Fort Atkinson Lakes Edition

FABULOUS IN FT. ATKINSON, WISCONSIN

Nicknamed "The Fort," as U.S. military had an outpost here during the 1832 Black Hawk "war," this Southern Wisconsin town of 12,368 bordering the Rock River, and just north of the region's largest lake, Lake Koshkonong is much more than just a visit to dinner and play at the famous, Fireside Dinner Theater. Check out the new riverwalk along the Rock River and catch a bite at Brock's Riverwalk Tavern and Grill (Trip Advisor review), or treat yourself at Qet Botanicals retail store for their all natural, environmentally friendly, skin care products.

And, downtown Ft. Atkinson is an historic feast for architecture lovers, featuring mid to late 19th century commerce buildings many of the structures constructed out of Milwaukee's famous "Cream City" brick.

Places to visit on your Daytrip to Fort Atkinson

Over the years Lakes Edition journalists have covered attractions, places to eat, and shops in Ft. Atkinson and much more. Below are some of just a few of our favorites. Please enjoy!

Have a place in Ft. Atkinson you would like to recommend? Send us a line info@lakesedition.com

AREA ATTRACTIONS

Indian Mound County Park

Perched on o wooded hillside overlooking Lake Koshkonong, the Lake Koshkonong Effigy Mounds are a great way to spend the day around Fort Atkinson. Indian Mound County Park is a five acre historic and spiritual oasis featuring 11 mounds dating between 600 - 1200 A.D.

The name used on the interactive map to the right is "Indian Mound County Park."

(Photo courtesy of Wisconsin Historic Society)

Poetry Wall Murals

Internationally known author and poet, Lorine Niedecker is a Ft. Atkinson native and once resident fixture in the community literary scene. In honor of Niedecker's great works The Friends of Lorine Niedecker sponsored several public art projects featuring Lorine Niedecker’s writing in and around downtown Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin.

The Poetry Wall Locations Include:

The Poetry Wall at Sherman Ave. E installed in 2009 featuring her poem 'Paean To Place.'
The Poetry Wall at Sherman Ave. W installed in 2018 also featuring lines from the poem 'Paean To Place.
The Poetry Wall at South Water St. W installed in 2021 and featuring a Niedecker short poem with the lines: “Mergansers / fans / on their heads // Thoughts on things / fold unfold / above the river beds”.

Jones Market

The nationally known breakfast sausage brand is from Ft. Atkinson, and you can find the historic company's store near downtown across from Fireside Theater. The Jones family first arrived in the area around 1832, the same time as the Black Hawk War. In 1889 Milo Jones opened his dairy farm creating his famous sausage recipe to offer products to the local community. In 2019, Jones introduced their first organic products were introduced. Tours of Jones Dairy Farm which includes free samples, are popular with the Fireside Theater patrons.

The Jones Market is also on the bike trail which leads to the Ice Age Trail. And, in the warmer months of the year check out Seasonal Dairy Bar Walk-up Window, April 1st – September 1st with

Lunch Hours from 11am – 2pm.

The Jones Market is located at 601 Jones Avenue

Call for more information or set up a tour: (920)-563-2963 or visit the market's website https://shopjonesmarket.com/

The Fireside Dinner Theater

No visit to Fort Atkinson would be complete without a visit to the region's famous Fireside Playhouse Theater.

From the theatre's website: the Fireside Dinner Theater has been the premiere entertainment destination in the Midwest for superb musicals featuring Broadway performers, fine dining, and boutique shops in a one-of-a-kind setting. Consistently named as a top destination for travel tours across the United States.

For more information on The Fireside, visit firesidetheatre.com, or call .

Email: information@firesidetheatre.com

Phone: 1-800-477-9505

LAKE KOSHKONONG

Wide-open walleyes on Koshkonong, Wisconsin's eighth largest lake

by Jeff Brown

Posted from past Lakes Edition article

One hundred and sixty-nine years ago Lake Koshkonong was a vast marsh. sac, Fox, Potawatomi and Winnebago (Ho-chunk) tribes lived along its' shores and paddled along meadows of wild rice in birch-bark canoes to harvest rice, lake fish, ducks, and clams.

The water level rose significantly after the first dam was installed along the Rock River at Indianford in 1846, and the marsh became Wisconsin's eighth largest lake and a prime fishery, with walleye its' bread-and-butter. (More...)