Manitowoc in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Sputnik IV Crashed Here

Sputnik Strikes Manitowoc September 5, 1962

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, July 28, 2024

1. Sputnik IV Crashed Here Marker

Inscription. It is a clear early September night. Suddenly the Northeastern Wisconsin sky is alight. Around four o'clock in the morning, residents throughout the state call to report flashes and streaks overhead. What they don't know is that the Soviet Sputnik IV spaceship is disintegrating as it hurtles through the earth's atmosphere. As dawn reaches Manitowoc, the city will find itself briefly as the unlikely focal point of the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Sputnik IV crashed to earth on September 5, 1962. The largest recovered piece was found in the early hours of that morning by Manitowoc Police Officers Ronald Rusboldt and Marvin Bausch in the center of North 8th Street. A brass ring on the center lines now indicates the point of impact. For more information on Manitowoc's Sputnik story and to see a cast of the recovered piece created by NASA, please enter the Rahr-West Art Museum.

Erected by Rahr-West Art Museum.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Air & Space • Disasters • War, Cold. A significant historical date for this entry is September 5, 1962.

Location. 44° 5.939′ N, 87° 39.472′ W. Marker is in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, in Manitowoc County. It is on North 8th Street, on the right when traveling

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south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 610 N 8th Street, Manitowoc WI 54220, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Wisconsin’s Door Peninsula.

It is also in the American Midwest,

on the Great Lakes,

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Sputnik IV (here, next to this marker); Vilas - Rahr Mansion (within shouting distance of this marker); Union Park (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); G.W. Fechter Stationery (approx. 0.3 miles away); Manitowoc Motor Hotel (approx. 0.4 miles away); O. Torrison & Co. (approx. 0.4 miles away); Manitowoc Submarines (approx. 0.4 miles away); First Landing (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Manitowoc.

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, July 28, 2024

2. Sputnik IV Crashed Here Marker

Sputnik Plaza image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, July 28, 2024

3. Sputnik Plaza

The plaza of the Rahr-West Art Museum features an outline of Sputnik IV.

Sputnik IV Debris Replica image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, July 28, 2024

4. Sputnik IV Debris Replica

A replica of the piece of space debris that struck Manitowoc may be found inside the Rahr-West Art Museum.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 11, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 25, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. This page has been viewed 367 times since then and 73 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on April 11, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 25, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.