The University of Wisconsin - Madison SAA-SC Thanks You!

The University of Wisconsin - Madison SAA-SC would like to thank all the participating repositories for their time and effort in helping us put together entries for this project.

We'd also like to extend a big thanks to our visitors for taking the time to stop by. We've had visits from as close as next door in Madison to as far away as Japan, Macao, and Kazakhstan!

We hope you've learned a bit more about archival institutions throughout Wisconsin - we certainly did. We also got to dabble with some Web 2.0 tools and got a hand at reaching new audiences. From our perspective, this project was a resounding success.

What did you think? Please feel free to leave feedback about what we've done and what you'd like to see in this blog in the future. Your comments can go under the "Comments" section of this post.

Again, thank you! We'll see you again next October for American Archives Month!

Image courtesy of Dr. Ciaran Trace.
Seated, left to right: Greg Kocken, Casey Coleman
Front row, left to right: Simone Munson, Christina Johnson
Second row, left to right: Lisa Muccigrosso, Rachel Pieper
Third row, left to right: Tyler Kennedy, Becky Julson, Sarah Mueller, Katie Scanlan
Fourth row, left to right: Dr. Ciaran Trace, Meredith Lowe, Heather Heckman, Anna Cianciara

History Center and Archives, Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center

29270 County Highway G
Ashland, Wisconsin 54806
(715) 685-2647
whsnorthwoods[at]wisconsinhistory.org
http://www.northerngreatlakescenter.org/ or
http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/libraryarchives/arcnet/histcenter.asp

Linda Mittlestadt, Archivist

The History Center and Archives (part of the Wisconsin Historical Society's Area Research Center Network) is located on the 2nd floor of the Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center (NGLVC). The NGLVC is managed through a partnership of federal and state agencies, including U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wisconsin Historical Society, and University of Wisconsin-Extension. The History Center and Archives provides research materials for visitors doing genealogical, legal, scholarly, and general research, and for those interested in the history of Wisconsin and the Lake Superior Region. The Center mostly houses manuscript collections, local government records, microfilmed newspapers, local history books, maps, and genealogical records, all of which are from the Lake Superior Region of Ashland, Bayfield, Forest, Iron, Oneida, Price, Sawyer, Vilas, and Washburn counties. College students and faculty, genealogists, local historians, and other researchers are encouraged to use the collections. The Center also provides technical assistance and advice to local historical societies regarding collections care, preservation, and storage.

Collections
This ARC holds over 77 collections of papers and records produced by private organizations and individuals. Examples of collections include the letters of early missionary Father Iraneus Frederic Baraga; watchbooks from the La Pointe lighthouse; reminiscence of Margaret Eastman Runkel recalling life at Lac du Flambeau government school for Indian children; papers of Nick Van Der Puy, outdoor guide from Eagle River and member of Citizens for Treaty Rights; records of the Wisconsin Colonization Company, a Sawyer County land company; records of Trees for Tomorrow, Inc.; records of Brown Brothers Lumber Company of Rhinelander; corporate records of the Penokee Veneer Company; historical records from Campo Fiesta, a girls camp near Boulder Junction; records of the Land O' Lakes Chamber of Commerce; papers of Alvin E. O'Konski, Republican Congressman from Wisconsin's 10th District known for anti-communist activities and stance against Viet Nam War; interview of Henry J. Wachmsuth, German immigrant, lumberyard worker and Mayor of Ashland; records of the Oulu Evangelical Lutheran Church; oral histories documenting the 50 year history of the Wisconsin Extension Homemakers Council; and several unpublished local histories on a variety of topics.

The History Center and Archives serves as the repository for historically important local government records from the nine county service region. There are almost 125 series of local/regional government public records including county board proceedings, circuit court case files, area newspapers on microfilm, Ashland City Directories, court and tax records, naturalization records, vital records, land records, and census records for each of the nine counties, as well as Native American census rolls for the Wisconsin Ojibwe Bands that are located in the Center’s region (Bad River, Red Cliff, Lac du Flambeau, and Lac Courte Oreilles).

