The gravity of the pandemic hit Maria Hanson much earlier than most everyone else in Dane County.
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Picturing a pandemic: See the last year through the eyes of the Wisconsin State Journal's photographers
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Hanah Jon Taylor plays the saxophone outside his jazz club, Cafe Coda on Williamson Street in Madison on March 21, 2020. The cafe was ordered to close along with bars and restaurants across the state.
Orpheum closure
In hindsight, the sign on the Orpheum Theater on State Street in Downtown Madison, pictured here on March 23, 2020, was overly optimistic. Closures of theaters, restaurants, bars and other businesses would stretch well beyond March.
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A window decorated by Amina Diallo, 10, at her home in Deforest offers support to essential workers continuing their duties in the midst of the pandemic. Part of a nationwide effort to show appreciation for those whose careers are required during the global health crisis, each color represents a different line of work. Among the groups included are health care workers, of which her mother, BethAnn Soiliman-Abdalla, a nurse, is included. She is pictured at her home on April 1, 2020.
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Dr. Matt Nolan shares an "air hug" with his son Condict, 3, outside the family’s home in Madison on April 2, 2020, as his wife, Dr. Maggie Nolan, holds their son Arthur, 1, with Charlotte, 6, nearby.
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Doug Milks clean voting booths after they were used at East High School on April 7, 2020.
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Town of Dunn resident Robert Wilson reviews his selections on his ballot while voting at the town's highway garage building on April 7, 2020.
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Family members and friends of Donald Harrop celebrate his 103rd birthday through a closed doorway at the Milestone Senior Living Center in Cross Plains on April 24, 2020. Born in 1917, Harrop has now experienced two pandemics, the Spanish Flu of 1918, and the current COVID-19 crisis.
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A statue of Abraham Lincoln, a traditional gathering spot for photos of graduates at UW-Madison remains fenced-off to visitors as the university takes precautions against the spread of the COVID-19 virus on May 7, 2020.
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UW-Madison graduates, from left, Jacob Tottleben, of St. Louis, Lindsey Fischer, of La Crosse, and Olivia Gonzalez, of Milwaukee, open bottles of champagne at the State and Park Street crosswalk to celebrate after watching their virtual spring commencement ceremony on the rooftop of Fischer's apartment on May 9, 2020.
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Jeff Langner, right, works with Patricia Grillot, Madison, on finding the shoes on the first day that Morgan Shoes was open again on May 12, 2020.
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Lynn DuPree, front, and John Burgar, both of Madison, use slot machines that have protective dividers between them at Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison in Madison on June 9, 2020.
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Dan Tortorice, center, with his grandchildren, Aria Oettiker, 9, left, and her brother, Anthony, 6, during a visit to Vilas Zoo on June 18, 2020, the first day of the reopening since it closed due to the pandemic.
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Members of the UW-Madison marching band wear face coverings and play instruments with bell covers during a limited capacity practice session on the campus on Aug. 27, 2020.
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With students seated at a distance from each other, UW-Madison philosophy professor Harry Brighouse leads a discussion in an Ingraham Hall lecture room on Sept. 1, 2020.
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A sign in a window at Sellery Hall, one of two residence halls at UW-Madison that were on day one of a 14-day quarantine on Sept., 10, 2020.
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Pastor Karla Renee Garcia holds a service in the parking lot at S.S. Morris Community AME Church on Milwaukee Street in Madison on Sept. 13, 2020.
Wearing masks
A largely foreign concept in the U.S. before the pandemic, the custom of wearing a mask to protect others when you're sick might remain.
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Election Day voting at Olbrich Botanical Gardens on Nov., 3, 2020.
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Kate Dale, left, and her sister, Meg Prestigiacomo, with a picture of their mother, Anne Heine, who died from COVID-19 in July on her 73rd birthday, outside Prestigiacomo's home in Madison on Nov. 19, 2020.
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Members of the Lodi basketball team spread out on the bleachers when not playing, during a game against New Glarus at Lodi High School in Lodi on Dec. 11, 2020.
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Members of the Wisconsin Badgers volleyball team celebrate a point during the second set of a season-opening Big Ten matchup against Purdue at the Wisconsin Fieldhouse on Jan. 22, 2021.

