WSQ Thompson Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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The cemetery is near the original homestead site of Andrew Austin Thompson who moved to the Mauston area in 1854. He was one of the early settlers to the Lone Rock Valley in Lindina Township. At this time Mauston was known as Maughs Mills and Juneau County hadn't been established yet. At that time settlers were paying about $1.25 an acre for land to be homesteaded and developed. The site of the farm is believed to have been on the north side of the highway just west of Lone Rock (current site of an apple orchard) but across the road that heads north. None of the original Thompson buildings are standing but some foundation stones are visible from the road on the corner.
The cemetery contains the graves of three or four of the Thompson children who died from an epidemic in about 1869 along with Andrew Austin Thompson, his wife, brother and possibly other pioneer families from the area. Records do not exist to date.
In 1990 the Wisconsin State Historical Society cataloged the cemetery as an archeological site and called it the Thompson Cememtery in order to help preserve it. In 1993 the Lindina town chairman along with several descendants worked to restore an access road to the cemetery and installed replacement gravestone markers for A.A. Thompson and his wife Almira, also their son Walter and A.A.'s brother Chellus who were Civil war Vets. The original sites of their graves within the fenced 1/2 acre are unknown.
The cemetery is located just off a main highway. You will feel like you are entering a farmers driveway but when the drive turns behind the barn, stay straight onto the grassy overgrown road and you will see the cemetery just a short distance away. The road is not well developed and contains potholes. I was able to access the cemetery with my car but I would not attempt this after heavy rains or in the winter.
You are searching for a small container with a log and a few small trade items. As will all WSQ (Wisconsin Spirit Quest ) caches, this cache is not located on or near any markers. Please be respectful of the area and hunt only during daylight hours.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Ebpx bs Ntrf