Capitol Square has long been the heart of the city

Capitol Square has long been the heart of the city (HMMCO)

Location: Madison, WI 53703 Dane County
Buy Wisconsin State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 43° 4.529', W 89° 22.968'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 558 views
Inscription

The Madison Heritage Series

Even before Madison was founded, people met to exchange money and merchandise not far from this spot. Five hundred Ho-Chunk camped near the square in 1832 to swap furs for trader Oliver Armel's goods.

People began building businesses on Capitol Square in 1837. The first settlers lived on King Street, and downtown centered on the intersection of King, Main and Pinckney streets. The earliest hotels appeared on Pinckney Street, to host visiting legislators and government officials, and James Richardson opened Madison's first bank on the corner of Pinckney Street and East Washington Avenue.

Madison's first trains arrived in 1854, and growth on the square continuedas businesses sought to attract rail-riding customers from nearby depots. The square's status as Madison's first business hub helped make it the city's favorite place for political speeches, parades, holiday events, protests, outdoor markets and victory celebrations.

Sidebar:

Standing here and looking down Pinckney Street toward Lake Monona in 1885, you would have observed a vital thoroughfare, part of Madison's original downtown. At that time, the square as a whole boasted 124 stores. Capitol Square remained Madison's liveliest shopping district until well into the 20th century. At that time, the green space around the capitol was also thecity's largest park. No wonder the square was Madison's undisputed center—and remains a popular staging ground for public events.
Details
HM NumberHMMCO
Tags
Year Placed2006
Placed ByCity of Madison
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Monday, October 13th, 2014 at 2:48am PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)16T E 306015 N 4771952
Decimal Degrees43.07548333, -89.38280000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 43° 4.529', W 89° 22.968'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds43° 4' 31.74" N, 89° 22' 58.08" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)608
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 101-177 E Washington Ave, Madison WI 53703, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. This marker needs at least one picture.
  9. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  10. Is the marker in the median?