Object Histories

Marathon / Marathon Brewing Company "Superfine" Beer Bottle / Region 2 - North East / Marathon County / Food & Cooking / Manufacturing & Trade / Object Histories / 1940-1960

OBJECT HISTORY: Marathon Brewing Company “Superfine” Beer bottle

The "Superfine" beer bottle is from the 1940/1950s from the Marathon City Brewing Company. Superfine was one of the many labels produced by Marathon City Brewery over eight decades from 1881 to 1966, featuring names such as Tannenbaum, Marathon Holiday, Marathon Bock,…

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August 31, 2021

Marge Engelman, "The Land of the Freed-up Woman," 1971. Courtesy of the Wisconsin Historical Society, object 2000.79.1

Brown County / The Land of the Freed-up Woman / Region 5 - Center East / Green Bay / Politics, Society & Government / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / Ethnicity & Identity / 1960-1980

OBJECT HISTORY: The Land of the Freed-up Woman

Marge Engelman’s  The Land of the Freed-Up Woman embodies the progressive thinking of the Women’s Liberation Movement of the 1970s. Engelman’s decision to use two symbols of womanhood—birth control pills and bras—as the medium for her artwork transformed the recognizable flag into a message…

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August 19, 2021

King Gambrinus Statues of LaCrosse / La Crosse / Region 3 - Center West / La Crosse County / Manufacturing & Trade / Art, Sport & Entertainment / Object Histories / 1920-1940 / Global Connections

OBJECT HISTORY: King Gambrinus Statues of La Crosse

The King Gambrinus statue located in La Crosse, Wisconsin depicts the king of beer and brewing.[1] The origins of the statue, specifically its sculptor and construction date, are unknown. Weighing in at approximately 2,000 pounds, this concrete statue is 15 feet tall.…

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August 17, 2021

Photo depicting original Old Style behind updated LaCrosse Brewing label, August 7, 2021, Courtesy of Cortney Anderson Kramer.

King Gambrinus Statues of LaCrosse / La Crosse / Region 3 - Center West / La Crosse County / Food & Cooking / Manufacturing & Trade / Object Histories / 1960-1980

OBJECT HISTORY: World’s Largest Six-Pack

Located in La Crosse, Wisconsin, the “World’s Largest Six-Pack” is a popular tourist attraction and landmark structure representative of the city’s renowned brewing history. At 54 feet tall, the six steel storage tanks, shaped and arranged to resemble a six-pack of beer,…

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August 17, 2021

Region 7 - South Center / Madison / Dane County / Frank Lloyd Wright Pew/Bench / Home Furnishings / Object Histories / 1940-1960 / Religion

OBJECT HISTORY: Frank Lloyd Wright Pew/Bench

For over a century, the First Unitarian Society of Madison has been a center for like-minded individuals to share ideas and connect. The Society’s Meeting House was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and stands as a one of his most representative works,…

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August 16, 2021

Hearthstone House chandelier. Photo courtesy of Trase Tracanna, 2021.

Outagamie County / Region 5 - Center East / Hearthstone House Chandelier / Appleton / Home Furnishings / 1880-1900 / Science & Medicine / Object Histories

OBJECT HISTORY: Hearthstone House Chandelier

Known as Edison Light Fixtures, the original lighting fixtures of Appleton’s Hearthstone House, were created by Bergmann and Co., in association with the Edison Company for Isolated Lighting, out of New York. They designed the electric lights with the same general components…

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June 7, 2021