Time period/Baraboo: 1966 - present
Submitted by: Kenneth P. Frank

Ken Lange is a Wisconsin native, born May 16, 1934 in Milwaukee. He received a degree in education at the University of Wisconsin – Madison and then went on to get his master’s degree in zoology at the University of Arizona – Tuscon. He worked for the Smithsonian Institution early in his career, living in Washington, D.C.  and then spending a year in Madagascar doing an animal survey. When Ken was offered the job at Devils Lake State Park, he was the first naturalist ever hired by the Wisconsin State Park System in 1966.

Ken worked at the park until he retired in 1996 and continues to be active in local conservation efforts. Ken has written many books about the Baraboo and Sauk County areas, including a history of Devils Lake State Park and reference books on local flora, fauna and geology. Among the public’s favorites are “A Naturalist’s Journey” and “Song of Place”, a 700 page book.

Ken recalls coming to Sauk County and looking at the massive cliffs and wondering how anyone could ever interpret all of it. The long answer is this book which took 50 years of study during his free time. The book is dedicated to his wife, Esther, a retired librarian who shares his love of the Baraboo Hills.