The History Center and Archives is open Tuesday through Friday from 1:00pm to 4:30pm and by appointment. If you are driving from any distance please call ahead.









Children research local history.

Images courtesy of the History Center and Archives, Northern Great Lakes Visitor Center.

Entry compiled by Christina Johnson

Cofrin Library, Special Collections Department

University of Wisconsin - Green Bay
2420 Nicolet Drive
Green Bay, Wisconsin 54311-7001
Phone: (920) 465-2333

The Special Collections Department of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay was established in 1972. Having been established only six years after the founding of the University, the repository was able to document the university’s founding and early development in great detail. Along with storing the university’s records and special collections, the department is a member of the Wisconsin Historical Society’s area research center. Patrons are able to access a wide variety of manuscript materials that document the history of Northeastern Wisconsin.

Collections
As one of the 14 members of the Area Research Network, public records and manuscript materials from the counties of Brown, Calumet, Door, Florence, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Marinette, Menominee, Oconto, Outagamie, and Shawano can be found in the Special Collection Department. The types of materials available include books, census records, photographs, oral histories, Belgian-American research materials, and maps. The University Archives contains complete files of virtually every university-generated publication, departmental and administrative records, and the records of individual faculty members.



Fourth of July Parade, Green Bay, WI ca. 1918.


Postcard of the Bay Beach Pavillion, Green Bay, WI.


Charles Linzmeier farm, ca. 1900. Belgian-American Research Collection.

Images courtesy of Cofrin Library, Special Collections Department, University of Wisconsin - Green Bay.

Entry compiled by Greg Kocken

University of Wisconsin- University Archives and Records Management Services

425 Steenbock Library
550 Babcock Drive
Madison, WI 53706-1201
Phone: (608) 262-5629

Archives: uwarchiv[at]library.wisc.edu
Records Management: recmgmt[at]library.wisc.edu
Iconograhy: bschermetzler[at]library.wisc.edu
Oral History: oralhist[at]library.wisc.edu
http://archives.library.wisc.edu/

The University of Wisconsin-Madison Archives was founded in 1951 with the mandate to preserve University records, records management services and serve as an educational resource promoting the University. The repository also serves as the official repository of the UW-Extension and UW-Colleges systems. There are four main sections of the archives: the Archives proper, the Records Management Service, the Iconography section, and the Oral History Program. The UW Archives is part of the General Library System, and as such collaborates with UW Digital Collections to make collections available on-line.

Collections
The UW-Archives houses collections related to the history of the University, covering topics such as academics, athletics, and student life. Several university publications, including the Badger Yearbook and Wisconsin Alumni Magazine, are available in full-text through UW Digital Collections.

The UW-Records Management Service establishes the records retention schedules for the University administration. The Service maintains records liaisons with the academic departments to ease the process of records collection. Records are preserved by the service for legal, financial, historical and administrative purposes.

The Iconography section houses visual materials related to the University. Particularly significant are the photograph collections of the Daily Cardinal, and the Badger Yearbook. Popular photo collections include the UW-Madison Chancellors, UW-Madison Athletics, the Wisconsin Union, and Madison Protests. The total image collection is more than 2,500,000 images. Many images are available on-line through UW Digital Collections.

The Oral History Program began in 1972 and has collected over 800 interviews to date. The bulk of the interviews concern academic staff and the events of their tenure at the University. About one third of interviews were taken as parts of special projects covering topics such as the UW Merger, the Arboretum, and the Teaching Assistants Strike of 1970. Current projects include interviews of the UW-Forest Products Lab and the Madison LGBT community.



Students, 1879. Students pose in front of Bascom Hall.


Etching of Campus, 1890. The campus as it appeared around 1890. The large building in the background is Bascom Hall.


Composite Photograph, UW Home. The composite photograph developed by UW Digital Collections for the University of Wisconsin- University of Wisconsin- University Archives and Records Management Services webpage.

Images courtesy of the University of Wisconsin- University Archives and Records Management Services.

