Weird Wisconsin

Whitewater, Wisconsin, has a reputation for witch legends, spiritualism and haunted places. Among its most recognizable landmarks is the Hamilton House, a Victorian mansion with a history stretching back to 1861 and ghost stories that have followed it for generations.

But what was it like to actually live there?

In episode six of Weird Wisconsin, the first installment of Wisconsin's Most Haunted, I explore the history and reported hauntings of this 23-room house through someone who called it home.

DJ Phoenix lived in the Hamilton House from 1974 to 1983 while his family operated an antique business downstairs. He recalls unexplained activity throughout the house, a boy who appeared in his bedroom, a doll whose eyes seemed to glow red, and a photograph he believes captured two spirits. He also shares the increasingly troubling experiences that ultimately led his family to leave.

Carol Cartwright, president of the Whitewater Historical Society, provides the historical perspective. She traces the house's owners, explains how Whitewater's spiritualist history became entangled with its witch legends, and examines claims of secret tunnels connected to the Underground Railroad.

Some details have historical support. Others remain unverified. Together, these accounts explore the history, folklore and deeply personal experiences behind one of Whitewater's best-known haunted houses.

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Featured in This Episode: DJ Phoenix Antique dealer, toy collector and former Hamilton House resident Website

Carol Cartwright President, Whitewater Historical Society Website

Episode Artwork by Rachal Duggan Instagram Website

Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Website

Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, Wisconsin shuts down public gathering places during the 1918 influenza pandemic, and exactly 39 years later Milwaukee celebrates a World Series championship. We'll also revisit the bizarre Eagle Diamond case, where a woman sold a stone for $1 only to discover it was one of the largest diamonds ever found in America.

And finally, we head to Milwaukee in 1912, where Theodore Roosevelt is shot in the chest before a campaign speech and decides to speak for roughly 80 minutes anyway.

Explore this week's event:

Halloween Legends & Lore at Old World Wisconsin Tickets

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Website

Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, we dig into the bizarre early history of Bucky Badger, including the live badger that kept escaping and a raccoon named Regdab that somehow became part of the mascot story. We'll also revisit a major 1962 civil rights protest in Madison, the 1912 American Grand Prix raced on public roads around Milwaukee, the flood that nearly erased downtown Black River Falls, and the Milwaukee Police Band's unlikely path from whistling officers to performing with John Philip Sousa.

And finally, we look back at the Peshtigo Fire of October 8, 1871, the deadliest wildfire in American history.

Explore this week's events:

Spiritualism in the Victorian Era at Black Point Estate October 2 in Lake Geneva

Bayfield Apple Festival October 2–4 in Bayfield

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Website

Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, Manitowoc holds an actual funeral for a steamship, Wisconsin's most famous Civil War eagle gets honored at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, and the very first Smokey Bear costume makes its public debut in Wausau.

We'll also revisit the first regular-season game played at what became Lambeau Field, the Treaty of La Pointe, and Wisconsin's very first State Fair—where one of the biggest attractions was a 200-pound squash.

And if that somehow isn't weird enough, Mount Horeb is also preparing to burn a giant troll.

Explore this week's event:

Burning Troll September 26 near Mount Horeb

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Instagram

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A viral story claims cranberry growers release spiders into their marshes to control pests and that workers must be screened for arachnophobia before wading into the water.

The story is a lie. But Wisconsin's cranberry marshes are definitely not spider-free.

When growers flood a cranberry bed for harvest, spiders hidden among the vines rise with the water and travel across its surface toward the safety of the dikes. For a brief moment, several acres of spiders can become concentrated in one place.

But they are not attacking workers, laying eggs on people or being deliberately released. The reality of Wisconsin's cranberry marshes is far more complicated and fascinating than the internet makes it sound.

In this episode, we investigate how the viral story began, how cranberries are actually grown and what really happens to the spiders when a marsh is flooded. We also explore why wild cranberry wetlands can contain far more spiders than commercial marshes and whether those spiders actually help control agricultural pests.

Cranberry grower John Stauner takes us inside the ecosystem of James Lake Farms. Dr. Michael Draney, professor and curator of the Richter Museum of Natural History at UW-Green Bay, explains the remarkable diversity of spiders living in Wisconsin wetlands. USDA cranberry entomologist Shawn Steffan reveals what decades of research tell us about the complicated role those predators play in a working marsh.

Together, they help us separate viral fiction from the fascinating reality beneath Wisconsin's cranberry marshes.

