Near Alma Center in Jackson County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Silver Mound

Photographed by Keith L, October 26, 2007

1. Silver Mound Marker

Inscription. This large, isolated hill is a famous site where prehistoric Indians gathered to quarry a particularly attractive quartzite for the manufacture of chipped stone tools. Several aboriginal quarries are scattered along the rimrock of this mound. Thousands of tons of waste rock from these pits indicate that quarrying was carried on selectively over many centuries.

Fields surrounding this mound are littered with quartzite fragments and flakes which accumulated during the process of making and shaping trade blanks for transportation to outlying areas. Stone spearpoints, knives, and scrapers made from this colorful material have a wide distribution throughout Wisconsin and portions of nearby states.

It is known that the earliest Indians who migrated into the midwest, perhaps 10-12,000 years ago, made many spearpoints and knives from rock quarried here; thus this site is one of Wisconsin's oldest archeological monuments.

History relates that the first white explorers mistakenly thought that the Indians were mining silver. Hence the name "Silver Mound."

Erected 1977 by the Wisconsin Historical Society. (Marker Number 240.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Indigenous Peoples and Communities

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

• Natural Resources. In addition, it is included in the National Historic Landmarks, and the Wisconsin Historical Society series lists.

Location. 44° 26.201′ N, 90° 56.918′ W. Marker is near Alma Center, Wisconsin, in Jackson County. It is on State Highway 121 0.1 miles west of State Highway 95, on the left when traveling west. Marker is at a wayside. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Alma Center WI 54611, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is 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 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Cpl. Mitchell RedCloud Jr. (approx. 10.8 miles away); Field of Honor (approx. 10.8 miles away); Site of the First Wood-Spaulding Saw Mill (approx. 10.9 miles away); Pfaffsprairie Farm (approx. 11 miles away); Moe Hardware (approx. 11 miles away); Lunda Construction Co. (approx. 11 miles away); Hoffman Construction Company (approx. 11 miles away); Jackson County Veterans Park (approx. 11 miles away).

Another marker is no longer nearby. Arnold Jacobson Farm (was approx. 11 miles away but has been confirmed missing).

Silver Mound and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Keith L, October 26, 2007

2. Silver Mound and Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 25, 2026. It was originally submitted on October 27, 2007, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 2,688 times since then and 81 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on October 27, 2007, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. • J. J. Prats was the editor who published this page.