and Wisconsin Public Radio's larger America@250 Initiative, an exciting collaboration with the Center for Community and Nonprofit Studies, the Wisconsin Historical Society and the Wisconsin Veterans Museum to help communities connect and reflect on our shared history and the future of democracy.

Want to learn more about PBS Wisconsin's America@250 Initiative? Visit pbswisconsin.org/a250.

05/23/2026

Dodgeville, PBS Wisconsin is coming your way to hear what A250 means to you!

On Wednesday, June 3, PBS Wisconsin, in partnership with Dodgeville Public Library and the Iowa County Historical Society, invites community members to visit Dodgeville Public Library to share their personal reflections on America’s 250th anniversary.

All reflections will be filmed by PBS Wisconsin and may* be featured in MyAmerica@250, a social media campaign designed to capture and amplify a variety of perspectives from Wisconsinites on what the anniversary means to them.

To connect with as many people as possible, PBS Wisconsin will host two community callouts at Dodgeville Public Library on Wednesday, June 3: the first will be held from 9-11 a.m. and the second one will take place from 5-7 p.m.

No prior registration is required. Just show up, and we’ll do our best to get you in and out as quickly as possible! Attendees can expect to answer 1-2 questions related to the theme, “What America’s 250th Anniversary Means to Me.”

Want to learn more about PBS Wisconsin's America@250 Initiative? Visit pbswisconsin.org/a250.

*PBS Wisconsin respects and values your opinions. Unfortunately, we can’t include every interview in our broadcasts or videos. Thank you!

Connect and reflect on America's 250th anniversary with PBS Wisconsin

04/26/2026

Our set up for the Wisconsin Grilled Cheese Championship yesterday. Good day, warm, and a good crowd. Very enjoyable. Our neighbors were Channel 47 and Heartland Credit. Thanks Dodgeville Chamber of Commerce.

04/07/2026

Post by Alex Harrington.

Hi, Folks!

🌪️ ⁉️ Who's ready to unlock the key to the formation of the infamous June7/8th 1984 F-5 Barneveld Tornado?!? This was a fascination of mine growing up 10 miles north in Arena, and it turned into a study during my grad school experience at the UW-Madison Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (UW-AOS). Some have tried to replicate my studies (they need to cite better!), yet I am still the first to piece together the large-scale and small-scale setup for this event using satellite, assimilated model recreation with my studies with CIMSS, DIFAX hand analyses that I am so lucky to have the possession of, and viewer accounts to make my conclusions on a very important feature that very likely was the last and critical ingredient for this tragic event.

🙏 ♥️ 🙏 I am so humbled to re-present my research as part of the Iowa County Historical Society meeting this Saturday in Dodgeville at 1 pm! I know many of you are planning to join from such kind messages about your excitement in attending. The information is also attached, courtesy of The Dodgeville Chronicle.

See you Saturday! 📺

04/04/2026

MARK YOUR CALENDAR - A PATH OF DESTRUCTION - BARNEVELD TORNADO JUNE 8, 1984. ALEX HARRINGTON, Chief Meterorologist for WISC-TV and FOX in Madison, will be the guest speaker at the ANNUAL MEETING of the IOWA COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY on April 11th at 1:00 at the Community Center of the Health and Human Services Center, 303 W. Chapel St. Dodgeville. Mr. Harrington's passion for weather began at age four on his family farm in Arena, where early exposure to the power of nature shaped a lifelong commitment to keeping communities informed and safe. He did considerable research while in graduate school at the UW-Madison, and is the first meteorologist to piece together what happened in the Midwest, what happened in Wisconsin, and what happened locally near Barneveld that led to such a historic tornado. The public is invited to attend. Following the presentation, Mr. Harrington will be open to answering any questions. Refreshments and snacks will be served.

03/23/2026

Thanks to Ron Dunbar for this post on the Simpson Chapel. We appreciate the shout-out!

Welcome back, and Happy Dodgeville Monday! Today's post features an April 6, 1968, Wisconsin State Journal blurb about the Simpson Chapel northeast of Dodgeville on Cty. YZ (old Hwy. 18). To learn more about the fascinating history of this house of worship, please see the wonderful write-up on the Iowa County Historical Society's website at
https://iowacountyhistoricalsociety.org/home-old/landmarks/simpson-chapel .

Peace and blessings to each of you today and always!

Simpson Chapel About the middle of the nineteenth century, a group of Welsh immigrants left their homes in Holyhead North Wales, Great Britain and came to what is Dodgeville Township. They settled in the farming and mining area northeast of Dodgeville and named it Holyhead in honor of their homeland...

01/20/2026

📰 Check out Shake Rag Alley's Log Cabin, featured on the cover of the Iowa County Historical Society's newsletter! You can read all about Iowa County's history, and the efforts of many organizations and people to preserve this history. A key part of our mission is historic preservation, and from May-September, the Log Cabin is open for visitors to enjoy.

01/20/2026

Seeking a photograph: Lost River Cave lies along the Iowa-Dane County line about two miles from Cave of the Mounds. It operated commercially from 1955 through 1982. Tourists entered the cave via a small wooden shed, roughly half the size of a one-car garage. Inside the shed, steps led down into the cave, and shelves contained memorabilia related to the ghost town of Pokerville, which stood over the cave in the early 1800s. Searching for a sharp, clear photo of this small entrance shed for an upcoming book. Credit would be given for any photo used.

01/12/2026

A follower, Doris Green, is interested in acquiring a photo of the small building where you would enter the cave at Lost River Cave in Blue Mounds. If you have a photo you'd like to share, please reach out to her at 608-459-0586.

01/01/2026

Here is a photo of engine 484 at Dodgeville on the turntable. It appears that this is one of two ICCR locomotives that traveled on the spur from Red Oak to Dodgevile and returned, obviously traveling through Blanchardville both ways. Photo is from the Iowa County Historical Society.

Borrowed from the Blanchardville Historical Society.