82 topographic sheets cover 54 settlements here, and 36 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.
36 National Register listings published here · the county-history sources tell 2 stories and name 4 people · people the book names include History Of Dodge Count V. (Fox Lake Town, 1880) · I.E Hoy Toavnship (Leroy Town, 1880) (machine-read).
Sources: the county history on the Internet Archive · the National Register database, National Park Service
Among them: Disasters On Horicon Lake; A Beaver Dam Murder. These passages come from the identified county-history source books. Each inset names its own source and opens the exact section it comes from.
While Horicon Lake was a navigable body of water, two appalling calamities occurred upon it, recollections of which will ever remain fresh in the minds of the people of Dodge County. The firsi of these took place about four or five miles from the village of Horicon in July, 1857, a scow, containing a crew of seventeen men engaged in rafting logs from Chester bridge, being struck by lightning during a terrible hurricane.
The history of Beaver Dam is comparatively free from crime. In September, 1858, occurred, probably, the only deliberate murder that the local press has been called upon to chronicle. James M. Conklin, a disreputable character, and Simon Malone, having been engaged in a protracted family quarrel over the use of a well located on the line dividing their respective premises, the feud culminated in Conklin's insulting, and ill-treating members of Malone's family, after which he proceeded to a saloon on Front street, and, while standing at the bar drinking, having remarked in the presence of Malone that he would " drive the red-mouthed Irishman out of town,' the latter deliberately drew a revolver and shot Conklin in the back, the ball passing through his lungs, resulting in death within the next forty-eight hours.
Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.
Every wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 163 of them, burning about 5,634 acres. 5 started naturally and 23 were recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 56 |
| Debris and open burning | 55 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 23 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 13 |
| Recreation and ceremony | 6 |
| Natural | 5 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 2 |
| Railroad operations and maintenance | 2 |
| Fireworks | 1 |
The five largest, by the area the report gives. Three of them were set deliberately.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 April 2003 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,100 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 2 April 1994 | Arson/incendiarism | 1,015 acres | Horicon National Wildlife Refuge | SOMMERS |
| 5 April 2006 | Debris and open burning | 612 acres | Leopold Wetland Management District | COTTONWOOD WF |
| 10 April 2014 | Debris and open burning | 364 acres | Horicon National Wildlife Refuge | PETERS WF |
| 18 April 2002 | Natural | 360 acres | Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources | not named |
| 1 December 2002 | Arson/incendiarism | 325 acres | Horicon National Wildlife Refuge | PEACHY-MILLIGAN WILDFIRE |
| 21 September 2005 | Debris and open burning | 280 acres | Horicon National Wildlife Refuge | DNR CLARK'S DITCH |
| 24 April 2003 | Debris and open burning | 250 acres | Horicon National Wildlife Refuge | I-9 IMPOUNDMENT |
Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.
The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 621 reports for this county, causing no deaths, 53 injuries and about $58,422,950 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.
