Welcome to Nakoma - An Early 19th Century Neighborhood on Madison's Near West Side.  Nestled between Lake Wingra and the UW Aboretum to the East, the Beltline to the South, and Westmorland to the North and West. Nokoma is conveniently located to downtown, the west side, southern neighborhoods and communities.

History

Nakoma's history starts long before Madison's.  Artifacts found in the neighborhood indicate that the land was used by Native Americans long before Madison was settled.  In the early years of Madison when the main settlement was located on the Isthmus Nakoma was rural farmland located the long distance of 2 miles outside of the main town.  Located on the main road between Madison and Monroe a stage coach stop (Old Spring Tavern) was one of the first buildings built in the neighborhood and can still be seen today along Nakoma Rd as it bends to meet Odana Rd.  

By 1915 Madison was expanding and most of the new subdivisions where along a street car line that extended west of Camp Randall providing means to commute to downtown work and shopping.  The Nakoma neighborhood was planned away from the street car lines and buyers needed convincing to build in such a remote area. In the beginning when few people owned cars the developer ran private busses to help people commute to the neighborhood.

Sales and building was slow during WWI and increased during the 1920's. During this time the Nakoma Homeowner Association was formed. One fo the first in Madison it provided neighborhood covenants requiring the building setbacks, limiting land use, and required architectural approval of the exterior of the buildings.

As Nakoma was built out the restrictions on exterior architecture created a unique neighborhood that has many unique home styles. Popular architectural styles of the times are represented in Nakoma including Greek Revival, Prairie School, Craftsman, Colonial Revival, Tudor, and International. 

Nakoma Today

The diverse and unique home styles, tree lined streets, curvy non-standard streets, and location has stood the test of time. Nakoma is one of Madison's most desirable neighborhoods.  The homes have retained their individual style and many have been updated over the past century to include modern conveniences.  Take away all the modern cars and Nakoma feels like you have stepped back in time.