Wisconsin 101

OBJECT HISTORY: Potawatomi Beaded ‘Soldier Coat’

An elder spokesman for the Potawatomi Indians, Chief Simon Onanguisse Kahquados made a number of trips to Washington, D.C. in the early twentieth century in an effort to regain land that his people had lost through treaties with the United States government in the 1800s. Kahquados wore this coat on his last trip to Washington and also wore it on other important occasions, such as trips to the state capital in Madison where he often spent time researching and presenting information about his ancestry.

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September 10, 2020

Military History / Madison / Dane County / Object Histories / 1848-1877 / Politics & Government / Region 7 - South Center / Old Abe, the Live War Eagle

OBJECT HISTORY: Old Abe, the Live War Eagle

A bald eagle stands guard over the State Assembly Chamber in Wisconsin’s Capitol building. Between two and three feet tall, the raptor has the characteristic white head and tail feathers, a brown body, and a yellow beak and talons. He sits atop a tree stump in front of a large mural called Wisconsin that represents the state’s…

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September 10, 2020

La Crosse / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / Clothing, Apparel & Fashion / Everyday Life / Global Connections / La Crosse County / Politics & Government / Region 3 - Center West / 1965-1987 / A Hmong Baby Sash

OBJECT HISTORY: A Hmong Baby Sash

We are surrounded by objects that seem very ordinary, but once we look closer, they often reveal deep connections to the history of our state and our communities. In this Object History, Pao Vue writes about the thread-bare baby sash he found in his mother’s room that, it turns out, once saved his life and…

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September 9, 2020

Industry / La Farge / Object Histories / Vernon County / Manufacturing & Trade / Nature & Environment / Politics & Government / Transportation & Tourism / 1965-1987 / Region 6 - South West / A Dam Tower in the Kickapoo Valley Reserve

OBJECT HISTORY: A Dam Tower in the Kickapoo Valley Reserve

This concrete obelisk stands near the Kickapoo River and is located a mile north of the village of La Farge. It rises nearly a hundred feet above the river valley floor. The tower was constructed more than forty years ago as part…

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September 9, 2020

Wade House Museum / Greenbush / Object Histories / 1787-1848 / 1848-1877 / Politics & Government / Sheboygan County / Region 5 - Center East

OBJECT HISTORY: A Ballot Box

When was the last time you voted? Today? Yesterday? Maybe last week? Voting can be simple and a good way to let people know what you want. You may have voted, for example, on where to get dinner. You and one family…

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September 9, 2020

Read more about the article Increase Lapham and the Founding of the United States Weather Bureau

Studio portrait of Increase A. Lapham in suit and tie, photographic print, c 1859. Image ID: 43831 Courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Science & Technology / Delafield / Related Stories / 1848-1877 / Waukesha County / Nature & Environment / Politics & Government / Science & Medicine / Region 8 - South East / Lapham Peak Observation Tower

Increase Lapham and the Founding of the United States Weather Bureau

As immigration to Wisconsin swelled in the 1840s, so, too, did the state’s scientific and technological community, with innovations across industries ranging from agriculture and manufacturing to geology and environmental studies. Among Wisconsin’s first “pioneer scientists” was Increase A. Lapham, a young…

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September 8, 2020