Entry compiled by Tyler Kennedy

University of Wisconsin - Whitewater Area Research Center

Harold Andersen Library
University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
800 West Main Street
Whitewater, WI 53190
Phone: 262/472-5520

The Area Research Center (ARC) is a cooperative project of the University and the Wisconsin Historical Society to preserve historical records in Jefferson, Rock and Walworth counties.

More than 130 series of local government public records include microfilmed Rock County probate case files and index (1835-1938); City of Watertown justice dockets (1852-1935); Walworth County tax rolls (1849-1965); and records of nineteen Walworth County rural school districts. The ARC also has the naturalization papers for Rock, Walworth and Jefferson counties.

The ARC holds over 100 collections of papers and records produced by private organizations and individuals. Among them are the records (1889-1966) of Willson-Monarch Laboratories, an Edgerton patent medicine manufacturer; papers (primarily 1836-1853) of John T. Haight, an early Jefferson County settler; legislative papers (1967-1974) of James D. Swan, a conservative state senator from Elkhorn; and records (1924-1950) of United Automobile Workers, Local 121.



Snow in Whitewater! View looking north along First Street to its intersection with Main Street. According to the Whitewater Register newspaper "nothing like it was ever seen before in Wisconsin..." Photo was probably taken from the second story of the Bowers Opera House. Wisconsin Historical Images, Image ID: 2215


1870 Bird's-eye map of Whitewater. Wisconsin Historical Images, Image ID 22851


Members of the 1899 Whitewater football team pose for a picture. Wisconsin Historical Images, Image ID 7806


A 1971 poster announcing People's Art Fest. From the Madison People's Poster and Propaganda Collection. Wisconsin Historical Images, Image ID 55375

Images courtesy of University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Area Research Center.

Entry compiled by Simone Munson

Glenn Curtis Smoot Library and Archives

Chippewa Valley Museum
Located in Carson Park, Eau Claire, WI
Mailing address: P.O. Box 1204, Eau Claire, WI 54702
Phone: 715-834-7871
Email: history[at]cvmuseum.com
http://cvmuseum.com/

Library and archives hours: Tuesday-Friday, 1-5 p.m. and by appointment.
Contact: Eldbjorg Tobin, Librarian, etobin[at]cvmuseum.com

The Chippewa Valley Museum came into existence in 1974, and the library and archival holdings reflect its primary purpose: to discover, collect, preserve and interpret the history of the Chippewa Valley. The Glenn Curtis Smoot Library and Archives, located in Carson Park since 1974, contains over 14,000 historic images and more than 25,000 documents preserving the history of the Chippewa Valley, available for researchers and genealogists.

Collections
Information about the library and archival collection is available at the Chippewa Valley Museum’s website: http://cvmuseum.com/. A description of the archival collections is available there, the largest of which is historical photographs, containing the most extensive image collection in the Eau Claire area, with over 14,000 images from the mid-19th century to the present. Another notable collection is the Logging and Lumbering Collection containing documents related to the logging industry and the depletion of the pine forests in the area. The Farming and Farm Life Collection documents histories of particular farm families in the in the Chippewa Valley. The Gillette/Uniroyal Collection traces the history of the rubber manufacturing industry in Eau Claire and the Gillette/Uniroyal Company in particular. Finally, the Schlegelmilch Collection contains the papers of the prominent Schlegelmilch family and their house, the Schlegelmilch House, which is maintained by the Chippewa Valley Museum.



South Barstow St. downtown Eau Claire, 1925.


Eau Claire Baseball Team, 1900-1920.


Eau Claire Senior High School, 1939.

Images courtesy of the Glenn Curtis Smoot Library and Archives.

Entry compiled by Sarah Mueller

Robert L. Parkinson Library & Research Center at Circus World

Circus World Museum
550 Water St.
Baraboo, WI 53913
608-356-8341
http://circusworld.wisconsinhistory.org/About/ResearchCenter.aspx

Erin E. Foley, Archivist
efoley.cwm[at]baraboo.com

Circus World Museum is a national-class museum and research center dedicated to preserving and sharing the history of the circus in America. It is located in Baraboo, Wisconsin, because that was the winter home of the Ringling Bros. Circus between 1884 and 1918, a period during which the show grew from traveling on 12 wagons, into a huge operation that required three trains to move all the equipment, people and animals.

