Wisconsin 101

The Wausau Group: The Businessmen Who Revived Wausau’s Economy

Located on the Wisconsin River, Wausau developed as a logging town in the 1830s. George Stevens chose the site because of the waterfall that spanned the river, which provided power for sawmills used to turn the felled trees into lumber. The waterfall,…

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June 15, 2018

Marathon County / Region 2 - North East / A Hudson's Bay Company Point Blanket Coat / Wausau / Related Stories / Art, Sport & Entertainment / 1920-1940 / Transportation & Tourism

The Wausau Winter Frolic: Wausau’s History as a Sports Capital

In 1929 a teacher in Waupaca asked her pupils what Wisconsinites did for winter sports. According to one newspaper, the children “with one accord all exclaimed: ‘They go to Wausau!’” In the 1920s, when Wisconsinites thought of winter sports, they thought of…

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June 15, 2018

Langlade County / Wolf River / 2000-2020 / 2020-2040 / Region 2 - North East / Pre-1600 / 1600-1800 / Mepps Fishing Lure / Related Stories / 1800-1820 / Manufacturing & Trade / 1820-1840 / Politics, Society & Government / 1840-1860 / 1860-1880 / 1880-1900 / 1900-1920 / Nature & Environment / 1920-1940 / 1940-1960 / 1960-1980 / 1980-2000 / Transportation & Tourism

The Wolf River

Todd Sheldon first discovered the virtues of the Mepps Aglia spinner and later realized improvements afforded by a tuft of squirrel tail while fishing at one of his favorite spots: the Wolf River. Today the Wolf continues to be a destination for sports…

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May 24, 2018

Langlade County / Region 2 - North East / Mepps Fishing Lure / Related Stories / Manufacturing & Trade / 1920-1940 / Transportation & Tourism

Building a Tourism Industry in Northern Wisconsin

Equipment manufacturers played a major role in developing fishing as a part of the tourism industry in northern Wisconsin. Each year nearly two million people fish in Wisconsin’s waterways. They catch about 72 million fish of various species. Fishing lures expanded in…

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May 24, 2018

Old Abe, the Live War Eagle / 2000-2020 / 2020-2040 / Related Stories / Politics, Society & Government / 1880-1900 / 1900-1920 / 1920-1940 / 1940-1960 / 1960-1980 / 1980-2000

Old Abe’s Visual Legacy

Old Abe began his career as a real, live eagle, serving as a mascot during the Civil War. In the decades that followed, the Grand Army of the Republic brought the bird on tours around the country. In the many years since Old Abe’s…

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May 24, 2018

Employers Mutual Audiometer / Related Stories / Manufacturing & Trade / 1900-1920 / 1920-1940 / Education / 1940-1960 / 1960-1980

Promoting Workplace Safety

For an insurance company like Employers Mutual, it made sense to try to promote safety in the workplace. Reducing the number of industrial accidents would naturally lead to less money lost to claims. But Employers Mutual was also very adept at translating its…

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May 24, 2018