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Learn More:

James Lake Farms 📍Three Lakes, Wisconsin Website

Dr. Michael Draney UW-Green Bay

Shawn Steffan UW Entomology

Episode Artwork by Rachal Duggan Instagram Website

Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Website

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Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, we dive into three Lake Michigan disasters, including a shipwreck still carrying its iron ore and a schooner that floated upside down for nearly two weeks. We'll also revisit one of Green Bay's largest fires, the recovery of a 3,000-year-old canoe from Lake Mendota, and one of the darkest cases in Wisconsin conservation warden history.

Thankfully, we'll balance all of that out with three days devoted entirely to cheese—and a parade led by actual cows.

Explore this week's event:

Green County Cheese Days September 18–20 in Monroe

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Instagram

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For more than 150 years, a 1,600-pound piece of Ireland has been sitting in the foundation of Saint Bernard's Church in Watertown, Wisconsin.

The stone came from the Rock of Cashel, one of Ireland's most famous historic sites. According to legend, the rock was created when Saint Patrick banished the devil from a nearby mountain. While escaping, the devil transformed into a winged giant, bit off part of the mountaintop, broke his teeth and spat the rock ten miles across Ireland.

But how did a piece of that rock end up in Wisconsin?

In this episode, we trace the stone's journey from Ireland to Watertown. Its story involves a Civil War chaplain, a collapsed medieval tower, a debate in British Parliament and a three-month journey across the Atlantic.

When the stone was finally placed into the church's foundation in 1873, as many as 10,000 people gathered to witness it. Then, somewhere along the way, almost everyone forgot it was there.

With help from Irish historian Dr. Thomas Patrick Nelligan and Marquette University historian Dr. Timothy McMahon, we uncover the history, folklore and nearly forgotten meaning behind Wisconsin's stone from the devil's mouth.

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Learn More:

The Standing Stone with Dr. Thomas Patrick Nelligan Website

Dr. Timothy G. McMahon Marquette University

Rock of Cashel 📍Cashel, County Tipperary, Ireland Visitor Information

Saint Bernard's Church 📍Watertown, Wisconsin Website

Episode Artwork by Rachal Duggan Instagram Website

Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Website

If you enjoyed this episode, follow the Weird Wisconsin Podcast on your favorite podcast app, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who loves Wisconsin history, mysteries and folklore.

Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, we uncover how the remnants of the deadly Galveston hurricane reached Wisconsin, look back at the first automobile race at the Milwaukee Mile, do some goat yoga at a historic stagecoach stop, explore a piece of medieval Ireland hidden in Watertown, and dive into two recently recognized Door County shipwrecks. We'll also revisit John Muir's Wisconsin roots and one of the state's forgotten aviation pioneers.

Along the way, I'll also point you toward a few places and events where you can experience these stories for yourself.

Explore this week's events:

Goat Yoga at Wade House https://calendar.wisconsinhistory.org/events/month/2026-09/

Wisconsin's John Muir Exhibit https://calendar.wisconsinhistory.org/events/month/2026-09/

Stone Age Astronaut Book Launch at Boswell Book Company https://calendar.wisconsinhistory.org/events/month/2026-09/ 🎧 Listen everywhere

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Instagram

Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, we head to Prairie du Sac for the wonderfully ridiculous Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw, revisit the deadly 1860 sinking of the Lady Elgin on Lake Michigan, and uncover the story of the Phoenix, a burning steamship carrying Dutch immigrants to Wisconsin in 1847.

Along the way, I'll also point you toward a couple of places and events where you can experience these stories for yourself.

Explore this week's events:

Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw & Festival https://wiscowchip.com/

Wisconsin Maritime Museum — Think & Drink: Tragedy of the Phoenix https://www.wisconsinmaritime.org/event/think-drink-tragedy-of-the-phoenix/

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Instagram

Welcome back to This Week in Weird Wisconsin, a weekly mini episode highlighting the people, places, and events that happened during this week in Wisconsin history.

This week, we look back at the massive gathering of Civil War veterans that took over Milwaukee, raise a glass to Wisconsin's first governor, uncover the incredible story of the passenger pigeon's extinction, revisit the devastating Labor Day tornadoes of 2002, and find out how a treaty signed in Paris helped shape the future of Wisconsin.

Along the way, I'll also point you toward a few places you can visit to experience some of these stories for yourself. 🎧 Listen everywhere

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Original Theme by Tyler Quinn Instagram