[6] The land on which rests the town of Mazomanie fell within the hunting grounds of the Hočąk, or Winnebago, Indian nation.

[7] The village received its name; many years later, Edward Brodhead explained its derivation: “He (Mazomanie) was an Indian chief in our state and was well known to the old gentleman, H.L.

The Hočągara, who have persisted in the area despite many attempts to eject them, call this town Mą́zamąnį́, dropping the suffix -ga (a definite article used to indicate a person's name).

The first element of the name is mąs, "iron, metal, ax," which before a consonant may be softened to mąza- or mąze-, although the free standing form mąz is also known.

"[10] The double meaning of this name has long been appreciated: “The proprietors [of the railroad] have christened it Mazo-Manie, The-Iron-that-Walks, after a somewhat noted Indian chief; and as it is the offspring of an iron way, the name is not inappropriate.”[14] The actual village of Iron Walker was located near Watertown, about 45 miles to the east.

Dodsworth, however, adduces considerations that greatly complicate the eponymy of the present day Mazomanie.

[15] The Dakota (Sioux) language is akin to Winnebago, and it may be immediately appreciated that these names are exactly cognate to one another.

It transpired that in October 1836, Iron Walker had shot dead the well-known interpreter Pierre Poquette in an affair of honor.

[16] Dousman acted as guardian of Poquette's orphaned children and petitioned to secure for them a pension.

However, the proper rendering of the Dakota name is Máza-máni,[18] lacking the nasalized letter to which Brodhead referred.

The real attraction of the spelling and pronunciation now in effect is made clear in a newspaper article of the time: “We are daily asked how to pronounce this beautiful looking name.

By the nation's centennial, Mazomanie had grown to 1,100 people, making it the second largest community in Dane County.

Since that time, the village has gained only 350 people, but its small size and slow growth has preserved its nineteenth century character.

The village has thirty-four commercial buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, the best known among these the Mazomanie Railroad Depot which has, with minor changes, remained as it was when it was built in 1857.