Van Hise Rock

Van Hise Rock, an outcrop of Baraboo Quartzite in the Baraboo Hills, has drawn national and international scientific interest for more than one hundred years. It was named for University of Wisconsin Professor Charles R. Van Hise, a renowned geologist, conservationist, and president of the university. In the 1890s, Van Hise used this outcrop to demonstrate changes that occur in rocks during periods of mountain formation. His observations in the Baraboo Hills helped develop his groundbreaking concepts of structural and metamorphic geology, which were later universally accepted as principles of structural geology. Van Hise Rock became the single most important locality for demonstrating these principles, and countless geologists and students continue to visit it and the Baraboo Hills as an exceptionally diverse geologic laboratory.

Rock Springs, Wisconsin · United States