In Search Of…Chamberlin Springs

by Drew Hanson

When the opportunity to spend a summer in Beloit, Wisconsin came along a few years ago I jumped at the chance. Beloit is, after all, home to the keystone figure in Ice Age Trail pre-history, Thomas Chamberlin. Learn the back story in An Unwitting Ice Age Trail Pioneer.

The loss of thousands of good-paying manufacturing jobs and Balkanization by neighboring Town of Beloit and Beloit Turner School District put the City of Beloit on a path of decline. If you are looking for fixer-upper real estate, the City of Beloit is your market. But this is not classic rustbelt. Wisconsin’s oldest college continues to breathe life into this proud city.

Beloit College is where Chamberlin earned his undergraduate degree and later worked as a professor. My summer included cherished walks around the charming college and stately nearby homes, truly outstanding city parks like Leeson, Horace White and Big Hill and an old cemetery called Oakwood.

Chamberlin family plot at Oakwood Cemetery

Around mid-summer I chanced across a booklet describing walks in and around Beloit. It included a plug for a place called Chamberlin Springs. I was intrigued. But we failed to find it on our one attempt. On my mental list of mysteries to unravel and outdoor nooks to explore it remained.

So I was thrilled when I only recently found John Morgan's article on none other than Chamberlin Springs. He had unraveled the mystery!

Enjoy the fascinating story, Chamberlin Springs Stages a Comeback.

Has restoration made a pilgrimage to Chamberlin Springs a real possibility? My feet are itching to find out.