Clothing & Fashion

Aztalan Copper Maskettes, 1000-1200 AD. Courtesy: Milwaukee Public Museum

Aztalan / Jefferson County / Region 7 - South Center / Pre-1600 / Clothing & Fashion / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity

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 used metal, they sometimes used metals from…

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December 18, 2020

Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

1600-1800 / Manufacturing & Trade / Clothing & Fashion / Nature & Environment / Curators' Favorites / Global Connections

OBJECT HISTORY: Beaver Felt Hat

The beaver felt hat was one of the main reasons for the success of the fur trade in northern states, such as Wisconsin, and in Canada. But why was this hat more popular than others? Clothing allows for people to choose their…

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October 6, 2020

Racine County / Racine / Region 8 - South East / Racine Belles Movie Costume / Clothing & Fashion / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / 1980-2000

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.

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September 10, 2020

Door County / Potawatomi Beaded 'Soldier Coat' / Region 5 - Center East / Politics, Society & Government / Clothing & Fashion / Object Histories / 1900-1920 / Ethnicity & Identity

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.

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September 10, 2020

Region 2 - North East / A Hudson's Bay Company Point Blanket Coat / Wausau / Marathon County / Manufacturing & Trade / Clothing & Fashion / Object Histories / 1920-1940

OBJECT HISTORY: A Hudson’s Bay Company Point Blanket Coat

This wool coat was constructed from a ‘point blanket’ made by the Hudson’s Bay Company, likely during the early 1920s. A Wausau businessman wore it at one of the town’s early Winter Frolics, an annual winter sports festival that attracted tourists from as far as Chicago. The businessman belonged to a group of local business…

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September 9, 2020

La Crosse County / Region 3 - Center West / La Crosse / A Hmong Baby Sash / Politics, Society & Government / Clothing & Fashion / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / 1960-1980 / Global Connections

OBJECT HISTORY: A Hmong Baby Sash

We are surrounded by objects that seem very ordinary, but once we look closer, they often reveal deep connections to the history of our state and our communities. In this Object History, Pao Vue writes about the thread-bare baby sash he found in his mother’s room that, it turns out, once saved his life and…

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September 9, 2020