Nature & Environment

Science & Technology / Williams Bay / Education / Related Stories / Walworth County / Yerkes Telescope / 1877-1900 / Nature & Environment / Science & Medicine / Region 8 - South East

Yerkes Telescope Construction and Use

  The construction of the 40-inch refracting telescope at Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, was directed by George Hale, an astrophysicist at the University of Chicago, and funded by Charles Yerkes, a Chicago businessman. The telescope is made of 40-inch glass lenses manufactured by…

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May 9, 2018

Lapham Peak Observation Tower. Photo credit: Cole Roecker.

Delafield / Object Histories / Waukesha County / Nature & Environment / Politics & Government / Society & Religion / 1918-1945 / Region 8 - South East / Lapham Peak Observation Tower

OBJECT HISTORY: Lapham Peak Observation Tower

At first glance, you might recognize this iconic Southeastern Wisconsin tower. Yet, under its wooden beams lies a rich foundation of Wisconsin’s history, including one of the state’s first scientists and a state agency responsible for construction works you probably use everyday.…

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February 9, 2018

Mining Industry / Industry / Grant County / Object Histories / Iowa County / Lafayette County / 1787-1848 / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Region 6 - South West

OBJECT HISTORY: Galena

Galena, the official state mineral of Wisconsin, is the raw material used to produce lead. During the Wisconsin “lead rush” of the 1820s-40s, lead was more valuable than gold. That is because just about everybody, rich or poor, used objects made of lead in their daily lives ­­– products that ranged from plumbing to toothpaste!…

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December 9, 2017

Lumber Industry / Wade House Museum / Industry / Greenbush / Object Histories / 1848-1877 / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Sheboygan County / Region 5 - Center East

OBJECT HISTORY: The Muley Sawmill

If you grew up in Wisconsin, you may be familiar with some of Wisconsin’s forests like the Black River forest, Menominee forest, or the Chequamegon-Nicolet forest. For hundreds of years these forests have provided Wisconsin with lumber used for building homes, factories,…

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September 10, 2017

Oliver, Sheldon, and Glen Fardig help in the Fardig Orchard in Ephraim, WI, c. 1930. Photograph courtesy of the Ephraim Historical Foundation.

Industry / Agriculture / Food & Cooking / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Door County / Global Connections / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Politics & Government / 1918-1945 / 1945-1965 / Region 5 - Center East / Transportation & Tourism / Cherryland T-Shirt

Migrant Labor and Door County Cherries

Early Door County cherry orchards relied heavily on local workers, and all members of the family that owned a cherry orchard were expected to contribute. From the planting process, spraying of fungicides, pruning, and finally cherry picking, each cherry tree required a…

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July 1, 2017

Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society. Image ID: 48771.

Broad History / Industry / Agriculture / Door County / Related Stories / 1848-1877 / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / 1877-1900 / 1900-1918 / 1918-1945 / 1945-1965 / Transportation & Tourism / Region 5 - Center East / Cherryland T-Shirt

The Cherry Industry in Door County

While early European immigrants in Door County survived by subsistence farming, efforts in later years to grow cash crops proved challenging, due in large part to the area’s rocky landscape. Despite little success with traditional crops, Door County residents continued to look…

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July 1, 2017