Relive Wisconsin’s Rise to “America’s Dairyland”
Explore history by the acre at Stonefield! Your adventure through the former estate of Wisconsin’s first governor tells the amazing story of the Badger State’s agricultural advance from a struggling group of wheat farmers to America’s Dairyland.
Tour over 30 restored historic businesses that highlight Wisconsin’s rural development at the turn of the 20th century. See the largest collection of farm equipment and vintage tractors in the state in the State Agricultural Museum. Visit the home of Wisconsin’s first governor and see fascinating artifacts that tell the story of Wisconsin’s transition from territory to state. With every step of your journey at Stonefield, you’ll be immersed in the spirit of ingenuity that helped propel Wisconsin forward.
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Purchase your tickets today and make more time for fun on your next adventure.
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Historic Demonstrations
Enjoy historic demonstrations like fabric spinning, hat making, blacksmithing, historic wet-plate photography, and more! Included with Stonefield General Admission.
Summer Saturdays
June 4 | July 2 | August 6
Cool off and #ExploreWisconsinHistory with us!
Get a water bottle when you visit Stonefield on the first Saturday in June, July or August. Free gift can be picked up at the admission counter upon arrival. One gift per household.
Visit early – offer valid while supplies last!
Best Deal in History!
Becoming a member is the best way to explore Wisconsin history. Members get free admission to our historic sites and discounts on special events!
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Stonefield Historic Site
Offical Facebook Page for Stonefield Historic Site, a historic site owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society.
Did you know that Stonefield Historic Site is not only home to 1800’s machinery and recreated rural Wisconsin life, but also home to a significant colony of bats? Between 1,000 and 2,000 little brown bats roost in the bat houses around the property from April through September every year!
Bats have been using the bat houses at Stonefield since they were built and installed by Kent Borcherding in the late 1990s. Before the new bat residences were installed, bats called many of the buildings on the property home. By providing alternate roosting habitat (bat houses) and closing the buildings to bats, the colony successfully moved out of the buildings and into the bat houses.
Estimating how many bats are present in the boxes in summer is surprisingly simple – surveyors count the bats as they emerge in the evening! Thanks to volunteers and staff conducting bat counts, the WDNR Bat Program (WBP) has a pretty good idea of how the bat colony at Stonefield has fluctuated in response to the deadly bat disease, white-nose syndrome (WNS) which has decimated hibernating bat populations across North America. Before WNS arrived in Wisconsin, Stonefield bat houses were home to nearly 4,000 bats but in the years after arrival of WNS the colony dropped to under 1,000.
Thanks to surveys this summer, the WBP knows that Stonefield continues to be one of the most significant and important little brown bat roost sites in the region with over 2,000 bats! For more information about bats in Wisconsin and bat roost monitoring, please visit the WBP website: wiatri.net/inventory/bats/
📸: Bat houses by the Stonefield blacksmith workshop ... See MoreSee Less
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Love bats…as long as they stay outside and don’t get in the house! 🦇. I enjoy sitting on my screened in Back Porch in t(e evening and watch them fly around.
Awesome! Love bats. They're so important to the overall health of the area.
Interesting! Thank you.
Join us this Saturday, July 23 for historic demonstrations in Stonefield's 1900 rural village! Demonstrations are included with a general admission ticket. Book your tickets today! wihist.org/3IlthQm ... See MoreSee Less
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Photos from Wisconsin Historical Society's post ... See MoreSee Less
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