Thomas Dambo Troll Driving Tourists to Wisconsin

‘Mama Rosa’ is seen here in Wauwatosa. Photo courtesy of Discover Wauwatosa

Kathy and John Hadley spent their Tuesday morning 400 miles away from their Ohio home in a 12-acre park in the city of Wauwatosa. It was their second trip to the park in less than a year.

But the retired couple weren’t at Firefly Grove Park to use the walking paths or to to admire the landscaping. They were there to visit Mama Rosa, a 25-foot tall wooden troll sculpture created by the artist Thomas Dambo.

Kathy said they stumbled on their first Thomas Dambo troll when they were driving to Texas to visit their son last year.

“And now it’s just become kind of like a thing that we do, where we keep our eyes open for where there are new trolls,” Kathy said. “And it’s just so neat to go exploring.”

“So we’re checking out new and different places that we probably never would have visited otherwise,” she added.

John Hadley said they had plans to drive to New Glarus after visiting the troll.

“You can only get your Spotted Cow in Wisconsin, so I have to pick up some Wisconsin beer when I come through here,” he said.

The Dambo troll in Wauwatosa, the first one in Wisconsin, was unveiled in May 2025. Now, the village of Mount Pleasant is also set to get its own troll. It’s slated to be completed next year.

Matt Prochaska, the tourism manager for Enjoy Mount Pleasant, said the location is still secret, but the village has identified two possible locations. Dambo and his team will make the final choice.

“It’s kind of a little bit of a secret, and I think it kind of brings that mystical aspect to how he represents himself in the aspects of all of the troll builds,” Prochaska said.

Thomas Dambo stands in front of ‘Mama Rosa’ in Wauwatosa. Photo courtesy of Discover Wauwatosa

Dambo, a native of Denmark, has created more than 175 troll sculptures across the world, making the sculptures from recycled or repurposed materials and locally sourced downed trees. A statement from the village of Mount Pleasant said more than 4 million people visit the structures annually.

In Wauwatosa, Mama Rosa was made from trees from across the city. The troll is also holding a few old city light poles.

Beth Gleesing, tourism specialist for Discover Wauwatosa, said data from June 2025 through March 2026 from PlacerAI shows that more than 192,000 visits were made to the park. Of that number, Gleesing said around 122,000 visits were from zip codes outside of the city.

She said visitors have come from 48 states, as well as from Washington D.C.

“Dambo troll hunters are quite passionate people, and they will definitely travel to see trolls,” Gleesing said. “Like, they plan vacations around them.”

Gleesing said many people will travel to multiple trolls and keep a tally of how many they’ve seen. Kathy and John Hadley said their count was at 54. They said they also had plans to see a new troll in Elk Horn, Iowa.

“That’ll make 55 for us,” Kathy said. “So it’s a little bit of an obsession, but it’s harmless.”

Three Dambo trolls and a secret art installation just opened up in Clinton, Iowa. Matthew Parbs, the vice president of Grow Clinton, said people were waiting in lines during the second weekend of May to catch a glimpse.

Parbs said the “troll hunters,” as he calls them, are already making a positive economic impact on the area.

“We invested for the long term impact,” he said.

Gleesing hopes the troll coming to Mount Pleasant will have a similar impact.

“We know the troll hunters will plan road trips around visiting the trolls, so having two within a reasonable proximity is going to allow those folks to be like, ‘Hey, bonus, right. Not only can I plan a trip to see a troll, but I can really easily see two and cross two off my bucket list,’” Gleesing said.

In 2024, Wisconsin’s tourism industry generated $25.8 billion in economic impact.

“Clearly, tourism as a whole is driving the economy in the state,” Gleesing said. “And so it’s really fantastic to know that the city of Wauwatosa and the Thomas Dambo sculpture is contributing to that and seeing that visitation that I do think will only continue to amplify with the introduction of the Mount Pleasant troll in 2027.”

‘Mama Rosa’ is seen here in Wauwatosa on May 12, 2026. Evan Casey/WPR

Prochaska said the contract for their troll is around $500,000. It’ll be paid for with the village’s hotel room tax.

The goal is to drive tourism to the village of around 27,000.

“This troll will welcome thousands of people to visit and experience Mount Pleasant,” Mount Pleasant Village President David DeGroot said in a statement. “Those visitors will support our local businesses, explore our parks, and discover everything that makes this community special.”

Kathy said they plan on making another trip to Wisconsin next year when the troll is open for visitors in Mount Pleasant.

“Absolutely, we’re gonna be back,” she said.

Thomas Dambo troll driving tourists to Wisconsin was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.