Steam Drills Get the Lead of Out of Platteville - Literally!

In the late 1600s European traders on the upper Mississippi River began bartering with the natives. One of the more valuable traded assets was lead ore mined near Dubuque, Iowa. Later, more lead was discovered in nearby limestone deposits. One of these locations was in present day Platteville, Wisconsin. Here the lead mining business was centered for many years from the late 1800s through mid-1900s.

A relic from the lead mining heyday is this steam powered rock drill pictured above. It was made by the Ingersoll Drilling Company and is on display in front of Wisconsin's first state normal school (a college for teachers.) In 1905 the building was the home to the Wisconsin Mining Trade School.

Platteville's extensive mining history is visible throughout the town. An extensive Mining Museum complete with a gas-powered train (ore carts) and a portion of an actual lead mine can be toured. There you can observe the transition from pick and axe mining to steam powered rock drilling that helped get the lead out (and zinc) of the Platteville area. Know that.

New Amish Arrivals in Wisconsin

A lone Amish buggy trots near Platteville, Wisconsin on Father's Day 2009. Since the year 2000 hundreds of Amish families have moved from Pennsylvania to southwest Wisconsin. The main reasons seem to be the much lower price of farm land and the lure of rural settings of the Midwest - away from the growing metro centers in the East. On this day a young man in black, duster-like rain gear navigates the rolling prairie, passing other wet Amish-worked fields. Know that.

Climbing Platteville, Wisconsin's Mighty M

Just to the east of Platteville, Wisconsin is a rise of land off the prairie with a gigantic white "M" on it, facing to the west. You can see it for miles, in fact you can see it from Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois. After several trips past the 241 foot tall M over the years we decided to get closer and snap a few photos.

At the base of the whitewashed stone and concrete M completed by students in 1937 from the nearby University of Wisconsin-Platteville, School of Mines (mining is no longer offered at the school) is a picnic table and a set of stairs leading to the top of the hill. After climbing 266 named-stairs by financial donors you can see the midwestern prairie stretching for miles. If you take your time - and an oxygen tank - you can climb the stairs stopping at three lookout posts along the way. Consider the lookouts as basecamps. At the top of the climb is a large platform for scenery viewing including a freestanding set of binoculars (no charge to view through it.)

The best part of the journey up is the outstanding view of the rolling country side. To the south is Amish country where you can see horse and buggies and well-kept farms. To the west is Platteville. Ironically you cannot readily see the M once you are on top of the hill (see photo above.) The other best part of the journey up is the much easier descent. Know that.