Smaller communities offer a unique charm not possible in urban America today. The comforting scenery, tranquil farming and outdoor settings, yet with adequate proximity to travel, employment, schooling and shopping – but without the daily hassles – have a genuine appeal for many upgrading or new homeowners and recreational property buyers, whether they bring with them young and growing families, empty nests or visions of well-earned retirement. Read more to learn how Mike Gross might help match you with your dream.

Aztalan, Wisconsin, is a town in Jefferson County, in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson metro area. The population was 1,447 at the 2000 census.

Just south of the Town of Aztalan lies Aztalan State Park, the site of an ancient Mississippian settlement. The Mississippian peoples built earthen pyramids which were used by the religious and ruling leaders. The largest Mississippian site is Cahokia, located near St. Louis, Aztalan is the most northern. While people lived along the Crawfish River in Wisconsin's Jefferson County before 900 A.D., the Mississippians arrived at ancient Aztalan between 1050 and 1100AD. They established a heirarchal society that was culturally exotic for the area. The people who settled Aztalan built large, flat-topped pyramidal mounds and a stockade around their village. They hunted, fished, and farmed on the floodplain of the Crawfish River. Portions of the stockade and two mounds have been reconstructed in the park.

The site of Aztalan, so called because at the time it was thought to be related to the Aztecs of Mexico, was rediscovered in the fall of 1835 by a settler named Tim Johnson. A Milwaukee judge, Nathaniel Hyer, mapped the site in 1837 and, believing that it was built by people from the ancient Mexican city of Aztalan, named the Wisconsin site Aztalan. Though it is now known that this is not true, the name of the site was not changed. In 1850, author, naturalist, and scientist Increase A. Lapham investigated the site, which was then mostly undisturbed by the plow, and he urged its preservation. But it was plowed for farm crops for many years.

Aztalan's beginnings as a park date to 1922, when a group of concerned Jefferson citizens purchased the few conical mounds remaining from a group that once numbered more than 40. At that time what is now part of the state park was called Mounds Park. In 1927 the property was turned over to the Wisconsin Archaeological Society, and a formal dedication took place on October 20, 1928. On April 2, 1947, the Wisconsin Legislature directed the state Conservation Commission to acquire the land as a historical memorial park. The commission bought 120 acres and the Wisconsin Archeological Society and Lake Mills - Aztalan Historical Society donated their lands. The site opened to the public as a state park in 1952, designated a National Landmark in 1964, and listed in the National Registry of Historic Places in 1966.

In the hopes of properly developing the site as a major interpretive location for Native American cultures, in 2003 the DNR completed a new master plan for Aztalan. The plan took more than two years to finish, and included the input of professional archaeologists, local residents, politicians, Native American tribes, and other interested members of the public. The plan calls for expansion of the park's area, a new visitor center, interpretive trails, a pedestrian bridge, and fishing piers.The existence of this new plan does not guarantee anything specific will happen, but it does chart the course of future site development.

Today, Aztalan Days, first Sunday of July, celebrates the Native American and Pioneer heritages of the township of Aztalan. Flint knappers, such as Dick Grybrush, demonstrate flint knapping and Tom Davies of the DNR guides tours of Aztalan State Park, the site of ancient Aztalan. Demonstrations of pioneer crafts include quilting, tatting, porcelain doll making, and weaving. A barbed wire collection is a perennial exhibit at Aztalan Days. The old school is opened for public viewing. The homemade pies for sale bring people back year after year!

For more information on activities in and around Aztalan, Wisconsin, visit:

• Aztalan State Park
• Aztalan Wisconsin State Park
• Jefferson County, WI
• Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce
• Aztalan, WI Google Earth Map
• View Aztalan, WI Area Jobs on Career Builder
• View Aztalan, WI Area Jobs on Yahoo HotJobs
• Aztalan, Wisconsin on Wikipedia.com
• Aztalan, Wisconsin on epodunk

For more information on activities in and around South Central Wisconsin, including Jefferson County, Wisconsin, visit:

• Discover Wisconsin
• Travel Wisconsin
• Escape to Wisconsin
• Living in Wisconsin
• Forward Wisconsin: Lifestyle
• The State of Wisconsin

Aztalan Homes, Properties and Special Feature Real Estate

Aztalan, Wisconsin real estate includes a wide variety of homes for sale, condos for sale, water access properties (waterfront or scenic view), active adult communities, ocean frontage and executive properties. Sellers who have been in the area for a while know my reputation for knowledgeable advice, enthusiastic service, creative marketing and professional networking. My associates and I will mine every source for suitable properties so you can feel at ease that your search will produce the right kind of solution for you.

For buyers new to the area, you can rest assured that I will provide the specialized services you deserve: a strong work ethic, personal real estate expertise to help define your needs, help with selecting and securing standard financing for your purchase, special technology, constant communication throughout the transaction, and more. Together, my associates and I have many years living and working in the area. That fact, when combined with our cumulative years of experience in real estate, means we can cover all aspects of your search - from existing homes for sale, properties for sale, lots, vacant land, new construction, 55-plus and retirement communities, investment properties, waterfront, golf and recreational properties, golf course lots - all the way to luxury villas, estates and executive homes.

So when you're ready to buy or sell real estate in or around Aztalan, Wisconsin, please let Mike Gross help you find the home or property of your dreams. Contact Mike Gross today!

Other nearby communities have similar real estate characteristics as Aztalan and may also be of interest to you in your home search. Please feel free to ask Mike Gross about homes for sale, recreational and investment properties in and around Watertown, Dodge County, Jefferson County, Johnson Creek, Jefferson, Fort Atkinson, (Ft Atkinson) Lake Mills, Waukesha County, Cottage Grove, Deerfield, Aztalan, Janesville, Cambridge, Milford, Koshkonong (Lake Koshkonong), Whitewater, Palmyra, Eagle, Dousman, Delafield, Summit, Oconomowoc (Oconomowoc Lake), Lac La Belle, Ixonia, Sullivan, Oakland, Waterloo, Marshall, Lake Country, Ashippun, Juneau, Hustisford, Beaver Dam, Mayville, Horicon?, Columbus, Sun Prairie, Windsor (Lake Windsor), Rock Lake, Lake Ripley and much more.

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