Small downtown lake in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, part of the city's chain of recreational lakes — the focal point of a 2003 local fishing-accident folklore
Oconomowoc, WI 53066
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free public access
Access
Wheelchair OK
Downtown lakefront park with paved paths and accessible shoreline.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1850 · Oconomowoc lake-chain recreation · Nineteenth-century resort community · Downtown Oconomowoc waterfront
Fowler Lake is one of several small natural lakes that define the city of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, a Waukesha County resort community west of Milwaukee. The lake covers approximately 70 surface acres and is connected via the Oconomowoc River and a series of small channels to nearby Lac La Belle. Fowler Park, the lakefront city park, includes a public swimming beach, fishing pier, and band shell.
Oconomowoc emerged in the mid-nineteenth century as a popular Milwaukee summer-getaway destination; the city's chain of small lakes — Fowler, Lac La Belle, and Pewaukee — were ringed by Victorian-era estates and resort hotels by 1890. The downtown lakefront retains much of that character today.
Sources
Local Oconomowoc tradition recorded in the original Shadowlands account describes a 2003 incident in which an elderly local resident reportedly fell from his fishing boat at sunset; the cause was uncertain in the witness account (possibly a heart attack). According to the folklore, the figure has occasionally been reported on the lake at sunset in the years since.
The Hauntbound editorial position is that the specific 2003 incident has not been corroborated in available newspaper archives, and the account should be considered local oral tradition rather than documented history. The lake itself is a pleasant downtown park.
Self-guided visit to the Fowler Lake lakefront in downtown Oconomowoc. The lake is a small recreational water body connected to Wisconsin's Oconomowoc Lake chain. Sunset is the most popular time to visit and is the time most often associated with the local fishing-accident folklore.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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