Odd Wisconsin

A Different Kind of Exhibit at the Wisconsin Historical Museum

Sometimes powerful and compelling stories come from unexpected and unusual places. At the Odd Wisconsin exhibit, opening Friday, October 3, at the Wisconsin Historical Museum, you'll explore a diverse collection of curious and authentic artifacts, documents, and images. As touchstones to the past, they represent a wide range of human experiences, from séances and college pranks, to assassinations and the fight for civil rights.

Fragile! Your Perceptions of History may be Prone to Breakage

The exhibit explores a side of history you probably never learned in the classroom.

• Why did the University of Wisconsin have
  a band play for cows?
• Why was a Wisconsin Congressman given a 7-foot bowie knife at the 1860 Republican
  National Convention?

The "Monster Knife" presented in 1860 to Wisconsin Representative John Fox Potter. Pictured is Wisconsin Historical Museum curator Joe Kapler.
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• How did aluminum strips, a plastic pink flamingo, and a bunch of bras make history?

You may find yourself surprised, perplexed, and astonished by the answers.

Warning! Objects are more Intriguing than they First Appear

Odd Wisconsin isn't all unusual objects. There's more to the story of seemingly commonplace items. Odd Wisconsin reveals what a rock, a drinking glass, and an engine fragment have to say about race relations in the 1950s, a presidential assassination attempt, and a Vietnam War protest gone wrong.

Too often a cultural object or a work of art must be one-of-a-kind to be considered a "museum treasure," but Odd Wisconsin is chock full of everyday objects turned into something full of mystery, history, and intrigue.

What You'll See

All items in Odd Wisconsin are from the Wisconsin Historical Society Library, Archives, Museum, and Historic Sites collections. The items you'll see include the auction poster for Ed Gein's estate, an original Teenie Weenies drawing by William Donahey, one of the earliest maps showing the New World , and a written KKK threat attached to a rock.

Want to see more? Take a peek at these intriguing and unusual objects from Odd Wisconsin!

Supporters

Odd Wisconsin is made possible through the generous support of the J.C. Radell Family Fund, the Dane County Cultural Affairs Commission, and a gift in honor of Lauri and Evelyn Koski.

Pink flamingo from the flock that graced Bascom Hill on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, 1979.
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One of many tall tale postcards produced by Alfred Stanley Johnson from 1911-1917.
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Did You Know?

You can find the book Odd Wisconsin and other exhibit-related gifts in our museum store. The Wisconsin Historical Society features Odd Wisconsin events published weekly in the Odd Wisconsin blog and in the Wisconsin State Journal.