Surrounded by Reality - Crimes, Tragedies & Oddities of the Madison Area & Dane County

  • Playboy #1 Party School Myth
  • The Lost City Subdivision
  • Madison's Mafia History

  • 2024 "Chimney Doe" Identified after Almost 35 Years
  • 2024 Charged With Homicide After Already Doing Eight Years for Same Incident
  • 2024 Four Teens From Madison and Sun Prairie Killed in Crash
  • 2024 Two young Boys Drown in Retention Pond in Sun Prairie
  • 2023 Woman Killed in Hit-and-Run, Had Survived Deadly Crash in 1999
  • 2023 Woman Hits and Kills Man and Dog, On the Run for Over a Year
  • 2023 WW II Vet Buried in Middleton After Almost 80 Years
  • 2021 Couple Disappears, Found Mutilated and Dismembered
  • 2020 Daughter and Boyfriend Conspire to Murder Parents
  • 2020 Four Young Men Killed in Crash at Northport Drive
  • 2017 Couple With Twin Infants Killed on Highway 30
  • 2017 Man Kills Wife, Intentionally Blows Up Home to Hide Crime
  • 2014 Charity & Robin Grossmann Murders
  • 2012 Man Goes to Wrong House, Shot Three Times by Madison Police
  • 2012 Four Young People Die in Fitchburg Crash
  • 2011 Toddlers Brutally Killed by Mother’s Boyfriend
  • 2011 Crash Kills Three in Cottage Grove
  • 2010 Killed by Police After Hostage Jumps to Cover While at Credit Union
  • 2010 Man Leaves Toddler With Corpse and Goes to Work
  • 2010 Three Young People Killed by Drunk Driver
  • 2009 Two Girls Die When Boys Crash Stolen Car
  • 2009 Sister & Nephew Let Woman Die To Go Out For Pizza
  • 2009 Promoter Crushed by Monster Truck During Show
  • 2009 Man Murders Four, Two Were His Children, Commits Suicide
  • 2009 Massive Manhunt Ends With Second Dead
  • 2008 Beaten to Death at Park, 911 Does Not Dispatch Police
  • 2008 Brittany Zimmermann Murder - 911 Center Apologizes
  • 2008 Man Gets Eight Years in Prison for Stalking Neighbors
  • 2008 Man Stabbed to Death, Killer Convinced to Commit Suicide by Cellmate
  • 2008 Supreme Court Decides Sex With Corpse Against the Law
  • 2008 Father Kills Mentally Handicapped Son, Then Himself
  • 2008 Three Students Die in Midvale Boulevard Crash
  • 2008 Three Madisonians Die in Med-Flight Crash Outside La Crosse
  • 2007 Three Electrocuted Outside Metro Bus
  • 2007 Four Die in Trailer From Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
  • 2007 Police Chase Doughnut Truck At High Speed Through City
  • 2007 Man's Remains Buried Nearly 40 Years After He Was Killed in Vietnam
  • 2007 Woman Missing for More Than Two Weeks, Found Dead - Unsolved
  • 2006 Two Men Found in Car Underwater After 45 Years
  • 2006 Human Remains Unearthed During St. Mary's Hospital Expansion
  • 2005 Man Leaves Woman to Die in Freezing Temperatures
  • 2005 St. Raphael Cathedral Burned by Homeless Mentally Ill Man
  • 2005 Two Boaters Vanish on Mendota, One Never Found
  • 2004 Man Reaching for Cigarettes Rear Ends Car, Kills Two
  • 2004 Woman's Suicide Causes Two Others to Die
  • 2004 What Happened to Amos Mortier? - Missing Person
  • 2004 Woman Disappears, Claims Kidnapped, Turns Out to be Hoax
  • 2004 East Side Home Explodes, One Killed
  • 2004 Students Sue Local Bars for Price Fixing
  • 2004 Man With Meat Cleavers Shot by Police in Day Care Center
  • 2004 Madison's “Mall Rapist” is Finally Caught
  • 2003 Central Wisconsin Center Incapacitated Patient Raped by Employee
  • 2003 Man Found Shot to Death at His Home - Unsolved
  • 2003 Three Men Murdered in Verona Over One's Gambling Debt
  • 2003 Man Shoots and Kills Two Stepsons
  • 2003 Pedestrian Hit on Sherman Ave. by Driver Who Claimed She Wasn't in Area
  • 2003 Eight Years for Jamming Police Communication, More for Child Pornography
  • 2001 Dotty Dumpling's Dowry Defies City, Refuses to Move
  • 2001 Head-On Car/Truck Crash, Three Killed
  • 1999 Drunk Driver Kills Two Children
  • 1999 Mother & Son Die From Fire
  • 1999 East Side Fire Kills Mother, Two Children
  • 1999 13 Months Old, Beaten and Dehydrated, Dies at UW Hospital
  • 1999 Man Shoots Ex and Boyfriend at Wal-Mart West
  • 1999 Jocko's Rocket Ship Drug Bust Includes City Firefighters
  • 1998 Metro Bus Torched by Mentally Ill Homeless Man, Riders Burned
  • 1997 Caskets Found as Workers Demolish Mausoleum
  • 1997 Chris Farley Funeral in Madison Brings Celebrities
  • 1997 Pregnant At the Time, Run Over by the Boat She Was In
  • 1997 Woman Beaten, Stabbed and 'Autopsy-Like' Mutilation
  • 1996 Ashtray Emptied Into Wastebasket Fire Destroys Hotel Washington
  • 1995 Robbery Leads to Murder by Telephone Cord Strangulation
  • 1995 Teen Falls Nine Stories From Downtown Roof, How Did it Happen?
