This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: sandy_kintner Surnames: Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.wisconsin.counties.dane/5737.1/mb.ashx Message Board Post: The most likely route is the Erie Canal to Lake Erie, a steamer to Milwaukee and then overland to Verona. The railroad didn't reach Madison until 1854 and then from the South, not from Milwuakee. From a 1848 diary I have read the steam ship trip from Erie to Milwaukee could be a manner of 3-4 days if there were no problems. Overland between Miwaukee and Verona would have been much slower. It's only about 110 miles, but in a 1848 diary I read it took 12 days because of muddy roads and unbridged streams. If the whole trip was overland then it would have been much longer. An 1848 diary I read described a man and horse traveling from Troy, NY to Jacksonville Ill and it took over a month. South Central Wisconsin in 1850 was still pretty much frontier and home to a hard scrabble life. The first settlers didn't arrive until the mid-1840s. It's hard to imagine anyone traveling there for a short visit. Hope this helps Sandy Kintner Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.