Bear Mound Park, Madison

Bear Mound Park is a quiet and historic one-acre green space. Despite its modest size, the park is nationally significant as the site of a large bear-shaped effigy mound, constructed by Native peoples during the Late Woodland period, roughly 700 to 1200 AD. The bear effigy originally featured a full complement of appendages-although part of one rear leg was lost during early road construction.

Effigy mounds like the one here were built by ancestors of today’s Ho-Chunk Nation and other Woodland cultures. They shaped them in animals such as bears, birds, lizards, and panthers-each holding deep spiritual symbolism: the bear, in particular, is thought to have represented earth and life through its connection to people. These earthen sculptures often served sacred or ceremonial functions and are now protected by policies informed by the Wisconsin Historical Society and tribal partners, including the Ho-Chunk Nation.

In 1975 the mound was designated a City of Madison landmark and later listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Vilas Circle Bear Effigy Mound and Curtis Mounds group. It's one of the few intact animal effigy mounds remaining within city limits, with only fragments of original linear mounds from the Curtis group surviving nearby on private property.