  • 1995 Hardee’s Robbery by Former Employee Turns Fatal
  • 1994 Penny Brummer Convicted of Murder, Did She Do It?
  • 1994 North Side Apartment Fire Kills Two 5yo Boys
  • 1994 Three Killed as Car Crashes Into Tree, Splits in Half
  • 1994 Attempted Arson Fire Fails at Mayor's House
  • 1993 Badgers Upset Michigan in Football, Fans Crush Each Other
  • 1993 Woman Killed by "Rambo" at Token Creek Park
  • 1991 Found Beaten and Mutilated, She Went Unidentified for Months
  • 1991 The Great Cheese Fire & Butter Flood
  • 1991 East High Teen Girls Run Over by Epileptic Driver
  • 1990 Fire Kills Five Children - Was the Mother Home?
  • 1990 Madison Man's Body Found in Chicago, What Happened?
  • 1990 Nirvana Comes to Madison to Record With Butch Vig
  • 1990 Bartender Shot in the Head by Robbers at Pitcher's Pub
  • 1989 Skeleton Found in Chimney on West Side, Was He a Cross Dresser?
  • 1989 Freshman Jumps From 7th Floor Dorm Room, LSD Blamed
  • 1989 Family of Three Killed by Drunk Driver in Windsor
  • 1989 Two Young Children Perish in Second-Floor Apartment Fire
  • 1989 Four Madison Men Killed in Northern Ill, Car Stalled
  • 1989 Distacted Driver Veers and Kills Young Mother and Toddler
  • 1988 Car Slides Over Center Line, Three Sisters Killed
  • 1988 Four West High Boys Die In Fiery Crash
  • 1988 Gunman Enters City County Building, Kills Two, Including Coroner
  • 1988 Polar Bear Shot & Killed at Henry Vilas Zoo
  • 1988 University of Wisconsin Students Start Satirical Newspaper The Onion
  • 1988 Found in a Burning Apartment, But She Was Already Dead
  • 1987 "Motorcycle Gang" Kills & Mutilates Prospect
  • 1987 One Teen Dies of Overdose, Plot to Kill Another
  • 1987 Inmate Escapes, Aided by Milw. Deputy, Manhunt Ends With Capture
  • 1986 Ex Mayor Soglin Finds His Own Stolen Car
  • 1986 Mother and Two Young Children Killed in Head-On Crash With Semi
  • 1985 Four Teens Killed in Two Car Head-On Collision
  • 1985 Rodney Dangerfield, Robert Downey Jr in Madison for Movie Shoot
  • 1985 Olin Terrace Mural Controversy
  • 1984 Serial Killer Confesses to Murders in Madison
  • 1984 Ed Gein Quietly Dies at Mendota Mental Health
  • 1983 Ambulance Keys Stolen on Halloween, Man Dies
  • 1983 Woman Goes Missing, Husband Convicted of Murder Years Later
  • 1983 Woman Killed by Man Hired by Her Ex-Husband
  • 1982 Abdution, Torture and Murder of a Ten Year Old Girl
  • 1982 Two Students Jump From Same Apartment Building in Two Days
  • 1982 Local Sportscaster Gets Pulled From TV for Racial Comment


  • Comments, Corrections, Additions? - Send them to surrbyreality@gmail.com

  • Crime of the Greenbush Neighborhood

  • 1980 Two Teens Die in Bike-Car Crash on University Avenue
  • 1980 Did Wrong Brother Do Time for Woman's Murder?
