The new Wisconsin History Center, projected to open in 2027 on the Capitol Square in Madison, will be a 100,000 square foot facility drawing an estimated 200,000 visitors a year, including 60,000 school children. A grant from the Fund will support a 600 square foot Underwater Archaeology Exhibit.

The exhibit will feature a central interactive shipwreck display, an artifact for each wreck, and videos of the wrecks shown in a purpose-built theater. A digital shipwreck table shaped like Wisconsin will highlight five underwater wrecks, four of which sank in Lake Michigan, allowing guests to explore photographs and 3D mapping models of each site. The Fund has supported the Underwater Archeology departments work in the past, and we believe that the human stories of Lake Michigan, particularly its shipwrecks, are a powerful tool for deepening the public’s connection to the lake and building long-term support for its protection.