Object Histories

Milwaukee Handicraft Project Portfolio / Art & Design / New Object Histories / Milwaukee / Milwaukee County / Object Histories / Society & Religion / 1918-1945 / Region 8 - South East

OBJECT HISTORY: Milwaukee Handicraft Project Portfolio

A seagull is eating fish for lunch, disrupting the regularity of the water’s waves as it splashes around. This is a scene so common on the Milwaukee shores of Lake Michigan that it served as design inspiration for local craftsmen, and in…

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April 23, 2025

Statue of Liberty / New Object Histories / Object Histories / Madison / Dane County / Education / 1965-1987 / Region 7 - South Center

OBJECT HISTORY: Statue of Liberty

Hosted by the University of Wisconsin Union team since 1940, and meant as a way to invite the university community to take part in outdoor recreation and celebrate the season, the Winter Carnival is one of the most iconic events on Madison’s…

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March 11, 2025

Janesville / Chevy Caprice / Wisconsin Made / Industry / New Object Histories / Object Histories / Rock County / 1965-1987 / Transportation & Tourism / Region 7 - South Center

OBJECT HISTORY: Chevy Caprice

General Motors was the largest car manufacturing corporation in the world in the 1960s, and the assembly of the 100 millionth General Motors vehicle, a marina blue 1967 Chevrolet Caprice with a soft black top and complementary blue interior, was a significant…

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February 17, 2025

Indigenous Wisconsin / Lac du Flambeau / Ricing Sticks / Agriculture / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Curators' Favorites / Region 2 - North East / Vilas County / 1987-2011

OBJECT HISTORY: Wild Rice Threshing Machine

Harvested in the early autumn, wild rice has long been an important commodity to Native Americans, including the Ojibwe, who lived in areas where it grew abundantly. This improvised wild rice threshing machine was made and used by Duane Poupart, Sr., a…

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November 17, 2024

Lac du Flambeau / Odanah / Ricing Sticks / Broad History / Indigenous Wisconsin / Agriculture / New Object Histories / Ashland County / Object Histories / Food & Cooking / Ethnicity & Identity / Region 1 - North West / Region 2 - North East / Vilas County

OBJECT HISTORY: Ricing Sticks (Bawa’iganaakoog)

Bawa’iganaakoog, threshers, or knockers, are all words used to refer to the sticks used for the harvesting of wild rice. Wild rice holds extreme cultural importance to Ojibwe culture for several reasons beyond basic sustenance; not only can it be dried and…

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November 16, 2024

John Potter's Monster Knife / East Troy / New Object Histories / Object Histories / 1848-1877 / Walworth County / Politics & Government / Region 8 - South East

OBJECT HISTORY: John Fox Potter’s “Monster Knife”

Measuring over six feet in length and weighing thirty-two pounds, this gigantic folding knife belonged to Wisconsin representative John Fox “Bowie Knife” Potter who was famous as a dedicated abolitionist and infamous for his willingness to use physical force on the United…

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October 29, 2024