Fond du Lac, WI

The city of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, is situated at the southern end of Lake Winnebago, in the east-central region of the state. The name is derived from the French, and means "bottom of the lake." The city is well-known for its numerous outdoor recreation opportunities.

Oddly, Fond du Lac is also famous for its lottery winners. Indeed, a stretch of stores on South Main Street in the downtown area has been deemed "the Miracle Mile," due to the fact that many state lottery winners have purchased their tickets there. In the 1990s, several Main Street stores sold multimillion-dollar tickets, including one $208.6 million Powerball ticket in August of 2006. The Powerball ticket was claimed by 100 cheese factory workers.

ECONOMY AND INDUSTRIES

The leading industries in Fond du Lac are manufacturing, education, health and social services and retail. Companies that have offices in the city include ACNielsen, Charter Communications, Mercury Marine and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Saint Agnes Hospital began treating patients in 1896. The facility is located on East Division Street and specializes in cancer treatment, comprehensive healthcare service, laser surgery and 24-hour emergency care.

NEIGHBORHOODS AND DISTRICTS

Fond du Lac has 14 constituent neighborhoods. The most expensive neighborhood is located on the eastern side of the city near the towns of Taycheedah and Silica. The least expensive homes are near the downtown area, by Main and Scott streets.

The city accommodates 17,570 houses, out of which 16,670 are occupied. Owners occupy 10,345 houses and renters occupy 6,330 houses.

GETTING AROUND

Although no interstates run near the city, Fond du Lac is traversed by numerous roadways:

• U.S. Route 45, also called Lakeshore Drive, travels along the northern side of Lake Winnebago, down into the middle of the city, and then through the southeastern part of Fond du Lac.
• U.S. Route 41 is another busy thoroughfare that crosses through the northern and western parts of the city.
• U.S. Route 51 covers the western and northern edges of town, edging up the eastern part of the lake.

For public transportation, Fond du Lac Area Transit offers eight bus routes that travel around the city. The city itself is the smallest urbanized city in the country that operates a fixed-route public transit system.

Operated by the county, the Fond du Lac County Airport is on the western part of town on Rolling Meadows Drive. Offering charter flights and a pilot school, the airport also features a scenic, half-hour plane ride for visitors.

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

• CCC Barracks Museum: The CCC workers, or Civilian Conservation Corps, were employed in the 1930s during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "New Deal" program. The program was meant to put young men to work during a time of economic hardship. This museum honors these young men by displaying artifacts and educational exhibits relating to the era.
• Galloway House and Village: situated on Old Pioneer Road, this sprawling mansion was originally a farmhouse. It has four fireplaces and numerous pieces of original furniture.
• Octagon House: Built in 1856 and originally intended to be an Indian fort, this house on Linden Street was once home to an Underground Railroad stop. The 12-room home has nine passageways and a hand-dug underground tunnel. Visitors can tour the rooms and passageways on their own or enjoy one of the guided tours.

FAMILY FUN

• Lakeside Park: Visitors can enjoy the Lakeside Park Lighthouse, as well as views of the city, from the park's observation deck. Lagoons, gardens and covered bridges adorn the majestic park.
• Lake Winnebago: At approximately 137,700 acres, the lake allows for numerous water activities, including fishing, sailing, wind surfing and ice fishing. As the nation's second-largest, inland, freshwater lake, Winnebago is 28 miles long and 11 miles wide. Adventuresome travelers can partake in the Lake Winnebago Road Trip, in which they traverse the entire lake by car.
• The Historic Schmidt Sample Room is a historical site where Carrie Nation, a member of the temperance movement, got into a heated argument with a customer and used her famous hatchet to break a whiskey bottle. Located in downtown Fond du Lac on the corner of Main and Division Street, the site is marked by a wooden sign that reads, "Historic Schmidt Sample Room, Scene Of The Famous Carrie Nation Hatchet Swinging Episode, July 18, 1902."

EVENTS

• Walleye Weekend: This three-day, fish-based festival in June was born in 1978 to celebrate Lakeside Park and the nearby Lake Winnebago fishery. Since then, the festival has grown to more than 100,000 annual visitors, making it the second-largest festival in the state.
• Fond du Lac Jazz Festival: Held in Marian University's Sadoff Gymnasium, the annual festival is held on a Friday and Saturday in November. As the oldest jazz festival in the state, Fond du Lac's festival brings in the world's best jazz artists to perform during a Saturday night concert.

EDUCATION

• Marian University is a four-year Catholic university. The campus sits in the residential area of Fond du Lac. Its athletic teams participate in the NCAA Division III sports and in the Northern Athletics Conference.
• The University of Wisconsin-Fond du Lac is a two-year, freshman/sophomore campus. After students finish their first year at the college, they become eligible to transfer to another University of Wisconsin school or to other colleges and universities across the country to complete their bachelor's degrees. The campus is located on the northeast side of Fond du Lac.

LOCAL MEDIA

Fond du Lac is served by the Fond du Lac Reporter, a daily newspaper, and the Action Advertiser, an advertising paper.