Madison Today

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Downtown Madison

The fourth Wisconsin State Capitol building was built from 1906 to 1917. This is the building we still see today. The outside is made of white Vermont granite. The height of the building is 285.9 feet. It is just a few inches shorter than the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C. The Capitol in Madison is the tallest building in the downtown area.

At the top of the Capitol there is a gold-leafed bronze statue. This statue, commonly known as "Forward," is officially named "Wisconsin." A picture of our state animal, the badger, is on her helmet. The statue is 15 feet high. Our state motto, adopted in 1851, is "Forward."

The Capitol is a meeting place for State of Wisconsin government officials. The State Senate and the State Assembly meet there to make state laws, the State Supreme Court sits there, and the lawmakers, justices and the governor have offices in the building.

The area around the State Capitol is known as the Capitol Square, or simply "The Square." Every year it is the scene of numerous events that are popular with the people of Madison.

During the summer, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra holds a series of free concerts on the Capitol grounds on Wednesday evenings.

In July, Madison's annual Art Fair on the Square turns the streets around the Capitol Square into an outdoor art market.

Every Saturday morning from late April through October, the Dane County Farmers' Market brings thousands of people to the area around the Capitol to buy fresh vegetables and fruits, to sample delicious baked goods, and to enjoy the beauty of the area.

The Wisconsin Historical Museum is located on the Capitol Square at the head of State Street. The museum's permanent exhibits help visitors learn about the state's history and it also features special exhibits in addition to the permanent collection. Group tours are available, and there is also a museum store that sells books, jewelry and other items dealing with Wisconsin and its history.

Just around the corner on the Capitol Square is the Wisconsin Veterans' Museum, "dedicated to the state's citizen-soldiers, who gave their youth, their aspirations and in some cases their lives to serve America in times of peril." Visitors to this museum can view exhibits about all of our country's conflicts since the Civil War.

Downtown Madison has another museum, the Madison Children's Museum, Wisconsin's first hands-on museum for kids. At this museum children and adults alike can explore lots of interesting topics.

One of the newest additions to Madison's downtown is the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, which opened its doors on July 18, 1997. Its design was inspired by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and the building includes space for conventions, smaller meetings, and other public events.

Since the late 1970s, one of the high points of Downtown Madison has been the Madison Civic Center on State Street. At that time the Capitol Movie Theatre and some of the surrounding buildings were remodeled and turned into a performing arts center. Concerts, theatre presentations, dance recitals, and art displays are held here.

You are now looking at the piece of the old Capitol Movie Theatre that was saved and included in the new building.

The Madison Civic Center held its first performance on February 23, 1980. Here is a slide of what the completed structure looks like.

The Madison Art Center also makes its home in this building. This center emphasizes modern art, and that is how it is different from other art centers in Madison.

State Street connects the Capitol Square to the University of Wisconsin campus. Many shops and restaurants are located along State Street, and only buses, delivery vehicles and taxis are permitted to drive on State Street.

In February, 2001 Madison's Downtown area began to see great changes as construction began for the Overture Center. This project will include changes for the current Civic Center and Art Center, and it will create major new facilities for all of the fine arts in the area immediately to the west of the Capitol Square. Click here to use the project's Web cam and watch the work in progress.

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Government Services

A mayor and 20 alderpersons serve as the main elected officials in Madison's government; together, they make up the Common Council that makes the city's laws. Their offices are located in the City County Building. Go to the Madison Common Council's Web site to find out who your alder is.

This building also houses courtrooms, the Police Department, and other city and county officials' offices.

The present main building of the Madison Public Library opened in 1965 and is named for Bernard Schwab, a former director of the Library. It is located one block off the Capitol Square and is the main branch of Madison's public library system, and it has a special room for children on the second floor. In 1999, the Madison Public Library celebrated 125 years of service to the city's citizens.

There are also eight public library branches in various parts of the city. Click here to find a list of all the public libraries in Madison.

The Fire Department and the Police Department are among the many services provided by the City of Madison. In the spring of 2002, the Madison Police Department had 383 uniformed officers who help keep the city a safe place to live. One-third of Madison's police officers are women; in comparison with other departments around the country, Madison has one of the highest percentages of women officers. Sometimes police officers ride in patrol cars, sometimes they walk, and sometimes they are on bike patrols.

In the Madison Fire Department in 2002 there are 283 uniformed firefighters; 45 of these firefighters are women. The department also has 18 other employees. Some of them are office staff, while others are fire inspectors or community educators. To find out where Madison's fire stations are located, use this map.

The main Post Office is located on the east side of town. It opened its doors on August 23, 1976. The building is large enough to hold three football fields. The Madison Post Office handles mail for most of southern Wisconsin. There are over 900 postal employees in the Madison Postal System.

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Transportation

There are lots of ways to get around within the city of Madison, and lots of ways to get to Madison from other places.

Madison Metro Transit buses provide a convenient means of getting from one place to another in the Madison area. In addition to Madison Metro, taxicabs help people travel around the city, and bus lines connect Madison to other cities.

Lots of people in Madison ride bicycles. They ride to work or school, and they ride for pleasure and exercise. The city has a growing network of bike paths that connect to other bikeways maintained by Dane County and the State of Wisconsin.

Several airlines serve Madison with direct flights to major cities and connecting flights to any point from Milwaukee, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, or Minneapolis. In addition, there are many privately owned aircraft. The Dane County Regional Airport is located on the northeast side of town. The Wisconsin Air National Guard flies military planes from Truax Field, located in the same area as the Dane County Regional Airport.

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Other Important Buildings and Services

The Governor's Mansion was built in 1927 for a private citizen, but in 1949 the state purchased the house in order to use it as an Executive Residence. It is located on the eastern edge of Lake Mendota on 4 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds. The iron fence that surrounds it was once around the original Capitol building.

The U.S. Forest Service established the Forest Products Laboratory in Madison in 1910 to research and study wood. In 2002, more than 250 people work here to find new ways to use timber, wood pulp, paper, and other forest products. This is the largest laboratory of its kind in the United States.

Madison has 4 major hospitals. They are: St. Mary's Hospital Medical Center, Meriter Hospital, the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics and the William S. Middleton Veterans Hospital. Here is a picture of the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics.

Veterans' Memorial Coliseum, which looks like a large circus tent, was finished in 1967. It is used for the annual World Dairy Expo, circus performances, rodeos, horse shows and concerts, plus garden, home and sports shows and conventions. The grounds are pleasant to look at, and there is plenty of parking. The seating capacity can be as high as 9,000, depending on the type of performance. Originally called the Dane County Memorial Coliseum, it was named to honor Dane County War veterans.

Gates of Heaven Synagogue was designed by August Kutzbock and dedicated in 1863 by a small group of 18 Jewish families. It was used as a synagogue for only sixteen years. It is now considered a landmark and has been moved to a site in James Madison Park. It is the oldest synagogue in the Midwest and the third oldest surviving synagogue in the United States.

The Unitarian Meeting House on University Bay Drive was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, a famous architect who was born in Wisconsin.

The home of the Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison is located at 130 North Prospect Avenue. It is a lovely house that was built of Madison sandstone by John M. Olin, and it was left to the University in 1954.

Ely House is found at 205 North Prospect Avenue and was built in 1894 for Charles Bell. It is a "shingle style" house.

The Bradley home is at 106 North Prospect Avenue. It was designed by Louis Sullivan and brought the "Prairie" style of architecture to Madison. Sullivan's student, Frank Lloyd Wright, later perfected this style.