The Museum opened in 1959. Owned by the Wisconsin Historical Society, Circus World is operated by an independent board. The grounds include eight of the ten remaining buildings from the Ringling Bros. Circus winter quarters. Open year round, the summer season adds two professional circus performances and other activities each day.

Circus World’s Library and Research Center was established in 1965, and is located at 415 Lynn St., adjoining the south side of the Museum. The artifacts and archives in the building document circus and Wild West shows throughout North America. Highlights of the archival collection include 4200 books and serials; 8000 posters; 80,000 photos; 300 original poster sketches; 900 reels of film; and 1800 cu. ft. of archival collections, including 300 cu. ft. of administrative records from the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, 1920-1960. The Library and Research Center also holds smaller collections of materials from allied entertainments such as carnivals, tent theaters, and medicine shows. The artifact collection includes everything from 200 full-sized circus wagons to the tiny pieces from a flea circus.



Between the 1880s and the 1920s, more than 100 circuses went on the road every summer, performing in a different city every day between April and October. This photo shows the biggest circus of them all, Ringling Bros., set up outside Red Wing, Minnesota, in 1915. The big top (top of the picture) could seat 14,000 spectators at each show. This photo is one of 80,000 historical images available to researchers by Circus World Museum’s Library and Research Center. (Steve "Heck" Albasing photo)


Circus is famous for its advertising. This woodcut advertisement for the Great India Elephant is one of more than 8000 posters in the collection at Circus World Museum. Dating to 1832, it is one of the earliest American circus posters.


Circus World Museum’s collection continues to grow with regular additions from current shows. This photo of a troupe of Chinese acrobats was taken in 2007 at one of Circus World Museum’s performances.

Top image: The Robert L. Parkinson Library and Research Center, 415 Lynn St., Baraboo, Wisconsin, is open year round for visits by researchers. Generally the library is open Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., year round. Reservations are recommended.

Images courtesy of Circus World Museum, Baraboo, Wisconsin.

Entry compiled by Heather Heckman

Alverno College Archives

Corona Hall Room B8
3335 S. 39th St.
Milwaukee, WI 53215

Mailing Address:
3400 S. 43rd St
P.O. Box 343922
Milwaukee, WI 53234-3922

Phone: (414) 382-6202
Fax: (414) 382-6354
E-Mail: archives[at]alverno.edu
Sara Shutkin, Archivist/Records Manager

In the summer of 1974, Sr. Joel Read, then Alverno College President and a historian by training, asked Sr. Joanne Barras (1916-1990), a retired business education instructor, to become the first Alverno College Archivist. Then Sr. Joanne went through extensive training. The Archives was officially established in January 1975 with a campus-wide memo from Sr. Joel and a Winter Institute presentation by Sr. Joanne both outlining the program in considerable detail. In October 1978, the Archives became a unit of the Alverno College Library. A records management program in conjunction with the college archives program was added in the spring of 1987. The Archives became the official repository of the SWITCH (Southeastern Wisconsin Information Technology Exchange) Consortium in 1997.

Throughout its history, the Alverno College Archives has had a reputation for quality service. The Archives is currently staffed by one full-time archivist/records manager, Sara Shutkin and a half-time archives assistant, Debra Butz.

Collections
The Alverno College Archives is a unit of the Alverno College Library. The Archives houses about 1627 linear feet of college records of enduring historical, administrative and legal value in a variety of formats including paper, photographs, microforms, audiotapes, and videotapes.

Collections of note include those documenting the Research Center on Women (RCW) and Alverno's unique ability-based curriculum.

The records of the SWITCH Consortium, of which Alverno is a member, are also housed in the Archives.



Happy Birthday, Alverno! Alverno celebrated its Centennial with 21 different events held throughout the year in 1987.


