Wisconsin 101

OBJECT HISTORY: 602 Club T-Shirt

Not all bars make commemorative T-shirts for their closing, like the one pictured here, but the 602 Club was not an average bar. The bar, previously located at 602 University Avenue, was just a short walk from the heart of campus, making…

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November 2, 2023

Swiss Immigration to New Glarus

For nearly a century, southeastern Wisconsin and especially Green County was a hotbed of Swiss immigration. Even though the immigration slowed dramatically in the early 1900s, the area still preserves a distinctive Swiss character. Visitors can attend the annual Cheese Days festivities…

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April 17, 2023

Dairy Industry / Industry / New Glarus / Food & Cooking / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Everyday Life / Green County / Global Connections / 1848-1877 / Manufacturing & Trade / Region 7 - South Center / Swiss Cheese Kettle

OBJECT HISTORY: Swiss Cheese Kettle

This cheese kettle, now held at the Swiss Historical Village in New Glarus, reflects Green County’s cheesemaking past. Made out of copper because of its ability to retain heat well and to be heated easily on an open fire, this cheese kettle…

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April 17, 2023

Read more about the article Pleasant Ridge: Southwest Wisconsin’s Integrated Pioneer Community

Schoolhouse of District #5 in Pleasant Ridge. Both Blacks and whites built, attended, and taught at the school, circa 1890. Image ID: 4239, WI Historical Society.

Beetown / Grant County / Related Stories / Iowa County / Ethnicity & Identity / Pleasant Ridge / 1848-1877 / 1877-1900 / 1900-1918 / Society & Religion / 1918-1945 / Region 6 - South West / Ingersoll-Sergeant Pneumatic Rock Drill

Pleasant Ridge: Southwest Wisconsin’s Integrated Pioneer Community

Schoolhouse of District #5 in Pleasant Ridge. Both Blacks and whites built, attended, and taught at the school, circa 1890. Image ID: 4239, WI Historical Society. Pleasant Ridge was a rural agricultural community located near present-day Beetown in central Grant County that…

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December 21, 2022

Read more about the article Eastern European Immigration to Wisconsin

A Bulgarian miner operating a pneumatic rock drill at a zinc mine in Platteville, circa the early 1900s. Image courtesy of The Mining and Rollo Jamison Museums Platteville, WI.

Industry / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Global Connections / Manufacturing & Trade / 1877-1900 / 1900-1918 / Region 6 - South West / Ingersoll-Sergeant Pneumatic Rock Drill

Eastern European Immigration to Wisconsin

Between the 1880s to the 1920s, a new wave of immigrants from Southern and Eastern Europe began to arrive in Wisconsin. The Eastern European immigrants included Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Russians, Hungarians, and Bulgarians. Eastern European countries at this time struggled with overpopulation,…

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December 20, 2022

Read more about the article OBJECT HISTORY: Council Oak Tree Bench

The Historic Council Oak Tree Bench housed in the McIntyre Library on UW Eau Claire's campus. Photo courtesy of Greg Kocken.

Home Furnishings / Eau Claire / Education / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Everyday Life / Eau Claire County / Nature & Environment / Region 3 - Center West / 1987-2011 / Council Oak Tree

OBJECT HISTORY: Council Oak Tree Bench

Dating from the early 1800’s, the Council Oak Tree, planted in Eau Claire stood for over 150 years with little to no disturbance. However, on July 10, 1966, a summer storm blew through the city and lightning struck the tree, leaving a…

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October 1, 2021