University of Wisconsin-Madison

09/22/2022 | News release | Distributed by Public on 09/22/2022 12:32

3,000-year-old canoe recovered from Lake Mendota

On a brisk and breezy first day of fall, divers recovered an ancient Ho-Chunk canoe from the depths of Lake Mendota, an effort coordinated by the Wisconsin State Historical Society and members of the Ho-Chunk Nation. The dugout canoe, estimated to have sunk to the bottom of the lake some 3,000 years ago, is more than twice as old as another Ho-Chunk canoe recovered from Lake Mendota last year. Divers raised the canoe from the floor of the lake and transported it on a raft across the lake to Spring Harbor Beach, where it was loaded for transport. Those present included Marlon WhiteEagle, president of the Ho-Chunk Nation, and Omar Poler, the American Indian Curriculum Service Coordinator at UW-Madison's Teacher Education Center. On the southern shores of Lake Mendota, the UW-Madison campus occupies ancestral Ho-Chunk land, known as Teejop in the Ho-Chunk language. UW-Madison researchers played a key role in examining the first canoe found.

1Divers stabilize a raft during the recovery of the canoe. Photo by: Bryce Richter

2Christian Overland, the director and CEO of the Wisconsin Historical Society, speaks to members of the media during the recovery. Photo by: Bryce Richter

3Jim Skibo, Wisconsin state archaeologist (center), and members of the dive team lift a makeshift raft holding the canoe onshore. Photo by: Bryce Richter

4Bill Quackenbush, tribal historic preservation officer for the Ho-Chunk Nation and member of the Deer clan, speaks to reporters during the recovery of the canoe. Photo by: Bryce Richter

5Casey Brown (left), spokesperson for the Ho-Chunk Nation and member of the Bear clan, and Bill Quackenbush, tribal historic preservation officer for the Ho-Chunk Nation and member of the Deer clan, take a closer look during the recovery of a 3,000-year-old dugout canoe. Photo by: Bryce Richter

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