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BARABOO — When Aldo Leopold spent $8 an acre in 1935 to purchase an abandoned farm for weekend retreats from his home in Madison, there were sweeping views of the Wisconsin River, no farmhouse and only a few trees.
What would become his famed shack, was a dilapidated chicken coop.
But over the years, Leopold and his family would expand the coop into a cabin, plant thousands of trees and restore what decades prior, before white settlement, had been a prairie.
A former chicken coop which was converted into a seasonal and weekend retreat for Aldo Leopold and his family continues to draw the interest of visitors to the Aldo Leopold Foundation property near Baraboo.
The property northeast of Baraboo served as a working model of Leopold's environmental philosophies and is where he kept detailed journals that would become the basis for much of "A Sand County Almanac." Published in 1949, a year after Leopold died of a heart attack here, the book is considered one of the most influential in American history, has been translated into 15 different languages and speaks of a symbiotic land ethic that includes humans, soils, waters, plants, and animals.
"There is as yet no ethic dealing with man's relation to land and to the animals and plants that grow upon us," Leopold wrote. "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise."
That ethic is top of mind as the Aldo Leopold Foundation embarks on a three-phase, $750,000 capital campaign designed to further preserve and promote the heart of Leopold's work.
Bruce Larkin of Nashota peers into the historic Shack once occupied by Aldo Leopold and his family as a retreat from their home in Madison. Larkin was making his first visit to the Shack, located at the Aldo Leopold Foundation, northeast of Baraboo.
Over the next two years Leopold's Shack will undergo maintenance to preserve its authenticity so that "it remains in a constant state of stable disrepair." The cedar shake roof will be replaced, a French drain installed, the interior whitewashed and the benches outside the Shack restored. The outhouse, nicknamed "the Parthenon," and which still can be used by visitors, will also be restored.
The Shack, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, has undergone routine maintenance over the years. But the last major project to stabilize the building was in the mid 1970s by Leopold's daughter, Nina Leopold Bradley, and her husband, Charlie Bradley.
Andy Radtke and Arik Duhr of the Aldo Leopold Foundation stand under a pair of pine trees that tower over the Shack purchased in 1935 by conservationist Aldo Leopold and his family along the Wisconsin River northeast of Baraboo.
"That's kept it in good shape," said Buddy Huffaker, president of the foundation's board of directors and its executive director. "This is, since then, the biggest package of work to address its stability and integrity for the future. "
But the work goes well beyond the Shack.
The overgrowth of black walnut, silver maple and river birch will be removed to allow for white oak, swamp white oak and burr oak to thrive and open up views from the Shack to the river. The white and red pines planted by the Leopolds will undergo a much needed thinning while the 4.5 acre Shack Prairie and a nearby sandblow will be restored.
Andy Radtke of the Aldo Leopold Foundation walks a trail leading to the Wisconsin River. Trees will be removed this fall to restore sand barrens and open up views so the river can be seen from Leopold's Shack.
The Leopold Shack journals, housed at Steenbock Memorial Library at UW-Madison, will be digitized so they can be shared virtually around the world. The digital work will also include virtual tours of the Shack, redesigning self-guided, in-person tours of the Shack and holding more "Shack-focused events." The efforts will bring more people to the Shack either through the foundation's website or in-person.
"Too many people, plus, have read 'A Sand County Almanac,'" Huffaker said. "We don't know how many of them know that the Shack and farm that inspired him to write the book is actually a place you can visit and that you can come and see and immerse yourself in what he was doing and seeing. This will better share Leopold with the world."
A pocket watch once owned by Aldo Leopold is among the many items in the archives at the Aldo Leopold Foundation. Leopold died in 1948 of a heart attack.
Work on the overgrowth will begin this fall with the prairie restoration, Shack stabilization, digital projects and other efforts happening in 2023. The work is expected to take 10,000 staff hours to complete while the capital campaign is primarily being funded by private individuals and small family foundations, although state and federal grants are also being pursued. So far, 200 donors from around the country have contributed to the campaign, which kicked off in May. Once a $20,000 challenge grant is fulfilled, Huffaker said about $375,000 will have been raised.
Aldo Leopold Foundation members Arik Duhr, left, and Andy Radtke, look over the interior of Aldo Leopold's Shack. The former chicken coop will be getting new whitewash in the interior, a new roof and other work in an effort to preserve and stabilize the building, purchased by Leopold in 1935.
A 75-foot tall white pine planted by Leopold towers over the Shack and officials with the foundation say their goal is to maintain an environment on the property that could someday hold trees that are 300 to 400 years old. White oak savannas are also being created.
"We'll treat the pines carefully and thin them lightly but some of the other acreage will change significantly," said Arik Duhr, an arborist who is site manger for the property. "Being able to see the river from the Shack hasn't happened for probably 40 to 50 years so it's going to be quite a shift."
Shelves inside the famous Shack once owned by Aldo Leopold hold a variety of kitchen and cookware items.
An Iowa native, Leopold was a scholar at Yale and went to work with the Forest Service for a time, helping to establish the Gila Wilderness Area in New Mexico. He came to Wisconsin in 1924 to work as associate director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Products Laboratory in Madison and in 1933 published the first textbook in the field of wildlife management. Later that year, he accepted a new chair position in game management at UW-Madison.
Visitors to the Aldo Leopold Foundation museum near Baraboo take in the many exhibits dedicated to the famed conservationist.
The Aldo Leopold Foundation was created in 1982 by the five children of Aldo and Estella Leopold as a nonprofit conservation organization "to inspire an ethical, caring relationship between people and nature" through Leopold’s legacy. The foundation, set amid the 16,000-acre Leopold-Pine Island Important Bird Area, owns and preserves the Shack, has classrooms and a conference center along with a headquarters building with a museum that holds artifacts like Leopold's writings, saddle, shotgun, tiny bands he used to study birds and an original pocket notebook he would carry in the field.