The cornerstone for the ‘New Alverno College’ was laid on Sunday October 19, 1952. It was a cold and blustery day.


Sr. Marian Shreiner in the Research Center on Women. It was established in April 1970.

Images courtesy of the Alverno College Archives. To view more images, check out their web page, in particular the “Timeline of Alverno College History": http://depts.alverno.edu/archives/archome/timeline.html

Entry compiled by Christina Johnson

River Falls Area Research Center & University Archives

Chalmer Davee Library
410 South Third Street
River Falls, WI 54022
715/425-3567
archives[at]uwrf.edu

The UW-River Falls University Archives is the official repository for the permanent, historical records of the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. The primary mission of the University Archives is to collect and preserve materials that document the history, development, traditions, and activities of the University since its establishment in 1874 while providing accessibility to the university community as well as the general public. The collection includes student newspapers and yearbooks, course catalogs, directories, masters' theses, commencement programs, administrative and departmental records, photographs, artifacts and much more.

The River Falls Area Research Center (ARC) provides the general public regional access to historical materials, local government records, manuscripts and special collections from four northwestern Wisconsin counties: Burnett, Pierce, Polk, and St. Croix.



Hudson Booster Team, 1912-1913. St. Croix County Photographs. River Falls ARC


The Mound, River Falls, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Historical Images Image ID: 39577

Images courtesy of River Falls Area Research Center and University Archives.

Entry compiled by Simone Munson

Jewish Museum Milwaukee - Archives

1360 N. Prospect Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53202
(414) 390-5730
www.jewishmuseummilwaukee.org

The Milwaukee Jewish Archives began in 1986 out of the Roots Committee of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation and became the Milwaukee Jewish Historical Society in 1998. In April 2008 the Jewish Museum Milwaukee opened. The Museum is dedicated to preserving and presenting the history of the Jewish people in southeastern Wisconsin and celebrating the continuum of Jewish heritage and culture.

The Jewish Museum Milwaukee developed over twenty years ago out of the Roots Committee of the Milwaukee Jewish Federation, which began documenting the history of the Jews of Milwaukee. The Archives of the Museum include organizational, business, synagogue and personal artifacts, pictures and paper.



In 1972 Shorewood natives David Zucker, Jerry Zucker and Jim
Abrahams crammed their belongings into a U-Haul and embarked on their
journey to Los Angeles. David Zucker Collection.


The Max Oxman family owned and operated the Plymouth Creamery
(later called Erwin Meat Co. and Oxmans' Meat Co.) on Teutonia Avenue
for over 60 years before it closed in 1987. Here, family members are
shown outside the creamery ca. 1920. Nathan Oxman Collection.

Images courtesy of the Jewish Museum Milwaukee - Archives.

Entry compiled by Simone Munson

Lawrence University Archives

Seeley G. Mudd Library
113 S. Lawe Street
Appleton, WI 54911

E-mail: archives@lawrence.edu
Voice: 920-832-6753
http://www.lawrence.edu/library/archives/

The Lawrence University Archives is comprised of the historically
significant records of Lawrence University and Milwaukee-Downer College,
the latter an all women’s college that consolidated with Lawrence in
1964. Collections include the records of Lawrence presidents and
faculty, student organizations, and a vast array of photographs and
scrapbooks from both Lawrence and Milwaukee-Downer College. There are
currently about 100 collections. The Archives also houses a collection
of published materials, including LU and MDC yearbooks, student
newspapers, and books on Lawrence’s rich history. The Archives preserves
and provides access to the historical resources in these collections.



The Milwaukee-Downer College Hat Hunt was a popular annual tradition.
This photograph is from the 1940s.


The Milwaukee-Downer College annual regatta, 1940s. When Milwaukee-Downer College merged with Lawrence in 1964, one of the activities they brought and continued at Lawrence was crew.


The ROCK, a boulder brought to the Lawrence campus in the 1890s, is a
Lawrence tradition and has been moved around campus in the past 100
years. A tradition is for graduates to have their picture taken with
this icon. This photograph was taken around 1960.

