Madison, Wisconsin

Madison is the capital of Wisconsin, a state in the United States of America. As of the 2000 census, it has a population of 208,054, making it the second largest city in Wisconsin. It is the county seat of Dane County. Madison is also home to the University of Wisconsin.

Party Problem

For decades, the University has had a reputation as a "party campus." Examples of this include the still-continuing annual Mifflin Street Block Party (no longer a counterculture event, today a summer kick-off party for students) and the State Street Halloween Party. Both of these events are commonly attended by tens of thousands of partiers, including an ever-growing number who come from out of state just to attend. Following a (non-political) riot that developed at the 1996 Mifflin Street Block Party, it was forcibly cancelled by the city; since then, the city has permitted resumption of a Mifflin Street event that has taken a more mellow tone.

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Likewise, the State Street Halloween Party has been showing similar problems. One year, MTV was interested in televising this event; the fear of so many party-goers together eventually led to MTV backing off from its offer. In 2004, over 400 partiers were arrested after bonfires were started on the street during the celebration. Fewer than a quarter of the arrestees were Wisconsin residents or UW-Madison students. It was the third subsequent year that riots developed at the Halloween festivities.

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It is for these reasons and others why another of the city's nicknames is MadTown.

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