When the prohibition of alcohol began in 1920, the law brought huge social and economic effects to Wisconsin. Visitors enjoyed coming to Milwaukee because of the many brewery-related social events and institutions, including the Whitefish Bay Pabst Resort. Against the wishes of Milwaukee…
A penguin-themed serving bowl dishes out stories about the aluminum industry, postwar consumer culture, and home entertainment in mid-twentieth century Wisconsin.
On September 27, 1911, a group of businessmen headed by Bernhard Carl Ziegler founded the West Bend Aluminum Company. Ziegler was the director and president until his death in 1946. As one of the most influential people in the community, he was…
One of the most dominant functions of the West Bend Penguin Hot and Cold Server was its use as an ice bucket, an important container for cocktail parties. A popular way to entertain, cocktail parties acted as gateways into glamorous evenings. After Prohibition, the…
Fueled by the evolution of the middle-class suburban housing market and the modern family, home entertainment, especially outdoor activities, became a popular postwar activity. The Penguin Hot and Cold Server graced many patio and picnic tables during the 1950s and 1960s, but what sparked…
Founded in 1888 by Frederick A. Dennett, the Wisconsin Chair Company (WCC) was perhaps the most important business in Ozaukee County at the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth century. The company, located along the northern shore of the…