Odd Wisconsin Archive
The Deep Freeze of 1838
You think the last few days have been cold? Read this memoir by Ebenezer Childs. He came to Wisconsin in 1820, held a variety of minor offices, and surveyed much of the northeastern part of our state. He here recollects traveling from Prairie du Chien to Madison early in the year 1838, when the temperature was 32 degrees below zero and the fledgling capital’s handful of residents huddled together in a rude shanty to keep warm. He then headed to Portage in weather so cold that he and his companions nearly froze to death. Childs'portrait is in our Wisconsin Historical Images collection.
:: Posted in Curiosities on January 18, 2005
Did You Know?
The Wisconsin Historical Museum is currently featuring Odd Wisconsin objects in the latest exhibit: Odd Wisconsin. And don't miss the Odd Wisconsin book by author Erika Janik published by the Wisconsin Historical Society Press.
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