| Kind of event | Reports |
|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 281 |
| Hail | 197 |
| Tornado | 69 |
| Flash Flood | 22 |
| Funnel Cloud | 21 |
| Flood | 18 |
| Lightning | 8 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 |
The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 1980 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | 16 hurt, $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| May 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | Countywide | 8 hurt, $3,710,000 | no account filed |
| June 1977 | Tornado (F3) | not stated | 6 hurt, $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| April 1974 | Tornado (F3) | not stated | 6 hurt, $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Beaver Dam | 5 hurt | Wind gusts up to 40 mph (35 knots) accompanied a gust front through Southeast Wisconsin. The gusty winds snapped the tether holding a hot-air balloon causing it to roll along the ground. A passenger on the balloon suffered minor injuries, while 4 spectators on the ground were also injured. |
| April 1980 | Tornado (F3) | not stated | 4 hurt, $250,000 | no account filed |
| May 1966 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | 3 hurt, $250,000 | no account filed |
| May 2004 | Heavy Rain | Waupun | 2 hurt | no account filed |
| May 2025 | Tornado (EF2) | North Lowell | 1 hurt, $2,500,000 | Extensive damage path from this tornado which started southwest of Juneau, went through the north side of downtown Juneau, to the south of Horicon, hitting the Horicon Hills Golf Club, before ending east of Horicon along Highway 33. The most intense damage was in the city of Juneau where about 10 structures hit EF-2 levels of damage. The one minor injury from this tornado occurred in downtown Juneau where a man was sleeping in his bedroom when the roof blew off and a tree fell into the house. The Clearview facility had windows blown out and one housing building lost it's roof. Another residential building, which looked like a motel, lost a long section of its roof, but was poorly attached to the frame of the building. An empty silo was buckled on the east end of Home Rd with one cow having a two by four impaled into its back. At the Horicon Hill Golf Club, 165 trees were either uprooted or damaged extensively. Numerous golf carts were tipped or displaced and the main club house sustained extensive roof damage. |
| June 1984 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | 1 hurt, $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Watertown | 1 hurt, $10,000 | no account filed |
| June 2004 | Tornado (F3) | Waupun | $8,000,000 | This tornado was a continuation of the tornado that moved east-southeast from Markesan (Green Lake Co.) through the southwest corner of Fond du Lac County (civil Town of Alto). In Dodge County it maintained its F3 strength (175-200 mph) as it moved east-southeast through the city of Waupun and through rural areas of northern Dodge County to a point 2 miles southeast of Lomira, where it dissipated just west of U.S. Highway 41. Many homes and vehicles in the Dodge County portion of Waupun were damaged. Toward Lomira, several dozens of agricultural buildings and homes were damage. Numerous trees were uprooted from Waupun to near Lomira, and some crop damage was noted. Estimated damage in Waupun was about $3M, and $2.5M in the civil Towns of Lomira and Le Roy. Average path width was about 300 yards. |
| June 2008 | Flash Flood | Watertown | $6,570,000 | Heavy rains resulted in flash flooding across much of south-central Dodge County. Water depths on road surfaces reached 3 feet or more and there were gravel washouts. Some farm fields remained flooded into early July. The breakdown for residential home losses were: 75 with minor damage, and 7 destroyed (total of $4.065 million). The breakdown for business losses were: 12 with minor damage, 6 with major damage, and 2 destroyed (total of $1.1 million). Crop losses were estimated at 8 million. Public sector damage was about $1.4 million. There were several roads and bridges that sustained damage. |
| May 2025 | Tornado (EF2) | Horicon | $3,400,000 | Tornado began southwest of Mayville just west of Highway 28 which was also captured on video as a potential multi-vortex tornado. Some of the more intense damage occurred shortly after the tornado developed and crossed County Rd TW on into southwest Mayville in an industrial area. A farmhouse on Cty RW lost a portion of its roof and some farm sheds. The tornado then moved through the industrial area in southwest Mayville. The Mayville Engineering Company was hit on its northwest corner. The winds from the tornado breached a large garage door on the west side which then pushed the large north end wall down. The tornado then went through the Gleason Reel Corporation and destroyed the southern portion of the building. It then went through a neighborhood near the St. John/Graceland cemetary before crossing Main St/Rock River. The tornado then went through the east side of Mayville near the Mayville Golf Course. It then continued to the northeast through mainly rural areas before ending NW of Theresa. |
| April 2006 | Hail | Ashippun | $3,170,000 | no account filed |
| June 1978 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| April 1974 | Tornado (F3) | not stated | $2,500,000 | no account filed |
