Brookfield Backstory
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    • Caroline Quiner Ingalls Birthplace
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  • Home
  • Village of Brookfield
    • The Depot
    • Mccoy Park
  • Religious
    • Old St. Mary's Church
    • School Sisters of Notre Dame
  • Geography
    • Niagara Escarpment
    • Fox River
    • Dousman Ditch
    • Bluemound Road
  • Houses
    • Al Capone House
    • Dousman House
    • Half Way House
  • Farms
    • Eble Farm
    • Ruby Farms
  • Cemeteries
    • Oak Hill Cemetery
    • Pioneer Cemetery
    • Wisconsin Memorial Park
  • Schools
    • Dixon School
    • Prairieview School
    • Brookfield Elementary
  • Other
    • Caroline Quiner Ingalls Birthplace
    • Stonewood Village
    • Reinders
  • Map
  • References
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Niagara Escarpment

Picture
  • The diverse plant life and dramatic hills of Brookfield are due to the Niagara Escarpment.
    • ​An escarpment is a long steep slope that forms as a result of erosion or fault lines. This land form separates two areas of land with varying heights. 
  • The escarpment is nearly 1,000 miles-long!
  • It runs northeast alongside Lake Winnebago.
  • In addition, the escarpment forms most of the Door County Peninsula and continues northeast through Canada and into upstate New York.
  • The escarpment is the leading reason why the Great Lakes exist.
  • The escarpment is NOT a result of glaciation.
    • Although, the glaciers helped expose it.
  • The massive land form influences weather patterns.
  • Because of this, the escarpment creates an unique environment featuring numerous plant and wildlife species not found anywhere else in the world.
  • The escarpment's resources have been used since the 1800’s by french fur traders.
  • One of these resources is limestone, which helped to grow urban Wisconsin.
    • Limestone from the escarpment is used in cream city brick (Milwaukee’s famous brick).
  • Within 2 miles of each side of the cliff, there are about 500 historical sites and structures.
  • Most of the land around the escarpment is protected.
  • One of the protected areas, High Cliff State Park, is located in the northeast shore of Lake Winnebago.
    • It is a 1,187-acre park with 125-acre state natural area.
  • In Menomonee Falls, Lime Kiln park surrounds falls of the Menominee river and historic lime kilns/lime quarry.
    • In Menomonee Falls, there is a small gorge of Escarpment landscape with 5-10 foot bluffs on either side.
  • The southwest side of the Miller Park stadium along VA Center land is one example of how the escarpment affected the land.
The steep hill near the Saloon on Calhoun is an example of how escarpment affected the land around it.