Waukesha

Waukesha is a city in the southeast of Wisconsin in the US. The city is known for being the publishing location of the antislavery American Freeman from 1844-1848. The city was also a station on the Underground Railroad which was a way to enable slaves to flee from the south into the north, despite the Fugitive Slave Acts. Other than that, the city was known for its mud baths in the past. Nowadays Waukesha has a diverse industry that manufactures medical and electrical equipment, along with big, stationary gas engines (Britannica.com).

In Edith Wharton’s story “Afterward” Waukesha is where Edward Boyne lives together with his wife for fourteen years before the Blue Star Mine allows the couple to leave and buy a house in England, Lyng. It is actually never directly mentioned that they lived in Waukesha, instead, the reader of the story only gets to know that the Boynes lived in the Middle West (Wharton 344). However, there are several hints that make this assumption rather safe. Firstly, Parvis, the lawyer, is from Waukesha (Wharton 365). Secondly, the newspaper that is mentioned twice is the Waukesha Sentinel (Wharton 352; 370).

Image 1: Waukesha on the map


  • Wharton, Edith. “Afterward”. The Muse's Tragedy and Other Stories. Ed. Candace Waid. London: Penguin Books, 1992. 342-373. Print.