Home Furnishings

Beetown / New Object Histories / Home Furnishings / Food & Cooking / Grant County / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Pleasant Ridge / Everyday Life / 1900-1918 / Region 6 - South West

OBJECT HISTORY: Sanitary Metal Kitchen Cabinet

Kitchens form a central part of the American experience. The Sanitary Metal Kitchen Cabinet, also known as the Mound City Kitchen Safe (circa 1906), fits into the history of American cookery, American kitchens, and American consumerism. Originally owned by members of the…

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January 23, 2024

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

Industry / Wisconsin Made / Home Furnishings / Object Histories / Sheboygan / Everyday Life / Manufacturing & Trade / 1900-1918 / Sheboygan County / Region 5 - Center East / The 1904 Kohler “Armeda” Toilet

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

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 / Object Histories / Education / Ethnicity & Identity / Eau Claire County / Everyday Life / 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

Delonge Studio, Portrait of Frank Lloyd Wright, c. 1930. Courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society, Image ID 26555.

Art & Design / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Home Furnishings / Iowa County / Related Stories / Everyday Life / Nature & Environment / 1900-1918 / 1918-1945 / Region 6 - South West / Frank Lloyd Wright Pew/Bench

Frank Lloyd Wright’s Organic Architecture

Born in 1867 in Richland City, WI, Frank Lloyd Wright designed nearly 150 buildings in Wisconsin alone, as well as numerous homes and churches across the United States. Wright’s philosophy of matching an architectural structure to its natural environment, along with his…

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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.

Appleton / Home Furnishings / Hearthstone House Chandelier / Related Stories / Everyday Life / Outagamie County / 1877-1900 / Science & Medicine / Region 5 - Center East

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

Hearthstone House chandelier. Photo courtesy of Trase Tracanna, 2021.

Home Furnishings / Appleton / Object Histories / Hearthstone House Chandelier / Everyday Life / 1877-1900 / Outagamie County / Science & Medicine / Region 5 - Center East

OBJECT HISTORY: Hearthstone House Chandelier

Known as Edison Light Fixtures, the original lighting fixtures of Appleton’s Hearthstone House, were created by Bergmann and Co., in association with the Edison Company for Isolated Lighting, out of New York. They designed the electric lights with the same general components…

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June 7, 2021