Museum Objects Monthly Archives: Business, Technology, & Labor
Dairyland Rat Poison container made for the Wisconsin Pharmacal Co. of Milwaukee, 1955-1965. (Museum object #1999.143.34) The same substance that can save your life can also kill you. This is emphatically the case for the compound dicumarol, developed in the... :: June 26, 2008
Trade stimulator gumball slot machine seized from a Shullsburg, Wisconsin tavern in 1945. (Museum object #2008.13.1A-B) When is gambling not gambling? When you're buying gum, too. At least that was the theory of many tavern owners. Authorities have tried to... :: May 22, 2008
Automobile baby bottle warmer lined with asbestos, made by the Hankscraft Company, Reedsburg, Wisconsin, c. 1955. (Museum object #1979.316.21) At the height of the Baby Boom, convenience items like this Hankscraft brand automobile baby bottle warmer proved popular for many... :: May 8, 2008
Lead-melting bowl used at the Wisconsin Shot Company Shot Tower, Helena, Wisconsin, c. 1833. (Museum object #1992.12) Prior to the nineteenth century, producing lead shot for muskets was not only a time-consuming process, the final product was often pock-marked or... :: March 27, 2008
Reclining seat designed by Brooks Stevens for one of the Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha luxury railroad cars, 1948 (Museum object #1991.92) In an era when the choice between interminably boring highway drives and jam-packed, delay-prone airplanes seems equally dismal, cross-country travel... :: February 21, 2008
Lumber company scrip issued by Knapp, Stout & Co., Barron County, Wisconsin, between about 1878-1890. (Museum object #N4001) In the forests of northern Wisconsin, ready cash was frequently hard to come by in the nineteenth century. This was especially true... :: January 24, 2008
Table-top Ristaucrat S-45 Selective Jukebox, produced by Ristaucrat, Inc., Appleton, Wisconsin, 1951. (Museum object #1974.7.2) The precursor of the modern jukebox appeared in 1889, when businessman Louis Glass fitted an Edison phonograph with a coin slot and installed it at... :: November 22, 2007
Tool chest used by carpenter Charles Colburn of Wonewoc, Wisconsin, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. (Museum object #2004.137.1-248) Who built Wisconsin? If by "built" we mean transforming the aboriginal landscape of Wisconsin into today's pattern of farms,... :: November 15, 2007
Control rod and replica fuel assembly from Wisconsin's first nuclear power plant. (Museum object 1997.56.13-14) If this nuclear power plant fuel assembly were real, the Wisconsin Historical Museum staff would be dead. The object shown at left is actually a... :: October 18, 2007
Stereo Realist f3.5 camera made by the David White Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, c. 1951. (Museum object #1980.337) Since the dawn of photography in the early 19th century, millions of people have enjoyed the semi-permanent record of life that photographs... :: September 27, 2007
Frederics permanent wave machine used in Crisella's Beauty Shop in Blanchardville, Wisconsin, late 1930s. (Museum object #1986.79.2) Prior to the twentieth century, a woman with straight hair who desired curls had to spend hours heating curling irons over a flame... :: September 20, 2007
Time clock used by workers at the Appleton Woolen Mills, Appleton, Wisconsin, c. 1894 - c. 1915. (Museum object #1964.58.1,A) Before the industrial revolution, most forms of work were governed by the demands of the season or the task at... :: August 30, 2007
Weekly appointment book made of ivory and used by Wisconsin politician and businessman Cassius Fairchild of Madison, Wisconsin during the 1850s. Maker unknown. (Museum object #1971.19) Today, most people consider daily life to be busier than in generations past, with... :: August 23, 2007
Women's coveralls worn by Teresa Kuykendall while working in a factory in Beloit, Wisconsin during World War II. (Museum object #2007.92.1) Teresa Kuykendall of Beloit, Wisconsin was a real life "Rosie the Riveter" during World War II. In 1943 she... :: August 16, 2007
Industrial sewing machine used by seamstresses to make one of Wisconsin's signature products for more than forty years at OshKosh B'Gosh, Inc., 1950s-1997. (Museum object #1997.54.1A-D) Not so long ago, most people thought of overalls when they heard the word... :: August 9, 2007
Jar of marbles used in Wisconsin fair exhibits by Professor John Sweet Donald of the University of Wisconsin during the 1920s. (Museum object #1953.663) While today people tend to flock to the Wisconsin State Fair for attractions like rides, animals,... :: July 26, 2007
