Manufacturing & Trade

Lac du Flambeau / Indigenous Wisconsin / Ricing Sticks / Agriculture / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Curators' Favorites / Region 2 - North East / Vilas County / 1987-2011

OBJECT HISTORY: Wild Rice Threshing Machine

Harvested in the early autumn, wild rice has long been an important commodity to Native Americans, including the Ojibwe, who lived in areas where it grew abundantly. This improvised wild rice threshing machine was made and used by Duane Poupart, Sr., a…

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November 17, 2024

Lac du Flambeau / Odanah / Ricing Sticks / Broad History / Indigenous Wisconsin / Agriculture / Ashland County / Food & Cooking / Related Stories / Ethnicity & Identity / Region 1 - North West / Nature & Environment / Region 2 - North East / Vilas County

Wild Rice and Wetland Conservation

Wild rice grows only in the Great Lakes Region in shallow and calm waters.  It requires specific conditions, nutrient-rich muddy soil and stable water levels, in order to properly grow to maturity, to produce the seeds able to be harvested. Damaging the…

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November 17, 2024

Agriculture / Indigenous Wisconsin / Broad History / Ricing Sticks / Odanah / Lac du Flambeau / Ashland County / Food & Cooking / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Nature & Environment / Region 1 - North West / Region 2 - North East / Vilas County

Ricing (Manoominikewin)

Wild rice was depicted in an Ojibwe prophecy before there was even a name for the grain. When the Ojibwe people began to migrate west, they were prophesied to settle where food grows on water. The westward migration was in part because…

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November 16, 2024

Lac du Flambeau / Agriculture / Indigenous Wisconsin / Broad History / Ricing Sticks / Odanah / New Object Histories / Ashland County / Food & Cooking / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Region 1 - North West / Region 2 - North East / Vilas County

OBJECT HISTORY: Ricing Sticks (Bawa’iganaakoog)

Bawa’iganaakoog, threshers, or knockers, are all words used to refer to the sticks used for the harvesting of wild rice. Wild rice holds extreme cultural importance to Ojibwe culture for several reasons beyond basic sustenance; not only can it be dried and…

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November 16, 2024

Slaske's Tools / Greendale / New Object Histories / Milwaukee County / Object Histories / Manufacturing & Trade / Politics & Government / 1918-1945 / Society & Religion / Region 8 - South East

OBJECT HISTORY: Jack Slaske’s Tool Set

In the holdings of the Greendale Historical Society is an unassuming set of tools, comprised of hand saws, planes, braces and drill bits, among other items. Though these were mass manufactured and similar tools exist all across the country, these particular tools…

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August 14, 2024

Fish Boil Kettle / Industry / Door County / Related Stories / 1848-1877 / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / 1877-1900 / Region 5 - Center East

Early Fishing in Northern Door County: Before the Turn of the 20th Century

The impact of the fishing industry on Door County cannot be understated, as it held the keys for the original formation of the County and many of its cities and villages. Although commercial fishing has waned, the tradition persists in area as…

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April 10, 2024