Keefe, Atkinson, and Milwaukee's Stonehenge

The word "Solstice" conjures up a lot of different things for different people. Astronomically, the summer solstice refers to the longest day of the year-- usually June 21st: simply the day when, in the Northern hemisphere, the day is as long as it will be all year. Some people find this to be a sad day- after all, the days will only get shorter from here on out until the winter solstice, the shortest day. Others make a spiritual celebration out of it. I certainly note its presence- I don't enjoy our Milwaukee summer heat, but I love the longer light at the end of (and even more so at the beginning of) each day.

Now, there is a place on Atkinson Avenue that I always feel is special. I think of it as Milwaukee's version of Stonehenge. Atkinson, just north of Keefe, heads in a northwesterly direction at this point- and on the summer solstice, the sun appears to set directly over the road. It is simply amazing. Maybe it is just me, but I just feel that there is something special about this phenomenon.

Here's a map below. The little "A" indicates where the photo was taken. (OK, so I was four days late. Life, and clouds, got in the way of taking it on the exact solstice. I had been planning to take this photo for two years, so four extra days- aside from not being as precise as I would have liked- mattered little.)

I hope you enjoy this post. I certainly enjoyed putting it together for you.