Wash-Up Kit made by the Bay West Company in Green Bay, Wisconsin and distributed by the Yankee Paper and Specialty Co. of Menasha, Wisconsin in the 1920s. (Museum object #1998.6.2) "Are we there yet?" may well have been one of... :: July 5, 2007
"Bright beer" storage tank made by Dunck Tank Works of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, c. 1910 and used by the Stevens Point Brewery, Stevens Point, Wisconsin, c. 1915-1995. (Museum object #2007.83.2) Wisconsin has always been popularly conceived of as having a... :: June 28, 2007
Warner "Auto-Meter," Model K-2, made by the Warner Instrument Company of Beloit, Wisconsin, c. 1906-1910. (Museum object #1989.81.1) When automobiles began taking over roads across the country in the late nineteenth century, their drivers had no reliable way to tell... :: May 17, 2007
Trunk used by Werner Brunner while he worked on Civilian Conservation Corps projects in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, 1934-1935. (Museum object #1990.165.26,A) During the Depression of the 1930s, many young, unmarried, and unemployed men jumped at the opportunity to join... :: May 10, 2007
Case of soda pop bottles shipped by the Kurth Company of Columbus, Wisconsin during prohibition, 1920-1933. (Museum object #1994.77.1) The day-to-day lives of many Wisconsin residents changed drastically with the passage of the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the... :: April 5, 2007
Duncan Butterfly yo-yo manufactured by the Flambeau Corporation, Baraboo, Wisconsin, 1988-1995. (Museum object #2001.83.13) Did you know that one of the world's most famous toys, the Duncan yo-yo, was produced in Wisconsin for most of its existence? The Duncan Company,... :: March 29, 2007
Sholes & Glidden typewriter developed by Christopher Latham Sholes of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and marketed c. 1874. (Museum object #1964.31) Christopher Latham Sholes, along with other inventors, toiled in a small machine shop in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for nearly seven years before... :: March 22, 2007
Solar Compass used to survey lands in Wisconsin and surrounding areas during the 1840s and 1850s. (Museum object #1962.60.2,A) In 1834, while surveying and subdividing the layout of thirteen townships in land that would one day become northern Wisconsin, government... :: March 8, 2007
Simplex fluoroscope machine made by X-Ray Shoe Fitter, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin and most likely used in a Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin shoe store, c. 1945-1955. (Museum object #1992.109) In the late 1940s, Noren's Shoes of Sturgeon Bay attracted customers with the... :: September 28, 2006
Minicom III TTY machine made by Ultratec, Inc., Madison, Wisconsin, c. 1986-1989. (Museum object #2004.58.2a-h) One of history’s ironies is that the telephone - whose inventor, Alexander Graham Bell, was a life-long teacher of the deaf - thoroughly excluded deaf... :: September 21, 2006
Handmade all wooden cranberry rake used for harvesting cranberries in Grand Marsh, Wisconsin, early 20th century. (Museum object # 1973.121) The cranberry, Wisconsin’s official state fruit, grows on vines in peat or sandy marshes. In the early days of cranberry... :: September 14, 2006
Plaque commemorating the passage of the 1915 Seaman's Act. (Museum object #1942.530) This commemorative plaque, which consists of photographs and text set within an intricately knotted ropework frame, was made to commemorate the passage of the milestone 1915 Seamen’s Act.... :: August 31, 2006
Shotz Brewery smock used in Laverne and Shirley television series, 1976-1980. (Museum object #2006.38.1) Introduced in the show’s opening credits along side an undeniably catchy theme song, the lavender Shotz Brewery smock – like Laverne’s famous “L”-embroidered sweaters – is... :: August 17, 2006
Kelvinator Microwave “Radarange” thought to be the first home microwave oven used in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 1956. (Museum object #1985.30) By today’s standards, this microwave oven is quite bulky and very heavy. Housed in a brushed stainless steel cabinet which... :: August 10, 2006
1948 Ambassador sedan, manufactured by the Nash Motors Division of the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation, Kenosha, Wisconsin, 1947-1948. (Museum object #1992.156) The Ambassador was the Nash Motors Company’s top of the line model in 1948. This model 4868 four door sedan sports... :: August 3, 2006
1941 Model FL motorcycle manufactured by the Harley-Davidson Motor Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1941. (Museum object #2003.19.1) The FL was Harley-Davidson's first modern "heavyweight" motorcycle. Introduced in 1941, the FL featured the high compression version of the company's first 74-cubic-inch overhead... :: July 20, 2006
