[9] President Martin Van Buren commissioned a party of 45 men, including Augustus A. Bird, to build a capital for the Territory of Wisconsin in Madison.

[12] The village of Sun Prairie, which grew from that town, was incorporated in an act of the Wisconsin legislature on March 6, 1868.

[13] On March 17, 1958, the Village Board ordered a referendum election on whether Sun Prairie should incorporate as a city of the fourth class after receiving a petition signed by over 100 electors.

On May 15, 1958, the Wisconsin Secretary of State filed the certificate of incorporation of the city of Sun Prairie.

Bar owner and Fire Captain Cory Barr was injured in the explosion and died as a result soon after.

This tragic event was the origin of the tagline "Sun Prairie Strong", a slogan which signifies the city's strength as it comes together as a community.

The eastern part of Dane County, known as the drumlin and marsh physiographic area, includes most of Sun Prairie.

[18] The Dodge-St. Charles-McHenry soils are found in the eastern, southern, and central portions of Sun Prairie.

The city of Sun Prairie encounters occasional flooding because of the presence of hydric soils, spring melting and its proximity to the Koshkonong Creek.

This condition is compounded by storm water runoff from development and urbanization in the upper reaches of the watershed.

Other significant employers include the Sun Prairie School District, American Family Insurance, Colony Brands, and Frontier Communications.

[27] During the city's Groundhog Day celebration on February 2, 2015, Jimmy bit Mayor Jonathan Freund's ear.

[28] The next day, Freund issued a proclamation that pardoned and absolved Jimmy "of any perceived wrongdoing and charges" under the city's ordinances.

[32][33] In mid-June, the city holds a local Taste of the Arts fair, in conjunction with the Georgia O'Keeffe Celebration.

Over 70 short tons of sweet corn are served or sold during the weekend event, which includes a carnival, a parade down Main Street and performances by local and regional musical groups.

[36] Six sites in Sun Prairie are listed in the National Register of Historic Places: the Sun Prairie Downtown Historic District (which includes the Old City Hall), Dr. Charles G. Crosse House, the Chase Grain Elevator, Fuhremann Canning Company Factory, the Adam and Mary Smith House, and the Sun Prairie Water Tower.

The Sun Prairie Water Tower, located at the junction of Columbus, Church and Cliff Streets, was designed by Frank Stegerwald and constructed in 1912 of stone, metal, and wood.

The Sun Prairie Piranhas, the city's youth swim team, practice at the Family Aquatic Center.

Paul Esser was elected mayor on April 7, 2015, when he defeated challenger Bill Clausius.

The Sun Prairie Area School District administers local public education.

[46] The Sun Prairie Media Center (a department of the city) has had at least two local public-access television cable TV stations, KSUN (originally KSUN-12) and KIDS-4, for over 30 years.

High school sports games are the exception to this, airing on either channel depending on circumstance.

[47] KIDS-4's programming content, camera, sound, lighting, editing, writing, and direction are produced by 30 to 40 children selected each year.

[48][49] Historically, these children have ranged in age from nine to fourteen,[50] but in 2000, the first high school-aged crew was introduced.

[49] In July 2015, WLSP-LP (103.5), also run by the Sun Prairie Media Center, came to the air as a community radio station.

The route then passed through downtown Madison and followed then WIS 31 (part of the current US-151) to Sun Prairie.

In 1947, the eastern terminus was moved to Watertown, the section along US-151 was removed, and the portion between Mazomanie and Sun Prairie was implemented.

Sun Prairie maintains its own emergency medical service, which is a charter member of Dane County's Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS).

The city's rapid growth affected ambulance response times negatively, and the 1980s saw the hiring of a full-time EMS director.

In 2009 St. Mary's Hospital of Madison opened a free-standing emergency room facility in Sun Prairie.