Town file
Mount Horeb, Wisconsin
Mount Horeb, Wisconsin (Dane County, Wisconsin) is the town in one episode of Small Town Murder, the comedy true-crime podcast: episode 389, "The Legend Of ... 's Cheese" (18 May 2023). Mount Horeb, Wisconsin, is a village of 7,727 people in Dane County, about half an hour from Madison.
- Town
- Mount Horeb
- County
- Dane County
- State
- Wisconsin
- Country
- USA
- Episodes
- 389
- Approximate location
- 43.006, -89.732
Episode 389 / 18 May 2023 / 161 min / full
The Legend Of 's Cheese
"This is in southwestern Wisconsin, about a half hour outside Madison, in Dane County, area code 608." about 0:05:57
The case: Murder of Dorothy Weiss (November 17, 1981); Murder of Carl Quinbin (1952). Read the case file.
The figures, as told in 2023
- Population
- 7,727 people
- Median age
- about 38
- Median household income
- $63,634
- Two-bedroom rent
- about $1,270
- Cost of living
- 104
- Religious
- 46.7%
- Property crime
- ▲ a little more than half, almost half
- Violent crime
- ▼ about one-third
History, in brief
- The town was first called the Corners. about 0:06:56
- It was then renamed Horub's Corner. about 0:07:02
- It was eventually called Mount Horub. about 0:07:21
- It had a large Norwegian population, either from Norway or of Norwegian descent. about 0:07:26
- In 1856 Osten Olsen Haugan and his family, who had emigrated from Norway, established a 40-acre farmstead near Blue Mounds. about 0:08:31
- The farmstead was called Nissedal, which in Norwegian translates to Valley of the Elves. about 0:09:01
- In the 1980s, as part of an effort to celebrate Norwegian heritage and draw people off the new highway, the town declared itself the troll capital of the world. about 0:09:09
- In Norwegian folklore trolls are said to be about the size of, if not smaller than, humans, with ugly faces, stout bodies and tails. about 0:09:43
- Residents have incorporated painted, sculpted and chainsaw-carved trolls throughout the village. about 0:10:19
- Main Street is called the Trollway. about 0:10:35
- Each of the forty trolls in Mount Horeb has its own identity, such as the chicken thief, the accordion player and Sweet Swill, the drunk troll. about 0:10:38
- The Trollway was the Chamber of Commerce's attempt to draw traffic from the nearby highway into the centre of town to promote businesses. about 0:10:51
The reviews read out
5 stars
"Couldn't imagine a better place to raise children: wide welcoming streets, a bike trail through town, endless parks, a school district with endless opportunities and a Culver's."about 0:11:43
5 stars
"A vibrant main street with thriving local shops and restaurants for every niche, and carved wooden trolls more welcoming than they look."about 0:12:33
5 stars
"We are the town of trolls; restaurants have great quality food in ideal locations, everyone is nice and welcoming to newcomers, and it is in a great location outside Madison."about 0:12:45
3 stars
"A bit of a drinking culture; a small town that seems sweet on the outside but where everyone gossips about everyone else's business, though there are still quite a few very good people, beautiful parks and the Military Ridge running through it."about 0:13:19
Nearest Small Town Murder towns
- Mineral Point, Wisconsin25 miles
- Windsor, Wisconsin28 miles
- Baraboo, Wisconsin32 miles
- Columbus, Wisconsin42 miles
- Jefferson, Wisconsin47 miles
- Bellevue, Iowa63 miles
Everything here is as told in the episode, on the date it went out; figures and places may have changed since. Endings are covered: open an episode and use the spoiler switch to read them.