Top image: Main Hall, built in 1857, is the oldest building on Lawrence's campus. The photograph was taken around 1860.

Images courtesy of the Lawrence University Archives.

Entry compiled by Casey Coleman

Archives Department of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries

University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee
P.O. Box 604
Milwaukee, WI 53201-0604
(414) 229-5402
http://www.uwm.edu/Libraries/arch/index.html

The Archives Department has the two-fold mission of documenting the history of UWM and providing access to primary sources, largely from the metropolitan Milwaukee area, that have long-term research and instructional value for UWM academic programs. We also respond to the information needs of researchers worldwide, provide instruction sessions for UWM courses, host an annual lecture on local history, and display our holdings on campus and in the community.

The Archives serves the university’s historical needs by preserving and making accessible the records of UWM and its predecessor institutions. We acquire records from all levels of the university, including administrative and governance units; schools, colleges, and academic departments; athletic programs; and student organizations. The Archives also has a rich photograph collection, blueprints for most campus buildings, student newspapers, a complete run of yearbooks from 1896 to 1968, athletic films, and taped interviews with campus administrators. To assist in the preservation of UWM’s history, we administer the campus records management program.

The Archives supports research and instruction at UWM by providing access to historically significant papers and records created or collected by individuals and organizations in the course of their activities. Collection strengths pertain to the following subject areas: social justice; racial, ethnic, and other underrepresented populations; Milwaukee's brewing industry; and the historical development of the archives profession in the United States.

The Archives provides further access to primary sources by serving as an Area Research Center (ARC) of the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS). The Milwaukee ARC Collection includes birth, death, marriage, naturalization, probate, and property records for Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Sheboygan, Washington, and Waukesha counties. By participating in this statewide network of ARCs, the Archives is able to provide local access to the holdings of the WHS and other ARCs via the ARC transfer system.



UWM Homecoming, 1957. UWM Photographic Services Records (UWM Archival Collection 6)


Plant of the Pabst Brewing Co., pre-1915. Thomas and Jean Ross Bliffert Postcard Collection (UWM Manuscript Collection 171)


Black Student Protest, 1969. UWM Photographic Services Records (UWM Archival Collection 6)

Images courtesy of the Archives Department of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries.

Entry compiled by Casey Coleman

Racine Heritage Museum - Archives / Research Center

701 Main Street
Racine, Wisconsin 53403-1211

Dick Ammann, Archivist
Phone: 262-636-3926.
Email: reammann[at]clmail.com
Archives hours: Tuesdays from 1 to 4:30, Saturdays from 10 to 1, and other times possible with advance appointment
http://www.racineheritagemuseum.org/

The archive has evolved, along with the Heritage Museum, from the Racine County Old Settlers' Society of the 1800s, then onward to the Racine County Historical Society and is now the current county-wide historical society, museum, and archives collection. The major specialization is in Racine County themes and materials.

The archive is rich in family history materials and related indexes, plus resources relating to the county's business and industry, infrastructure, institutions, and development. There are significant collections from several local industries, such as the J.I. Case Corporation, Western Publishing, and Haban Manufacturing. The Racine Journal Times newspaper has donated its clippings library and photo collection. They have been developing a reference copy set of our approximately 70,000 images, plus a copy set of materials regarding general county and municipal history, including popular topics such as the Underground Railroad in the county, the Racine Belles professional women's baseball team, and architect Frank Lloyd Wright's influence on our county's architecture.

Community outreach programs are occurring monthly with the “First Fridays” program. Such First Friday events include Civil War reenactments, Racine Classic Cars, and tours of the Old Schoolhouse. Also occurring at these events are the openings of new exhibits and raffles. September’s exhibit was “People and Wheat,” illuminating ethnic immigration into Racine county and the importance of the wheat crop in the cultural and economical development of the area.

Long distance research services are available and reproductions of images are available for purchase.



