Highlights Archives
Looking Forward, Honoring Our Past
Society Director Ellsworth Brown Reviews 2006
The Wisconsin Historical Society celebrated its 160th year with programs, exhibits and activities that involved thousands of school children, educators, parents, grandparents, genealogists and history seekers of all kinds from our state, the nation and the international community. These meaningful, engaging and enjoyable connections to the past would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of our professional staff. By sharing their passion and expertise with you, we are able to ensure the legacy of the Society's founders and their successors. Entering our 161st year of service, the Wisconsin Historical Society continues to be guided by the belief that collecting, preserving and providing open access to our collective history and heritage is the bulwark of our democratic society. With this theme in mind, I would like to reflect back on the year and highlight some major events, programs, exhibits and activities of which we are particularly proud.
Wisconsin History Makers Gala
On Tuesday, May 23, 2006, I was thrilled to join more than 300 people who attended our first ever Wisconsin History Makers Gala, an annual event to honor living leaders with ties to Wisconsin who have made history in their own time. We saluted the lifetime achievements of five extraordinary individuals at the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee. Paul Gigot, Vel Phillips, George and Nan Pollard, and Elmer Winter each earned the distinction of being recognized for their accomplishments in the fields of journalism, public service, the arts, and business.
I think all would agree that the evening was both entertaining and inspirational. We will convene annually to celebrate the accomplishments of other living individuals whose work have influenced and continue to influence Wisconsin's colorful history. The 2007 Wisconsin History Makers Gala will take place May 9 — once again at the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee. Save the date and join us for another spectacular history making event!
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Library and Google
Another high note was our partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Library and Google. The Wisconsin Historical Society, in its role as the UW-Madison's North American history library, has joined the university and Google in an agreement to expand online access to hundreds of thousands of its books and documents. Truckloads of volumes currently available only on the Society's shelves in Madison will begin to become available free on the Web through Google's book search service.
Reed School
A philanthropist's treasured childhood memory about a one-room school he attended as a first-grade student has led to the restoration of the 1915 Reed School near Neillsville for use as the Wisconsin Historical Society's 10th historic site. Through the generosity of Gordon and Helen Smith, Reed School will again see service as an educational institution — this time as a re-created one-room school where today's students can experience a day in the life of a student long ago. We now have an extraordinary opportunity to tell the stories of one-room country schoolhouses that constituted a major part of our nation's educational system. The Smiths not only funded the top-to-bottom restoration of the school, but their family foundation is also providing an endowment to fund the school's educational programming and ongoing maintenance.
Historic Sites
As I often like to say, good history is the history of everybody. This couldn't be more apparent than at our statewide network of nine historic sites that preserve the artifacts and the stories of local communities. As I traveled throughout our state this year, I had the pleasure of seeing so many of you experiencing historic life in Wisconsin.
From La Pointe to Prairie du Chien, our historic sites were abuzz with activity, offering visitors what I believe is a rare combination of entertainment and edification. Perennial favorites like Laura Ingalls Wilder Day at Old World Wisconsin and Wisconsin's biggest and best Civil War reenactment at Wade House saw record attendance, while new attractions like the magical and breathtaking performances of the Chinese acrobatic circus troupe at the Circus World Museum in Baraboo received standing ovations from delighted crowds.
Speaking of Circus World, we are delighted that Stephen Freese has been appointed as Circus World Museum's new executive director. Stephen left public service after a 16-year career as a state representative for Wisconsin's 51st Assembly District and will bring a broad range of management, legislative and fund-raising experience to the job. He has also served as a member of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Board of Curators since 1993.
New Wisconsin Historical Museum Exhibits
To the delight of thousands of visitors, the Wisconsin Historical Museum opened two new major exhibits this year, Skating for Gold and Toy Stories. Did you know that in the last eight Winter Olympics, seven speed skaters born and raised in Wisconsin have brought home 13 medals, nine of them gold? From February 7 through March 25, 2006, we featured memorabilia from each of the seven athletes, including eight of the 13 medals won by Wisconsin speed skaters. Eric Heiden's five gold medals from the 1980 Olympics were displayed publicly for the first time ever, along with his skates and other items.
Toys occupy a central place in our own lives and in American culture. Both the kinds of toys available and the ways that we interact with them have been shaped by social, economic and cultural developments of the last 70 years. Toy Stories, a historical look at popular toys and games from the 1940s to the present began in October and continues through May 2007. Toys with intriguing Wisconsin connections, such as the Sno-Coaster, Shrinky Dinks, Trivial Pursuit, Duncan yo-yos, and American Girl dolls are featured along with memories of favorite childhood toys as recalled by famous Wisconsinites.
Partnership with Wisconsin Public Television
To many Americans, the Korean War is often referred to as the "Forgotten War," because it was sandwiched between what have become pivotal global events in our collective memory, beginning five years after World War II and less than a decade prior to the protracted conflict in Vietnam. But the three-year engagement that ended in a ceasefire is anything but forgotten by Wisconsin Korean War veterans and their families. I'm pleased to say that those memories are now recounted and preserved in a new two-part documentary, Wisconsin Korean War Stories, which aired in November on Wisconsin Public Television and is now available on DVD. The project was produced in association with the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs.
The first episode of Wisconsin Home Town Stories, Janesville, aired in May on Wisconsin Public Television and is now also available on DVD. The documentary follows the development of Janesville from its early days as a growing community on the Rock River to the present. Janesville, like each of the towns to be profiled in the series, is a celebration of the evolution of a town, its residents and the stories they have to tell as a mirror of the entire state and offers an integral piece in connecting Wisconsin's past to its present. Wisconsin Hometown Stories is a 10-year effort to tell the history of our state, one town at a time.
National History Day in Wisconsin
There are few things more profound or thrilling than to have a positive effect on a young person, to watch the light bulb go on, to change a life in some affirmative way. Parents, teachers, volunteers and Wisconsin Historical Society staff mentored thousands of state middle and high school students throughout Wisconsin as they participated in National History Day. It is an exciting way to encourage young people to explore history. This year's theme was Taking a Stand in History: People, Ideas, Events. The statewide educational initiative drew students from 20 Wisconsin counties to the state finals and culminated at the national competition held at the University of Maryland.
We are proud to be a major sponsor of National History Day in Wisconsin because the year-long educational activity promotes the development of knowledgeable, skilled, enthusiastic, creative learners and citizens.
Indeed, to collect and preserve the past and to mentor and inspire others who seek understanding and meaning through its discovery — I couldn't think of a better way to enumerate our achievements for the past year and our aspirations for 2007 as your Wisconsin Historical Society.
Ellsworth Brown, Director
:: Posted January 5, 2007
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