Wisconsin 101

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…

Comments Off

August 14, 2024

Art, Sport & Entertainment / Columbia County / Broad History / Lodi / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Sports & Games / Global Connections / Society & Religion / Region 7 - South Center / Wooden Curling Stone

The Lodi Curling Club: 150 Years of Curling

How do you bring leisure and fun to a newly founded city? Build a curling club of course! At least that’s what James Otis Eaton did just over a decade after the small Wisconsin town of Lodi was officially founded in 1869.…

Comments Off

June 20, 2024

Eau Claire / 602 Club / Education / Related Stories / Ethnicity & Identity / Eau Claire County / Region 3 - Center West / 1965-1987 / Society & Religion

GLO: UW-Eau Claire’s First Gay Student Organization

Gay history in Wisconsin, while often focused on major cities like Madison and Milwaukee, was also being made in the often-overlooked rural parts of the state. One such place is the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire, where a coalition of gay students founded…

Comments Off

November 2, 2023

602 Club / Madison / Education / Dane County / Ethnicity & Identity / Related Stories / Politics & Government / 1945-1965 / Society & Religion / Region 7 - South Center

The Gay Purge of University of Wisconsin – Madison, 1962-63

Gay students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have not always received the protection they do today; in fact, from 1962-1963 the university attempted to systematically identify and expel gay students. The Dean of Men, in collaboration with Student Health Services and the…

Comments Off

November 2, 2023

Dairy Industry / Agriculture / Industry / Related Stories / Manufacturing & Trade / 1918-1945 / Society & Religion / National Guard Nightstick

The Wisconsin Milk Strikes of 1933

As the effects of the 1929 Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression rippled through the United States, many working-class Americans felt the economic impacts, including Wisconsin’s farmers. Midwestern farmers were already suffering even before the Depression, and since Wisconsin served as…

Comments Off

June 27, 2023

Agriculture / Shawano / Object Histories / Industry / Manufacturing & Trade / 1918-1945 / Region 2 - North East / Shawano County / Society & Religion / National Guard Nightstick

OBJECT HISTORY: National Guard Nightstick

In mid-May 1933, battles, clashes, and strikes erupted throughout Wisconsin. The catalyst? Milk. On the orders of Governor Albert G. Schmedeman and Adjunct General Ralph M. Immell, an army of 600 National Guardsmen, 800 special deputies, and local law enforcement marched into…

Comments Off

June 27, 2023