Reproduction of a painting of Racine Harbor from the 1850s. The view is toward the southeast, with Lake Michigan at the far left and the State Street Bridge toward the right. The large warehouse southeast of the Wisconsin Avenue Bridge at the left was owned by Dutton and Raymond. It has been verified as an Underground Railroad site, a final hiding place for passengers waiting for a friendly Great Lakes vessel to drop them off in Canada.


The first diesel-powered craft in Racine Harbor was probably this unlikely visitor on August 11, 1919: the German Navy's U C 97, which was turned over to the Allied forces at the close of World War One. She was taken on tour through the Great Lakes in 1919 and 1920 to raise funds for post-war bond drives. She ended her tour in Chicago then was sunk in Lake Michigan, in accord with naval treaties. She was used for off-shore target practice in June 1912, off of northern Illinois, and has been located by contemporary divers.


Integrated local and regional public transit is represented in this image of the North Shore interurban station in West Racine in about 1929, when a new train was displayed. In this era, over 30 passenger trains a day passed through Racine. To the right is the local Racine street car which will loop around downtown. In the foreground is a taxi cab. Today, only one lone taxi vehicle exists in the city. The street cars disappeared in the early 1950s and the North Shore was shortsightedly killed in the early 1960s.


The Racine Belles professional women's baseball team was portrayed in the contemporary film, "A League of their Own." Contrary to the film's depictions, the players, coach, chaperone, and management all interacted positively. These five ladies were photographed at Racine's Horlick Field: Betty Trezza, LaVonne Paire, Margaret Danhauser, Sopy Kurys, and Madeline English.

Top image: Postcard from the 1920s showing the Carnegie Library. The building was given a new life as the Racine County Museum (now Racine Heritage Museum) in 1962.

All images are from the Archives collection. The Museum maintains reproduction copy rights.

Entry compiled by Rachel Pieper

Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research

Housed in the Wisconsin Historical Society
816 State Street
Madison, WI 53706
608-264-6466
http://wcftr.commarts.wisc.edu/
askmovies[at]wisconsinhistory.org

The Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research (WCFTR) holds one of the oldest and most extensive collections of print, audio/visual, and graphic materials relating to film, theater, radio and television in the United States. Their holdings focus on US entertainment-based media, though they also have smaller collections in social action documentary and non-US film, notably Hong Kong, Taiwanese and Soviet cinema. WCFTR collections are richest in records of the American film industry between 1930 and 1960, theater of the 1940s and 1950s, and television from the 1950s through the 1970s. They include over three hundred manuscript collections from outstanding playwrights, television and film writers, producers, actors, designers, directors and production companies. In addition to the paper records, materials preserved include fifteen thousand films, television shows and videotapes, two million photographs and promotional graphics, and several thousand sound recordings.

WCFTR believes that one of the most important gateways into understanding American culture is the original records of its creators, particularly in the field of drama and audio-visual media. Each year, scholars from around the world, as well as creative artists and the interested public, consult our archives and produce important works that draw on the information and visual materials contained in our collections. Materials in the collections (including manuscripts, photographs, films, and videos) can be accessed free of charge in the Wisconsin Historical Society Reading Room. The Center also supports the UW Cinematheque, a vital part of Madison culture that provides free screenings of films from around the world.



The Center’s flat graphics collection includes publicity and personal photographs, clipping files and personal ephemera on more than 14,000 individual motion picture, television, and theater performers. In this photograph from the Cary Grant name file, Grant and Western star Randolph Scott show off the gorgeous living room of their Malibu beach house bachelor pad.


The Center’s flat graphics collection also contains scene stills and promotional graphics from over 40,000 domestic and foreign motion picture titles from the 1890s to the present. This production still captures Orson Welles directing Citizen Kane with a broken ankle—the result, it is rumored, of an accident during the famous staircase scene.


In 1967, Edith Head donated her papers to the Center. The Edith Head collection holds costume sketches for more than 55 films, including this design for Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief.


The Center’s theater collections document the full scale of American theater, from the 1860s to the present, from local repertories to Broadway. Though they are pictured here in their New York flat, theatrical power couple Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne also set down roots at the famous Ten Chimneys estate, outside Lunt’s native Milwaukee.

