Archaeologists have mapped 16 ancient canoes in Lake Mendota, Madison, forming a concentrated cluster researchers describe as a prehistoric “parking lot” near old Indigenous routes. Radiocarbon dating places the oldest canoe at about 5,200 years ago, the third-oldest known in eastern North America. Tribes and scientists collaborating on the project believe the boats were communal resources stored in shallow water to preserve them; continued work may reveal even older vessels.
16 Ancient Canoes Found in Lake Mendota — A Prehistoric ‘Parking Lot’ of Indigenous Watercraft
Archaeologists have mapped 16 ancient canoes in Lake Mendota, Madison, forming a concentrated cluster researchers describe as a prehistoric “parking lot” near old Indigenous routes. Radiocarbon dating places the oldest canoe at about 5,200 years ago, the third-oldest known in eastern North America. Tribes and scientists collaborating on the project believe the boats were communal resources stored in shallow water to preserve them; continued work may reveal even older vessels.
04:51 AM, 11/20/2025Culture
Archaeologists working in Madison, Wisconsin, have mapped the remains of 16 ancient canoes concentrated in the bed of Lake Mendota, a discovery researchers liken to a prehistoric “parking lot” near former Indigenous travel routes.
The project, led by state maritime archaeologist Tamara Thomsen in collaboration with UW–Madison anthropologist Sissel Schroeder and tribal preservation officers from the Ho-Chunk Nation and the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, began in 2021. That year the team recovered a canoe dated to about 1,200 years ago lying under 24 feet of water; subsequent seasons revealed more vessels stacked and clustered in the same area.
Dating and significance
Radiocarbon dating indicates the group spans thousands of years. The oldest canoe in the cluster dates to roughly 5,200 years ago, which makes it the third-oldest canoe recorded in eastern North America. Two older examples were previously found in Florida, including one dated to about 7,000 years ago.
Why so many canoes in one place?
Researchers believe the location sat near a network of shore and overland trails, making it a convenient shared landing and storage point for travelers. Thomsen explains that communities likely treated some canoes as communal resources, leaving them at designated landing spots for others to use. To protect the boats, people commonly buried them in sediment in waist- to chest-deep water so they would not dry out or be damaged by ice.
Environmental evidence suggests a long dry interval in the region began about 7,500 years ago and lasted for many centuries. During that period parts of Lake Mendota were much shallower—perhaps around 4 feet deep in places—creating ideal shallow access points for disembarking and overland travel.
“It’s a parking spot that’s been used for millennia, over and over,” Thomsen said, describing the layered pattern of boats in the sediment.
State archaeologist Dr. Amy Rosebrough noted travelers using the Lake Mendota site may have been headed toward nearby Lake Wingra. The Madison area lies within the ancestral homeland of the Ho-Chunk Nation; tribal preservation officer Bill Quackenbush said the finds underscore deep, ongoing connections between Indigenous people and these waters.
“The canoes remind us how long our people have lived in this region and how deeply connected we remain to these waters and lands,” Quackenbush said.
Thomsen and colleagues hope continued work will reveal still older vessels; the layered nature of the finds suggests even earlier canoes could lie beneath the ones already identified. For Thomsen, who primarily documents Great Lakes shipwrecks, the canoe project has been especially meaningful because of the direct collaboration with Wisconsin tribes and the opportunity to help preserve and share Indigenous histories.
By Todd Richmond