| June 2004 | Flash Flood | Randolph | $2,000,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Flash Flood | Reeseville | $1,900,000 | Heavy rains resulted in flash flooding across much of central Dodge County. Water depths on road surfaces reached 3 feet or more and there were gravel washouts. Some farm fields remained flooded into early July. The Rock and Crawfish Rivers set all-time crest records in June, 2008. The breakdown for residential home losses were: 8 with minor damage, and 3 destroyed (total of $1 million for home losses). The breakdown for business losses were: 3 with minor damage, and 5 with major damage (total of $100 thousand). Crop losses were estimated at 8 million. Public sector damage was about $184 thousand. There were a couple roads and bridges that sustained damage. |
| May 2025 | Tornado (EF1) | Dodge Co Arpt | $1,200,000 | Tornado began on the north end of the Dodge County Airport, damaging 5 airport hangars and one airplane. The tornado continued east and went through the far south side of Horicon near River Bend Park, causing mainly tree damage along the rest of its path along with some minor barn and housing damage. |
| June 2008 | Flash Flood | Lebanon | $1,200,000 | Heavy rains resulted in flash flooding over parts of southeastern Dodge County. Water depths on road surfaces reached 3 feet or more and there were gravel washouts. Some farm fields remained flooded into early July. The breakdown for residential home losses was: 10 with minor damage (total of $1 million). The breakdown for business losses was: 1 with minor damage (total of $100 thousand). Crop losses were estimated at 5 million. Public sector damage was about $100 thousand. There were a couple roads that sustained damage. |
| June 2000 | Tornado (F2) | Horicon | $1,110,000 | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Tornado (F1) | Fox Lake | $700,000 | A tornado spun up 4 miles north of Fox Lake in northwest Dodge County, and moved southeast through the grounds of the Fox Lake State Correctional Institute, before dissipating 4 miles east of Fox Lake. At the Correctional Institute, the tornado bent several fence sections, cut off power, burst two water mains, and smashed windows in the recreation hall. Security guards reported a "lifting" force and "popping ears" as the tornado passed overhead. Northeast and east of Fox Lake, the tornado destroyed 2 barns, severely damaged a third barn, and damaged 1 home, 3 silos, and 2 pole sheds. Although the maximum path width was 75 yards, the average path width was closer to 40 yards. |
| June 2008 | Flash Flood | Alderley | $462,000 | Heavy rains resulted in flash flooding across much of southeastern Dodge County. Water depths on road surfaces reached 3 feet or more and there were gravel washouts. Some farm fields remained flooded into early July. The breakdown for residential home losses was: 8 with minor damage (total of $200 thousand for home losses). The breakdown for business losses was: 1 with minor damage (total of $78 thousand). Crop losses were estimated at 8 million. Public sector damage was about $184 thousand. There were several roads and bridges that sustained damage. |
| May 1989 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| May 1989 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| June 1988 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| July 1984 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| August 1980 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| April 1980 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| April 1980 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| April 1976 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| September 1972 | Tornado (F1) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| June 1963 | Tornado (F2) | not stated | $250,000 | no account filed |
| June 2008 | Tornado (EF1) | South Randolph | $200,000 | This Dodge County tornado started in Columbia County, about 6 miles southeast of Cambria, and crossed into Dodge County where Beaver Creek crosses the county line. It moved east-northeast to point where CTH FW makes its closest approach to Rakes Bay. It then dissipated over the middle of Rakes Bay. In Dodge County, a home was damaged, a barn was severely damaged, and the top part of a silo was knocked off. Many large trees were uprooted and branched broken off. Also, some corn and soybean fields were damaged. The starting and ending locations for the Dodge County segment, with respect to lat/long pairs of numbers, were 43.49473/-89.00625 and 43.50617/-88.96057. DI#1 (SBO), DOD5. Wind speeds estimated at 95 mph. Average path width of the Dodge County segment was about 50 yards. |
| August 2007 | Flash Flood | Watertown | $200,000 | Heavy rain from thunderstorms resulted in scattered flash flood conditions in the Watertown to Rubicon area. Fast-flowing water depths of 1 to 2 feet were reported, as well as basement flood damage in about 50 homes. Several homes had water flowing in through windows as well as through wall cracks. There were reports of soil erosion and some crop damage. A resident on north side of Watertown picked up 1.84 of rain in 28 minutes, and a total of 3.22 inches from 4 pm to 520 pm. |
| September 1994 | Hail | Beaver Dam | $200,000 | Severe thunderstorms deposited hail up to the size of golf balls over parts of Dodge County. About 100 vehicles received hail damage in Beaver Dam, nearly 50 of them on one auto dealer's lot. |
