Wisconsin 101

The Settlement House Movement

Mass immigration from eastern and southern Europe dramatically altered America’s ethnic and religious composition around the turn of the twentieth century. Unlike earlier immigrants, who had largely come from western European countries like Britain, Germany, Ireland, and Scandinavia, the new immigrants came…

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May 1, 2017

Milwaukee County / Milwaukee / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Global Connections / 1877-1900 / 1900-1918 / Society & Religion / Region 8 - South East / Settlement Cook Book

Elizabeth “Lizzie” Black Kander

The first generation of women—largely white and middle- or upper-class—to graduate from college in large numbers left school full of promise and enthusiasm, but were largely denied employment in medicine, law, or business. Rejected by the professional world, many focused their energies…

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May 1, 2017

Education / Milwaukee County / Milwaukee / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Global Connections / 1900-1918 / Society & Religion / Region 8 - South East / Settlement Cook Book

The Settlement

Having outgrown the basement of Temple B’ne Jeshurun, the mission moved to an old house at 507 Fifth Street in 1900. It was simply called “The Settlement.” Programs expanded as space and resources did—the building was busy from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00…

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May 1, 2017

Education / Milwaukee County / Milwaukee / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Global Connections / 1877-1900 / Society & Religion / Region 8 - South East / Settlement Cook Book

Roots of Milwaukee’s Settlement House

By 1890, the majority of Milwaukee’s Russian and Polish Jews lived in the city’s Second Ward, also known as the Haymarket District. Lizzie Black Kander worked as a truancy officer from 1890 to 1893, which gave her a front-row view of conditions…

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May 1, 2017

Brown County / Columbia County / Crawford County / Green Bay / Prairie du Chien / Broad History / Milwaukee County / Milwaukee / Industry / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Related Stories / Hamburg / Everyday Life / Global Connections / Marathon County / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Region 4 - Center / Region 5 - Center East / Region 6 - South West / Region 7 - South Center / Region 8 - South East / Fromm Fox Fur Coat / Fur Trade

Fashion and Fur

The End of the Old Fur Trade The development of fur farms at the close of the 19th century was perhaps the most revolutionary change in North America’s fur industry, and fashion played a significant role in that change. Beaver pelts had been…

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January 1, 2017

Art, Sport & Entertainment / Broad History / Milwaukee County / Milwaukee / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Sports & Games / Region 8 - South East / Vulcan Bowling Pin

Milwaukee: The Bowling Capital of America

Bowling evolved in the mid-nineteenth century United States from imported European games like the German kegling. Beginning with clubs in eastern U.S cities, bowling grew in popularity and spread to the Midwest—particularly cities like Milwaukee—as German-Americans migrated across the continent. Bowling was often…

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February 1, 2016