Wisconsin 101

Read more about the article Increase Lapham and the Founding of the United States Weather Bureau

Studio portrait of Increase A. Lapham in suit and tie, photographic print, c 1859. Image ID: 43831 Courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Increase Lapham and the Founding of the United States Weather Bureau

As immigration to Wisconsin swelled in the 1840s, so, too, did the state’s scientific and technological community, with innovations across industries ranging from agriculture and manufacturing to geology and environmental studies. Among Wisconsin’s first “pioneer scientists” was Increase A. Lapham, a young…

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September 8, 2020

Science & Technology / Related Stories / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Curators' Favorites / Manufacturing & Trade / 1918-1945 / Science & Medicine / 1945-1965 / X-Ray Shoe Fitting Machine

The Rise and Fall of Shoe Fitting Fluoroscopes

Shoe-fitting fluoroscopes were invented almost simultaneously in the United States and England. Milwaukee quickly became a center of the new technology.

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May 11, 2020

Wade House Museum / Berlin / Object Histories / Green Lake County / 1877-1900 / Society & Religion / Science & Medicine / Region 4 - Center

OBJECT HISTORY: Silsby’s Steam Powered Pumper

In the late 1800s, the Silsby Company created the Steam Powered Pumper in New York. This technological advancement made the lives of firefighters everywhere easier. They no longer had to rely on bucket brigades to fight fires. This impacted communities all over the country, including in Berlin, Wisconsin.

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February 10, 2020

Agriculture / Industry / Wisconsin Made / Beloit / Food & Cooking / Related Stories / Everyday Life / Manufacturing & Trade / Rock County / 1918-1945 / Science & Medicine / 1945-1965 / Region 7 - South Center / Clair Mathews' Feed Grinder

From Cow Feed to Korn Kurl

By the mid-1930s, the Flakall Corporation was trying to build up a customer base for its machine, a version of the feed grinder initially designed and built by Clair Mathews. But, as it turned out, the machine would end up being more useful for snack food manufacturers than farmers.

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September 23, 2019

Science & Technology / Object Histories / Education / Williams Bay / Walworth County / Yerkes Telescope / 1877-1900 / Science & Medicine / Region 7 - South Center / Region 8 - South East

OBJECT HISTORY: Yerkes Telescope

The 40-inch refracting telescope at Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, contains the world’s largest refracting lenses. Built in 1895, the telescope contains two lenses, one made of crown glass, and one made of flint glass. The lenses are each 40 inches in diameter, weigh 500 pounds, and have a 62-foot focal length. The telescope and observatory…

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September 10, 2019

Science & Technology / Object Histories / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Door County / Sturgeon Bay / 1945-1965 / Science & Medicine / Region 5 - Center East / X-Ray Shoe Fitting Machine

OBJECT HISTORY: X-Ray Shoe Fitting Machine

Intended to help customers get the perfect pair of shoes, X-Ray shoe fitting machines like this one from Sturgeon Bay were popular in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s.

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September 10, 2019