A small journal used in the field to take notes by Aldo Leopold is displayed in the museum of the Aldo Leopold Foundation. Some of his notes formed the basis for parts of "A Sand County Almanac" published in 1949, a year after his death.
The foundation, located along Levee Road, one of the state's 123 Rustic Roads, stewards the Leopold Archives (including his original writing, sketches, photographs, artifacts, and class materials) and cares for the pines, prairies and floodplain forests that make up the Leopold Shack property and surrounding 600 acres referred to as the Leopold-Pines Memorial Reserve.
"For a while the foundation was about kind of protecting the legacy and now we're really trying to promote it," Huffaker said. "It's kind of the realization that, yes, we've got to take care of it, but it's really only valuable if it continues to inform and inspire people to care for the natural world."
A former chicken coop which was converted into a seasonal and weekend retreat for Aldo Leopold and his family continues to draw the interest of visitors to the Aldo Leopold Foundation property near Baraboo.
Aldo Leopold Foundation executive director Buddy Huffaker converses with visitors near a workbench once owned by Aldo Leopold in the foundation’s museum dedicated to his work near Baraboo.
Aldo Leopold Foundation member Andy Radtke exits the Shack once owned by “A Sand County Almanac” author Aldo Leopold.
Andy Radtke of the Aldo Leopold Foundation explores the Shack once owned by “A Sand County Almanac” author Aldo Leopold.
Aldo Leopold Foundation members Arik Duhr, left, and Andy Radtke, look over the interior of Aldo Leopold's Shack. The former chicken coop will be getting new whitewash in the interior, a new roof and other work in an effort to preserve and stabilize the building, purchased by Leopold in 1935.
Aldo Leopold Foundation members Arik Duhr, foreground, and Andy Radtke view the inside of the Shack once owned by Aldo Leopold.
Andy Radtke and Arik Duhr of the Aldo Leopold Foundation stand under a pair of pine trees that tower over the Shack purchased in 1935 by conservationist Aldo Leopold and his family along the Wisconsin River northeast of Baraboo.
Bruce Larkin of Nashota peers into the historic Shack once occupied by Aldo Leopold and his family as a retreat from their home in Madison. Larkin was making his first visit to the Shack, located at the Aldo Leopold Foundation, northeast of Baraboo.
A small journal used in the field to take notes by Aldo Leopold is displayed in the museum of the Aldo Leopold Foundation. Some of his notes formed the basis for parts of "A Sand County Almanac" published in 1949, a year after his death.
Books and reference materials once owned by Aldo Leopold share shelves in the archives of a museum dedicated to his work near.
Aldo Leopold Foundation member Andy Radtke walks a sandy trail on property along the Wisconsin River and once owned by “A Sand County Almanac” author Aldo Leopold.
Foreign language versions of Aldo Leopold’s “A Sand County Almanac” are displayed in a museum dedicated to his work at the Aldo Leopold Foundation near Baraboo.
Shelves inside the famous Shack once owned by Aldo Leopold hold a variety of kitchen and cookware items.
Visitors to the Aldo Leopold Foundation museum near Baraboo take in the many exhibits dedicated to the famed conservationist.
A pocket watch once owned by Aldo Leopold is among the many items in the archives at the Aldo Leopold Foundation. Leopold died in 1948 of a heart attack.
A classroom and walking trails at the Aldo Leopold Foundation are seen through a window of a museum on the grounds of the center near Baraboo.
Andy Radtke of the Aldo Leopold Foundation walks a trail leading to the Wisconsin River. Trees will be removed this fall to restore sand barrens and open up views so the river can be seen from Leopold's Shack.
Barry Adams covers regional news for the Wisconsin State Journal. Send him ideas for On Wisconsin at 608-252-6148 or by email at badams@madison.com.
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Andy Radtke and Arik Duhr of the Aldo Leopold Foundation stand under a pair of pine trees that tower over the Shack purchased in 1935 by conservationist Aldo Leopold and his family along the Wisconsin River northeast of Baraboo.
A small journal used in the field to take notes by Aldo Leopold is displayed in the museum of the Aldo Leopold Foundation. Some of his notes formed the basis for parts of "A Sand County Almanac" published in 1949, a year after his death.
Aldo Leopold Foundation members Arik Duhr, left, and Andy Radtke, look over the interior of Aldo Leopold's Shack. The former chicken coop will be getting new whitewash in the interior, a new roof and other work in an effort to preserve and stabilize the building, purchased by Leopold in 1935.
Andy Radtke of the Aldo Leopold Foundation walks a trail leading to the Wisconsin River. Trees will be removed this fall to restore sand barrens and open up views so the river can be seen from Leopold's Shack.
Bruce Larkin of Nashota peers into the historic Shack once occupied by Aldo Leopold and his family as a retreat from their home in Madison. Larkin was making his first visit to the Shack, located at the Aldo Leopold Foundation, northeast of Baraboo.
Shelves inside the famous Shack once owned by Aldo Leopold hold a variety of kitchen and cookware items.
Visitors to the Aldo Leopold Foundation museum near Baraboo take in the many exhibits dedicated to the famed conservationist.
A former chicken coop which was converted into a seasonal and weekend retreat for Aldo Leopold and his family continues to draw the interest of visitors to the Aldo Leopold Foundation property near Baraboo.
A pocket watch once owned by Aldo Leopold is among the many items in the archives at the Aldo Leopold Foundation. Leopold died in 1948 of a heart attack.
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