  • 1980 CC Rider Shot by Rival Club Member on Williamson Street
  • 1979 Four Die in Two Car Crash in Waunakee
  • 1979 Three Young McFarland Children Drown in Construction Ditch
  • 1979 Two Teens Found Dead in Car After 6 Weeks
  • 1979 Madison Doctor on American Airlines Flight 191 That Killed 273
  • 1979 Badger Football Goes Into Season After Losing Two Teammates
  • 1979 Statue of Liberty Appears in Lake Mendota for First Time
  • 1979 Plastic Pink Flamingos Blanket Bascom Hill
  • 1979 Deputy Killed When Squad Rammed by Stolen Vehicle
  • 1978 Van Halen Plays Shuffle Inn, Destroys Floor of Sheraton Inn Hotel
  • 1977 Family of Four Die, Hit Broadside on Highway N
  • 1977 Man Murdered With Cyanide by the Infamous Barbara Hoffman
  • 1977 Racist Kills Interracial Couple, Convicted a Decade Later
  • 1977 Minister Refuses to Leave Jail When Pair Attempts to Post Bail
  • 1977 Judge is First Elected Official to be Recalled
  • 1977 Elvis Presley Breaks Up Fight at Madison Gas Station
  • 1977 Robert Christian - Missing Person, Car Found
  • 1976 Ice Storm Coats Madison, Legendary Music Artist Album Pictures
  • 1976 Fourteen Year Old Boy Drowns in East High Pool
  • 1976 Man Kills Wife, Not Held Accountable for 32 Years
  • 1975 Two Boats Crash, Four People Drown on Lake Waubesa
  • 1974 Three 16 Year Old Girls Die in Crash
  • 1973 Allen Hall Fire Kills Three, Young Victim Hailed as Hero
  • 1973 Eddie Ben Elson and the Comet Kohoutek Scam
  • 1973 University Hospital's First Heart Transplant
  • 1971 Gates of Heaven Synagogue is Moved to James Madison Park
  • 1971 Five Young Sisters Die in Westport Fire
  • 1971 Six Killed in Two Car Crash on Highway 51
  • 1971 Three Men and a Toddler Killed in Town of Deerfield Crash
  • 1970 Fire Kills Two Children Playing With Matches
  • 1970 Sterling Hall Bombing - Vietnam War Protests
  • 1970 Red Gym & Primate Lab Firebombings - Vietnam War Protests
  • 1968 First Bone Marrow Transplant in U.S. Performed at UW Hospital
  • 1967 Dow Day Clash of Vietnam War Protesters and Police
  • 1967 Fifteen Year Old Boy Drowns in Memorial High Pool
  • 1967 Bodies of Nine Juda High Girls Arrive at Truax Field
  • 1967 Two Girls Run Down at Northport & Mandrake on Way to Church
  • 1967 Otis Redding Plane Crashes Into Lake Monona Killing Seven
  • 1966 Two Boys Suffocate in Unused Refrigerator
  • 1966 Child Killed by Elephant, Second Death Involving Zoo Animal
  • 1966 Mother Strangles Kids, Hangs Herself
  • 1966 Fireman Dies Fighting Fire on State Street
  • 1965 Seven Youths Die in Dane County Crash
  • 1963 Two UW Freshmen Drown in Lake Mendota
  • 1962 Plane Hits TV Tower, Kills Five, 21 Children Fatherless
  • 1961 Bride & Best Man Die in Wedding Day Crash
  • 1960 Monkeys Escape Vilas Zoo, on the Run for Months
  • 1960 Boxer Dies From Match, University of Wisconsin Drops Sport
  • 1960 Man Kills Two Men, Including His Father
  • 1960 Woman Found in a Bathtub Stabbed 40-50 Times - Unsolved
  • 1959 Police Chief Fired for Improprieties, Shot by Wife Years Later
  • 1958 Black UW Basketball Players Separated From Team by Texas Hotel
  • 1958 Gas Explosion on Destroys Block, Kills Couple
  • 1958 Pilot Steers Failing Jet Into Lake Monona to Save Lives
  • 1956 University of Wisconsin Makes a Stand Against Racism