| June 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | Beaver Dam | $200,000 | no account filed |
| August 2018 | Tornado (EF2) | Nasbro | $169,000 | Tornado was 1 of 19 tornadoes that occurred across central to east central Wisconsin on the afternoon of August 28th. This was the strongest tornado of the event and went just north of the Village of Brownsville. The worst damage was to a Canadian National Railway communications tower which was crumpled over. Widespread straight line winds caused significant tree and crop damage across the county as well. |
| May 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Farmersville | $165,000 | A microburst generated a 100 yard wide swath of tree and structural damage from just southeast of the Village of Farmersville northeast to Knowles. Wind gusts were estimated at 78 knots (90 mph). Damage included...2 barns down killing 7 cows, 4 sheds and 1 greenhouse destroyed, and 5 homes affected (minor damage). Also, about 150 trees were toppled or damaged. Heavy rainfall between 1.50 inches and 2.60 inches caused ponding of water on roads in the area. |
| May 2001 | Hail | Watertown | $150,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Juneau | $150,000 | no account filed |
| May 2025 | Tornado (EF1) | Reeseville | $135,000 | Track started southwest of Lowell and ended south of Juneau. Damage was mainly to about 30 trees, but there was barn damage along Fairwood Rd near the onset of the tornado and some roofing panels lofted from the Animix facility south of Juneau near the end of the tornado path. |
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Danville | $120,000 | Straight line wind damage collapsed the roofs of three old barns and partially collapsed the roof of a pole barn. Many large tree branches snapped and some whole trees downed. Many power lines down. Some fields of corn were laid over on an angle. |
| August 2007 | Flash Flood | Beaver Dam | $100,000 | Heavy rain from thunderstorms resulted in scattered flash flood conditions in the Beaver Dam to Horicon area. Fast-flowing water depths of 1 to 2 feet were reported, as well as basement flood damage in about 20 homes. Sandbagging occurred in Beaver Dam. There were reports of soil erosion and some crop damage. |
| September 2006 | Flash Flood | Watertown | $100,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Richwood | $100,000 | no account filed |
| June 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Iron Ridge | $100,000 | no account filed |
| June 1996 | Flash Flood | Reeseville | $100,000 | no account filed |
| April 2026 | Thunderstorm Wind | Fox Lake | $80,000 | Widespread reports of tree and powerline damage across the county. A barn 3 miles north of Lowell had the north wall blown in, while the barn door in the south end was torn off and blown into a field. There was a greater concentration of uprooted and snapped trees southeast of Neosho and near Ashippun, extending to the Washington County line. Some structural damage reported to small buildings. |
| November 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Hustisford | $75,600 | A squall line produced an estimated 100 mph downburst just east of Hustisford.|An equipment building had its roof removed with some walls collapsed. A calf shed was destroyed with large items within the shed displaced. The town hall had minor damage to its roof and the flag pole was bent. A wooden power pole was snapped and some shingles were removed from a home. About a dozen trees were downed with some being snapped and some uprooted. One tree fell on a home and some corn was damaged. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Juneau | $75,000 | Powerful thunderstorms winds knocked down large trees, and blew a barn down south-southwest of Juneau. A maximum wind gust of 71 knots (82 mph) was measured at the Dodge County Airport (KUNU) just north of Juneau. |
| August 2001 | Lightning | Farmersville | $75,000 | no account filed |
| July 2007 | Lightning | Mayville | $60,000 | Lightning struck a barn on Morris Rd., resulting in a fire that destroyed the structure, as well as a 1994 vehicle parked inside. An adjacent small shed also had a small fire that was quickly extinguished. |
| April 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Watertown | $55,000 | no account filed |
| June 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Mayville | $50,000 | Numerous trees and power lines down throughout Mayville. Some trees uprooted, others snapped. A large tree on a house and trees down on vehicles. City Works Department using front end loaders to clear the streets from fallen trees. |
| May 2011 | Lightning | Beaver Dam | $50,000 | A house was damaged in the 500 block of west Burnett Street in Beaver Dam by lightning that struck a nearby tree and traveled through the ground into the house. The resulting fire caused $50,000 in damage to the structure. Two firefighters were injured (indirectly-related) when a portion of the ceiling collapsed in the home. |
| June 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Randolph | $50,000 | Trees down. Some structural damage. |
| July 2005 | Thunderstorm Wind | Waupun | $50,000 | Barn blown down. |
| July 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Randolph | $50,000 | no account filed |
The Survey's mineral resources record lists 30 workings inside this county. 7 still produce and 23 are closed or unrecorded. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.