Images courtesy of the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research.

Entry compiled by Heather Heckman

Wisconsin Veterans Museum Research Center

30 W. Mifflin Street
Madison, WI 53703
Phone: (608) 267-1790
e-mail:
russell.horton[at]dva.state.wi.us
or gayle.martinson[at]dva.state.wi.us
http://museum.dva.state.wi.us/ResearchCenter.asp

The Wisconsin Veterans Museum was founded by the state legislature in 1901, originally established as the Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall. In 1945 administration was transferred to the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs. Originally located on the Capitol grounds, a new facility was built adjacent to the Capitol from 1990-1992 and opened in 1993. The Research Center, originally located in the basement, moved into its current location on the third floor in 2001.

Collections
The WVM Research Center has several featured collections. The manuscript collection has an extent of over 2,500 linear feet, and includes over 20,000 images. The Veterans Oral History Collection includes over 1,000 interviews spanning all wars from the Spanish-American War through present conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Newspaper and Periodical Collection includes over 1,500 titles, including many newsletters from small unit organizations. The Poster Collection contains over 2,500 items. There is a significant Map Collection, which is currently being catalogued. The Research Center has a sizeable Military History Library and Moving Image Collection, comprised of published but non-circulating materials. Print materials range from memoirs and unit histories to military manuals. The Research Center hosts a permanent museum display on the 32nd Infantry Division (also known as the “Red Arrow Division” or “Les Terribles”). The division is comprised of Wisconsin National Guard units and served with particular distinction in France during World War I and in the Pacific Theater in World War II. There is also a rotating display in the Reading Room. The WVM also creates a variety of on-line displays. Past topics include World War I aerial reconnaissance and women in the military. A future exhibit will feature World War I nurses.

Genealogists make frequent use of the collections, and form the largest constituency of this repository. Another important user group is active duty military personnel. The repository also acts as a liaison between teachers and veterans, facilitating classroom presentations.


Jeff Carnes, Operation Iraqi Freedom. Wisconsin veteran Jeff Carnes, an Arabic translator with the 101st Airborne Division in Iraq. Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum Research Center.



Peleg G. Tompkins. Tintype image of Civil War veteran Peleg G. Tompkins of the 2nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment, a component of the famous Iron Brigade. Image courtesy of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum Research Center.

Top image courtesy of University of Wisconsin Biotechnology Center.

Entry compiled by Tyler Kennedy

McIntyre Library Special Collections & Archives, University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire

McIntyre Library 5022
104 Garfield Ave.
Eau Claire, WI 54702
715-836-2739
library.archives[at]uwec.edu

Established in 1976, the McIntyre Library Special Collections & Archives at the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire provides access to university records, public records, and manuscripts documenting the history of the Chippewa River Valley. The repository participates in the Wisconsin Historical Society's Area Research Center Network, which allows archives users to borrow manuscript collections from the Wisconsin Historical Society for use in the repository’s local reading room.

Collection:
The repository’s collections are particularly strong in historical material pertaining to social organizations, business, and education in the Chippewa Valley. As a member of the Area Research Network, the repository provides access to public records from Buffalo, Chippewa, Clark, Eau Claire, Rusk, and Taylor Counties. There is also a regional map and atlas collection, the photographic archives of the university, and a small rare book collection that specializes in first edition British and American fiction. McIntyre Library’s Special Collections and Archives department also houses a collection of local history publications, including church and organization histories, city directories, county and city histories, and a variety of reference books.


Strike Flier, circa 1932. Olin Swenson Papers, 1932-1933, Eau Claire Micro 24.


Basketball program, Wisconsin State College at Eau Claire, February 11, 1955. Bill Zorn Papers, 1925-1970, USGZE AS393.


Letter from Lucy Hastings to her brother and sister, February 15, 1857. Lucy Hastings Family Correspondence, 1838-1874, Eau Claire SC 35.

Images courtesy of McIntyre Library Special Collections & Archives, University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire.

Entry compiled by Greg Kocken