Wisconsin 101

The Early History of the Kohler Company

As was so often the case with major American businesses in the 1800s, the Kohler Company grew from modest roots. The company’s founder, John Michael Kohler, began his working life first as a delivery truck driver and then a salesman. Born in…

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November 10, 2020

Read more about the article OBJECT HISTORY: Beaver Felt Hat

Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Fur Trade / Prairie du Chien / Industry / Brown County / Columbia County / Crawford County / Green Bay / Object Histories / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Everyday Life / Curators' Favorites / 1787-1848 / Global Connections / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Region 5 - Center East / Region 6 - South West / Region 7 - South Center

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

Object Histories / Sheboygan / Ethnicity & Identity / Global Connections / Sheboygan County / 1900-1918 / Society & Religion / Region 5 - Center East / Synagogue Window

OBJECT HISTORY: Synagogue Window

This synagogue window is a testament to the successful efforts of hundreds of Russian Jews to recreate a familiar community in Sheboygan, Wisconsin in the early twentieth century.

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September 10, 2020

Art & Design / Military History / Indigenous Wisconsin / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / Door County / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Ethnicity & Identity / Politics & Government / 1900-1918 / Region 5 - Center East / Potawatomi Beaded 'Soldier Coat'

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

Wade House Museum / Greenbush / Object Histories / 1848-1877 / Sheboygan County / Transportation & Tourism / Region 5 - Center East

OBJECT HISTORY: Plank Roads

Before the 1850s, Wisconsin did not have roads, at least not ones you would recognize. As more people moved to Wisconsin, settlers cut thick prairies and forests into roads, but these were just dirt paths that were often quite muddy. As a solution, Wisconsinites decided to build plank roads which had a lot of advantages over the dirt ones.

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September 10, 2020

Agriculture / Industry / Ephraim / Object Histories / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Door County / Everyday Life / 1945-1965 / Transportation & Tourism / Region 5 - Center East / Cherryland T-Shirt

OBJECT HISTORY: Cherryland T-Shirt

In 1927, Marilyn Färdig’s grandparents, Andrew and Esther Färdig, purchased twenty acres of land in Ephraim, Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society. Image ID: 79142. Wisconsin, and started a cherry orchard. With the help of their seven children and workers from a variety of locations, including the southern United States, Mexico, and Jamaica, Andrew…

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September 9, 2020