| Commodity | Workings |
|---|---|
| Sand and Gravel, Construction | 13 |
| Stone, Crushed/Broken | 8 |
| Iron | 3 |
| Stone | 3 |
| Calcium | 2 |
| Iron, Copper, Lead | 1 |
The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mayville Mine | Iron, Copper, Lead | Past Producer | 1892, 1928 | |
| Mayville White Lime Quarry | Calcium | Producer | ||
| Western Lime-Knowles Quarry | Calcium | Producer | ||
| City of Watertown Quarry | Stone | Unknown | ||
| Farmersville Quarry | Stone | Unknown | ||
| Iron Ridge Mine | Iron | Past Producer | 1849, 1914 | |
| Iron Ridge Mine | Iron | Past Producer | 1849 | |
| Mayville Mine | Iron | Past Producer | 1892 | |
| Watertown Quarry | Stone | Unknown | ||
| Budde-Miller Quarries | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| C C Linck Garage Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Farmersville Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Helen H Westphal Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Kohloff Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Martin Kaddatz Gravel Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Producer | ||
| Miller Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Sherwood Quarry | Stone, Crushed/Broken | Past Producer | ||
| Allen Rudolph Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Bartosch Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Bohnert Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Dodge County Hwy. Dept. | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown | ||
| Horicon Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| J Madigan Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Kranich Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Linck-Henes Construction Co., Inc. | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Merget Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Multhauf Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Roll Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Sanitary Transfer & Landfll Inc Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Past Producer | ||
| Schmidt Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Unknown |
The History of Dodge County, Wisconsin, Containing ... Its Early Settlement, Growth ... an Extensive and Minute Sketch of Its Cities ... War Record, Biographical Sketches devotes a chapter to each township: its boundaries and streams, who settled it and when, the mills, the schools and the churches. All 24 are reproduced here in full. Each row shows the township's own shape and where it lies in the county, drawn from the Census Bureau's boundary. Which settlements belong to which township is computed from that same boundary, not taken from the book.
One book written about this county, cut here where the book itself is cut, at its printed chapters: 6 chapters in all. Every chapter is public domain, machine-read from the scan and reproduced complete. A chapter already given under one of the county's towns is not repeated in this list.
| Chapter | Length |
|---|---|
| Chapter with an unread heading (no. 1 of those read) | 172,041 words in 11 parts |
| Chapter 1 | 8,232 words |
| Chapter 2 | 13,023 words |
| Chapter 3 | 9,533 words |
| Chapter 10: Watertoayn | 4,385 words |
| Villages | 8,639 words |
Everyone The History of Dodge County, Wisconsin, Containing ... Its Early Settlement, Growth ... an Extensive and Minute Sketch of Its Cities ... War Record, Biographical Sketches stops to write about, with the section that describes them. Among them are the men who founded the place and governed the Territory. Each name opens the passage itself, in the words of 1880.
Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.
Beaver Dam city · 53916 · Near Cuba Island · Beaver Dam quadrangle
11 sheets, 1955 to 1991
Beaver Dam town · 53916 · Near Little Skunk Island · Beaver Dam quadrangle
11 sheets, 1955 to 1991
Fox Lake town · 53933 · Near Moon Island · Fox Lake quadrangle
8 sheets, 1955 to 1980
Hustisford town · 53034 · On Wildcat Creek · Hustisford quadrangle
9 sheets, 1955 to 1991
Iron Ridge village · 53035 · On Lentz Creek · Mayville South quadrangle
10 sheets, 1955 to 1991
Kekoskee village · 53050 · On Gill Creek · Mayville North quadrangle
10 sheets, 1955 to 1981
Fox Lake town · 53933 · Near McFetridge Island · Fox Lake quadrangle
8 sheets, 1955 to 1980
Calamus town · 53916 · Near Neilson Island · Lost Lake quadrangle
10 sheets, 1955 to 1991
Beaver Dam town · 53916 · Near Kirsch Island · Buckhorn Corner quadrangle
8 sheets, 1955 to 1980
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