Museums

Logging museum

The logging museum at the MacKenzie Center teaches visitors of Wisconsin's logging history.

The logging museum is located in a log home that was built in the early 1880s near Grantsburg. Inside are images of Wisconsin's logging industry in the late 19th century, historic tools used for timber harvests and two dioramas depicting logging practices.

Sawmill exhibit

The sawmill exhibit near the logging museum provides an opportunity to see how lumber was processed in the early days of Wisconsin's booming lumber industry. The white pine log in the display was 250 years old when it was harvested — long before Wisconsin was even a state.

Displays about Wisconsin's logging past are housed at the MacKenzie Center.

Sugarbush and Maple Syrup Production

Harley MacKenzie planted enough maple trees in the arboretum to create a "sugarbush" — an area where maple trees are tapped to collect the sap and produce syrup or sugar. Each spring, the MacKenzie sugarbush produces around 35-40 gallons of pure maple syrup, also known as "MacKenzie Gold." The annual MacKenzie Maple Syrup Festival is held the first Saturday of April.

A school group learns about how to make maple syrup and its historical importance in Wisconsin.