Region 5 – Center East

Manitowoc / 2000-2020 / 2020-2040 / Region 5 - Center East / Related Stories / Manitowoc Breakwater Lighthouse / Manitowoc County / 1820-1840 / Manufacturing & Trade / 1840-1860 / Politics, Society & Government / 1860-1880 / 1880-1900 / 1900-1920 / Nature & Environment / 1920-1940 / 1940-1960 / 1960-1980 / 1980-2000

Manitowoc’s Maritime Identity

The city of Manitowoc has been deeply shaped by its maritime industry. Located directly on the shores of Lake Michigan, Manitowoc’s identity is intimately tied to the Great Lakes. Manitowoc utilized the access to Lake Michigan to build an economy fueled by…

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May 29, 2023

Manitowoc County / Manitowoc / 2000-2020 / 2020-2040 / Region 5 - Center East / New Object Histories / Manitowoc Breakwater Lighthouse / Manufacturing & Trade / Object Histories / 1900-1920 / Nature & Environment / 1920-1940 / 1940-1960 / 1960-1980 / 1980-2000 / Transportation & Tourism

OBJECT HISTORY: Manitowoc Breakwater Lighthouse

Manitowoc Breakwater Lighthouse. Image courtesy of Wisconsin Historical Society ID:59505. Many of us can easily picture a lighthouse in our minds. You may think of a tall structure that’s right along a lake or ocean, illuminating the water and land it protects.…

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May 29, 2023

Drawing of the Kohler Company's "Armeda" toilet. Courtesy of the Kohler Co. Archives.

Sheboygan / Region 5 - Center East / The 1904 Kohler “Armeda” Toilet / Sheboygan County / Home Furnishings / Manufacturing & Trade / Object Histories / 1900-1920

OBJECT HISTORY: The 1904 Kohler “Armeda” Toilet

By the year 1904, when the “Armeda” toilet pictured here appeared in the Kohler Company’s product catalogue, Sheboygan-based Kohler had become one of the largest makers of bathroom furnishings in the United States. Even at this early date in its history, as…

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March 11, 2022

Engelman talks with peers at the University of Green Bay. Courtesy of UW-Green Bay Archives.

Brown County / The Land of the Freed-up Woman / Region 5 - Center East / Green Bay / Related Stories / Politics, Society & Government / Art, Sport & Entertainment / 1940-1960 / Education

Marge Engelman and Equal Opportunity at UW-Green Bay

In the 1940s, it was rare for young women like Marge Engelman to pursue higher education. Having grown up in Illinois on her parents’ farm, Engelman was pressured by her father to stay on the family farm and to marry a farmer. In…

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August 19, 2021

Marge Engelman, "The Land of the Freed-up Woman," 1971. Courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society, object 2000.79.1

Brown County / The Land of the Freed-up Woman / Region 5 - Center East / Green Bay / Politics, Society & Government / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / 1960-1980

OBJECT HISTORY: The Land of the Freed-up Woman

Marge Engelman’s  The Land of the Freed-Up Woman embodies the progressive thinking of the Women’s Liberation Movement of the 1970s. Engelman’s decision to use two symbols of womanhood—birth control pills and bras—as the medium for her artwork transformed the recognizable flag into a message…

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August 19, 2021

Front view of historic house in the summertime c. 1974. Photo courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society, ID# 28719.

Outagamie County / Region 5 - Center East / Appleton / Hearthstone House Chandelier / Related Stories / Home Furnishings / Science & Medicine / 1880-1900

The Hearthstone House and Electricity to Wisconsin

Built in 1882, the Hearthstone House operated using the first system of central electricity designed by Thomas Edison and it was the first private residence in the nation powered through hydroelectricity. The house was originally known as the Henry J. Rogers House,…

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June 7, 2021