Elto Cub outboard motor manufactured by the Evinrude Motors Division of Outboard Marine and Manufacturing Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1939. (Museum object #1997.35.3) Produced for only two years, the Elto Cub is an interesting sidelight to the venerable history of the... :: July 6, 2006
Copper kettle used to make Swiss cheese at the Tuscobia Cheese Factory near Rice Lake, Wisconsin, c. 1910 to 1969. (Museum object #2004.64.1) Swiss cheese was traditionally made in round, copper kettles because the metal heats quickly and uniformly. This... :: June 22, 2006
Garden tractor manufactured by the Gilson Bolens Manufacturing Co., Port Washington, Wisconsin, 1928-1939. (Museum object #2001.1.1) This multi-purpose, walk-behind garden tractor helped bring the advantages of gasoline power to small farmers and market gardeners across America. It is equipped with... :: June 15, 2006
Bunk beds used by the Contreras family, Mexican-American migrant workers, in Wautoma, Wisconsin, 1970s-1980s. (Museum object #1999.16.1A-G) If home is where you rest your head, this bunk bed documents the process of Chicano migrant workers learning to call Wisconsin home.... :: June 8, 2006
Half gallon milk bottle used by Hoard's Dairyman Farm of Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, c. 1934-1944. (Museum Object 1977.354.84) This bottle documents a man, a journal, and a farm that were instrumental in transforming Wisconsin into the Dairy State. William Dempster... :: June 1, 2006
Trim lathe used by the Parker Pen Company of Janesville, Wisconsin to manufacture pen barrels and caps, c. 1946-1999. (Museum Object #2001.51.1) The Parker Pen Company purchased this “trim lathe” shortly after World War II. Manufactured by the Elgin Tool... :: April 27, 2006
Gold-plated commemorative Ray-O-Vac flashlight produced to celebrate production milestone, 1950. (Museum object #1950.2541) As a convenient, portable source of electric power, dry cell batteries have been a success for over a hundred years. Much of that success has originated in... :: March 9, 2006
Mirro Sno-Coaster sled manufactured by Aluminum Goods Manufacturing Co. of Manitowoc, Wisconsin, 1955. (Museum object #2006.2.1) In 1954 the Aluminum Goods Manufacturing Company of Manitowoc, Wisconsin was the largest manufacturer of aluminum cookware in the United States. Yet its size... :: January 26, 2006
Oldest known surviving license plate in Wisconsin, issued to a Mount Horeb man, 1905. (Museum object #1966.493.1) Over the past century, automobiles have massively influenced Wisconsin’s built environment and many aspects of our social behavior. But things were not always... :: January 5, 2006
Six-foot Evergleam Christmas tree with 94 branches made by the Aluminum Specialty Company of Manitowoc, Wisconsin, c. 1966. (Museum object #2005.174.1.1) Merlin and Nancy Molstad purchased this pink Evergleam aluminum Christmas tree around 1966 when they began operating Nelson Flag... :: December 15, 2005
Model 2500 bonded carbon/aluminum racing bicycle, made by the Trek Bicycle Corporation, Waterloo, Wisconsin in 1988. (Museum object # 2005.135.1) The Model 2500 is a pivotal bicycle in the Trek Bicycle Corporation’s development of carbon fiber technology. Headquartered in Waterloo,... :: September 15, 2005
Water ski used at Camp Timberlane for Boys in Northern Wisconsin, 1962. (Museum object #2003.115.1) Aqualand Manufacturing Company of Woodruff, Wisconsin, began making wooden water skis in 1961 and often sent their products to nearby Camp Timberlane for Boys for... :: July 21, 2005
"Blitz Fog" pesticide package, manufactured for Northern Industries, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, c. 1965-1967. (Museum object # 1999.143.22) This package of "Blitz Fog," which features a casually dressed woman eradicating pesky mosquitoes as she tidies her lawn with a power mower,... :: April 21, 2005
Trade figure from the Big Boy restaurant on South Park Street, Madison, Wisconsin, 1971-1985. (Museum object #1993.52) In 1932, scientists at Owens-Illinois Glass Company discovered a way to make glass fibers in commercial quantities and began marketing the material as... :: January 31, 2005
Electric mixer manufactured by Wisconsin Electric Co. of Racine, Wisconsin between 1921 and 1928. (Museum object #2004.18.1A-B) This mixer, which is an early product of Wisconsin's significant small appliance industry, documents the relationship between several of Racine's most noteworthy manufacturers.... :: January 24, 2005
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