Located near the heart of Grafton, a rusted power wheel sits on the steep west bank of the Milwaukee River. Despite its corroded appearance, this metal device once provided power to an entire factory responsible …
Arts & Entertainment
OBJECT HISTORY: Aztalan Copper Maskettes
Found at the Aztalan archaeological site in southeastern Wisconsin, these small copper artifacts were most likely used as ornate jewelry.[1] Specifically, Mississipian people likely wore the mask-shaped copper designs as earrings. Although Native Americans seldom …
OBJECT HISTORY: Ojibwe Presentation Pipe
This Ojibwe presentation pipe consists of two pieces: a pipe bowl and a pipe stem. It was most likely for spiritual ceremonies. According to the Wisconsin Historical Society, the pipe bowl is carved from heavy …
OBJECT HISTORY: Slovak Catholic Altar
During the 19th and early 20th century, immigrants from all across Europe began coming to Wisconsin. Some had heard of economic opportunity from industries like mining, logging, or farming. Some were being treated unfairly in …
OBJECT HISTORY: Jar of Marbles
Today the Wisconsin State Fair is full of attractions, rides, and great food, but in its early years it was meant to be a place for farmers to gather and share ideas about the agricultural …
OBJECT HISTORY: Racine Belles Movie Costume
This Racine Belles costume was worn in the 1992 film “A League of Their Own.” The film focused on the Rockford (Illinois) Peaches, tracking a season in the All-American Girls’ Professional Baseball League. The Peaches played the Belles several times during the film.
OBJECT HISTORY: Potawatomi Beaded ‘Soldier Coat’
An elder spokesman for the Potawatomi Indians, Chief Simon Onanguisse Kahquados made a number of trips to Washington, D.C. in the early twentieth century in an effort to regain land that his people had lost through treaties with the United States government in the 1800s. Kahquados wore this coat on his last trip to Washington and also wore it on other important occasions, such as trips to the state capital in Madison where he often spent time researching and presenting information about his ancestry.
OBJECT HISTORY: Piano and Song Recital Poster
Mr. Raphael Baez, a well-respected violinist, pianist, composer, and music professor, and his wife Mrs. Mary Schoen Baez, a noted vocalist, had performed together in various music halls in the city of Milwaukee since 1889. The Athenaeum, home of the Women’s Club of Wisconsin, had hosted Mr. Baez and his students throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth…
OBJECT HISTORY: Penguin Server
A penguin-themed serving bowl dishes out stories about the aluminum industry, postwar consumer culture, and home entertainment in mid-twentieth century Wisconsin.
OBJECT HISTORY: Pauline Pottery Covered Jar
Between 1888 and 1909 the city of Edgerton, Wisconsin was home to six different companies producing nationally recognized ceramic art. The art potteries of Edgerton were part of a late nineteenth and early twentieth century trend known as the American Art Pottery movement. This covered jar, made at Pauline Pottery, represents one example of this broad movement in American ceramics.