  • 1954 Madison Man Dies in Car Stunt Gone Wrong
  • 1952 Four Die in Three Car Crash in DeForest
  • 1952 Low Flying Plane Takes Roof Off Car, Kills Four
  • 1952 Water Department Employees Electrocuted in Heavy Rain
  • 1950 Three Die in Two Car Crash on Speedway Road
  • 1949 Two 2yos Drown Wingra Creek Entrance to Lake Monona
  • 1948 Fire Kills Mother and Three Children
  • 1948 Three Vehicle Crash Kills Three on Oregon Road
  • 1948 Lansing Street Plane Crash Kills Two
  • 1947 Car/Train Crash Kills Three Kids in Blooming Grove
  • 1947 Fireman Dies of Heart Attack From Fire Scene
  • 1944 Badger's Quarterback Dies From Game Injury
  • 1941 Four Young People Killed When Car Slides on Ice in Middleton
  • 1941 Two 14 Year Olds Struck by Lightning Sheltering Under Tree
  • 1940 Four Die as Taxi Hit by Train, Dragged for Blocks
  • 1939 15-Ton Oven Goes Through Floor, Crushes Firemen Fighting Blaze
  • 1938 Two Young Boys Drown in Lake Mendota as Dog Searches
  • 1937 Man Shot in Face Trying to Stop Robbery
  • 1936 Dane County Deputy Dies in Motorcycle Crash
  • 1936 Three Young Boys Die Coasting on the Sun Prairie Road
  • 1935 Child Playing With Matches, Kills Himself & Grandmother
  • 1934 Two Children Die in Shed Fire on Regent Street
  • 1933 Mother's Suicide Leads to Death of Husband, Daughter
  • 1933 Wisconsin State Capitol Collapses
  • 1933 Father and Son Drown When Car Goes Through Ice on Mendota
  • 1932 Boy Dies After Dangles Leg Into Polar Bear Cage at Vilas Zoo
  • 1932 Four Members of Price Family Killed in Crash Near Token Creek
  • 1932 Police Officers Beaten and Bruised Body Found on Hope Road
  • 1931 Plane Crash at Madison Airport Kills Three
  • 1930 Two Men Drown in Yahara River Saving Young Girl
  • 1930 Boy Drowns Trying to Save Younger Brothers, Sisters Watch
  • 1930 Deputy Shot Responding to Domestic Dispute in Mazomanie
  • 1929 Five Men Drown in Lake Mendota
  • 1928 Father & Daughter Drown as Car Goes Through Ice on Mendota
  • 1928 Woman Tries to Save Daughter, Both Drowned
  • 1926 Police Officer Killed at Greenbush Restaurant
  • 1925 Three Killed as Car Drives Into Path of Train
  • 1924 Two Teen Boys Drown in Monona Bay When Canoe Overturns
  • 1924 Police Officer Killed at "Death Corner" in Greenbush
  • 1923 Hausmann Brewery on State Street Burns
  • 1920 Two Men Drown in Lake Mendota When Their Boat Capsized
  • 1918 Human Remains Unearthed on Bascom Hill
  • 1918 Police Officer Killed Trying to Stop Burglary
  • 1916 Bascom Hall Dome Destroyed by Fire
  • 1916 Two 16 Year Old Girls Car Goes Off Starkweather Bridge
  • 1916 Three Young Men Die as Ice Boat Sails Into Open Water
  • 1914 Man Shoots Kindergarten Teacher in Front of Her Class
  • 1911 Murder of Girl, Two Men Found Guilty, But Officially Unsolved
  • 1905 Two Young Boys Fall Into Hole in Ice and Freeze
  • 1904 Madison's Second Wisconsin State Capitol Burns
  • 1903 Five Madisonians Among the More Than 600 Dead in Theater Fire
  • 1898 Explosion of a Boiler in a Roundhouse Kills Three Men, Again
  • 1886 Explosion of a Boiler in a Roundhouse Kills Three Men
  • 1883 Capitol Collapses During Expansion, Six Workers Die
  • 1860 Fire on Shanty Hill Takes Five Lives
  • 1859 City Begins Moving Remains From the Village Cemetery
  • 1856 Thomas Jefferson's Son Lives in Madison, Buried Here