The room is filled with some of the most recognizable pieces of Wisconsin history.
Scott Roller, collections manager for the Wisconsin Historical Society, adds polyethylene glycol to a tank holding a pair of ancient Native American dugout canoes and pieces from other canoes recovered from Lake Mendota. The two-year glycol process that started in February 2024 at the State Archive Preservation Facility is designed to push water out of the ancient wood so that the canoes can one day be put on permanent display. And yes, that's an Oscar Mayer Wienermobile in the background.
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A 1957 CorrectCraft boat designed for the former Tommy Bartlett Water Show in Wisconsin Dells shares space in a room at the State Archive Preservation Facility in Madison with a conservation tank that holds the remains of ancient canoes found in Lake Mendota. The canoes and canoe pieces will remain in the tank of water and polyethylene glycol for another year before they are freeze-dried in spring 2026 at Texas A&M University.
Samantha Sauer, director of collections care and access at the Wisconsin Historical Society, positions a camera for a livestream Friday at the State Archive Preservation Facility in Madison showing one of the final steps for conserving the canoes and canoe pieces.
Wisconsin State Archaeologist Amy Rosebrough, right, talks with Lisa Yeh of the Wisconsin Historical Society as they watch polyethylene glycol dribble into a conservation tank holding ancient canoes and canoe pieces.
Polyethylene glycol is added to a tank holding a pair of ancient Native American dugout canoes and pieces of other canoes recovered from Lake Mendota.Â
Tamara Thomsen, a marine archaeologist with the Wisconsin Historical Society, with the tank that holds the ancient canoes and canoe pieces she found in Lake Mendota between 2021 and 2023.
Photos: Dugout canoe recovered from Lake Mendota after 1,200 years
Dugout canoe
Randy Wallander, a volunteer diver from Manitowoc, unloads gear for the dive. Wallander specializes in bringing up sunken objects, usually in Lake Michigan.
Dugout canoe
Members of the dive team from the Dane County Sheriff's Office were among those who took part in Tuesday's dive near Shorewood Hills.
Dougout canoe
Divers prepare to remove a 1,200-year-old dugout canoe from Lake Mendota on Tuesday.
Dugout canoe
Dugout canoe
Divers converged on Lake Mendota Tuesday to recover a dugout canoe that hadn't been to the surface in 1,200 years.
Dugout canoe
Tamara Thomsen, a maritime archaeologist who discovered the Native American dugout canoe in June in Lake Mendota, celebrates the recovery Tuesday with Jim Skibo, Wisconsin's state archaeologist. The canoe was placed in an enclosed trailer for its trip from Spring Harbor Beach to the State Archive Preservation Facility on Madison's Near East Side.
Dugout canoe
Spectators watch as a 1,200-year-oid dugout canoe makes its way across Lake Mendota to Spring Harbor Beach.
Dugout canoe
A 1,200-year-old dugout canoe was raised from Lake Mendota Tuesday by the Wisconsin Historical Society. The canoe was discovered in June during a recreational dive and is the oldest intact boat ever recovered from Wisconsin waters. The canoe will undergo preservation efforts over the next two years before it can be displayed in a museum.
Dugout canoe
Spectators watch as a 1,200-year-oid dugout canoe crafted by members of the Native American Ho-Chunk tribe from Lake Mendota near Spring Harbor Beach in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021. JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Dugout canoe
A dugout canoe crafted in A.D. 800 was towed for most of its 1-mile trip to shore but guided by divers in shallow water for the final 100 yards or so to Spring Harbor Beach.
Dugout canoe
Bystanders watch as yellow floats are used to bring a dugout canoe to Spring Harbor Beach. The 1-mile trip took nearly two hours.
Dugout canoe
Tamara Thomsen, a maritime archaeologist who discovered the Native American dugout canoe in June in Lake Mendota, celebrates the recovery Tuesday with Jim Skibo, Wisconsin's state archaeologist. The canoe was placed in an enclosed trailer for its trip from Spring Harbor Beach to the State Archive Preservation Facility on Madison's Near East Side.
Dugout canoe
A 1,200-year-old dugout canoe was raised from Lake Mendota Tuesday by the Wisconsin Historical Society. The canoe was discovered in June during a recreational dive and is the oldest intact boat ever recovered from Wisconsin waters. The canoe will undergo preservation efforts over the next two years before it can be displayed in a museum.
Dugout canoe
A dugout canoe crafted in A.D. 800 was towed for most of its 1-mile trip to shore but guided by divers in shallow water for the final 100 yards or so to Spring Harbor Beach.
