Contents
Introduction
Asaph Whittlesey, Ashland’s Snowshoe Legislator
H. H. Bennett and the Wisconsin Dells
“Fighting Bob” Ushered in the Progressive Era
The Christmas Tree Ship Disaster
W. D. Hoard, the Dairy Cow’s Friend
One Last Toast Greeted Prohibition
How Dry We Aren’t—the End of the “Noble Experiment”
Super Bowl I Went to Titletown
The Siege at Gresham
August Derleth and the Wisconsin River
The Shooting of Teddy Roosevelt
John Deitz and the Battle of Cameron Dam
High on Milk—the Saga of Elm Farm Ollie
Dr. Kate, the Angel on Snowshoes
Jesse James Strang, Wisconsin’s Own King
The Hodag and the Hoaxer—Eugene Shepard
Margarethe Schurz and the First Kindergarten
Laura Ingalls Wilder and the Wisconsin Frontier
First Snowmobile Born in Sayner
Pearling in Wisconsin
Louis Harvey, the Governor Lost in War
The Utopian Experiment at Ceresco
Aldo Leopold, Father of Conservation
Daniel Hale Williams, First Heart Surgeon
Legal Oleo Ended Wisconsin’s Smuggling Era
Putting the Fight in “On, Wisconsin!”
Alex Raineri and Hurley’s Last Gasp
Spring Storm Unearthed a Mastodon
Father Mazzuchelli, Church Builder
The Capitol Fire of 1904
Victor Berger, Socialist Champion
Leading the Way in Unemployment Pay
UW—Yes, UW—Won Basketball Crown
Joshua Glover and Sherman Booth
Belle Boyd, Confederate Spy
The Death of the Death Penalty
Golda Meir’s Milwaukee Memories
Mary Ann Van Hoof ’s Vision of the Virgin
Cream Citys Brought Baseball to Milwaukee
Christopher Sholes and the Typewriter
Old Abe, the Eagle that Went to War
Hamlin Garland and the Middle Border
When Lead Was King in Wisconsin
The Klan, Briefly, Rose Again
Wisconsin and the Columbian Exposition
Gaylord Nelson, the Father of Earth Day
Manitowoc’s Submarines Went to War
Ezekiel Gillespie’s Fight to Vote
The Evolution of the Horicon Marsh
The Other Return of Douglas MacArthur
John Dillinger and Little Bohemia
The Ringling Brothers Put on a Show
Senator Teasdale and Wisconsin Vice
Hammerin’ Hank’s Eau Claire Days
Edna Ferber Found Her Voice
Billy Mitchell Earned His Wings
Dust Bowl Days in the Central Sands
Patriotism Grew in Victory Gardens
When Communists Came to Mosinee
The Menominee—Sovereign Nation and County
Pleasant Life Found at Pleasant Ridge
Comets Brought Awe, Tickets to Ride
Long Fight Led to Women’s Suffrage
Good-Road Movement Paved the Way
The Deadliest Tornado of All
Clarence Darrow and the Oshkosh Strike
Calvin Coolidge’s Summer White House
Mitchell Red Cloud’s Medal of Honor
Underground Railroad Went through Milton
Battleship Wisconsin’s Storied Past
Sam Tripp, Notorious Horse Thief
Lone Rock’s Uranium Heyday
Life in a Lumber Camp
The Burning of the War Eagle
Carry Nation and the Boys at the Bar
John Muir’s Environmental Roots
John Till, Somerset’s Plaster Doctor
Wisconsin and the Plan for Peace
Great Chief Buffalo Went to Washington
When the White Pine Was Limitless
Diamonds in Wisconsin’s Rough
Jens Jensen, Landscape Artist
Karl Paul Link Found the Cure
The War to Win a College
Kohler, a Community Divided
The Sovereign State of Winneconne
Ripon Threw a Grand Old Party
The Faithful Foundation of St. Nazianz
Robert’s Rules Ordered the Day
Lucky Lindy—from Dropout to Hero
Civil Rights Grew from Racial Wrongs
Richard Bong, Ace of Aces
The Slickster Who Sold Oil City
Peck’s Bad Boy Made It Good
The CCC, America’s Peacetime Army
The Stockbridge Bible Came Home
Galesville, Our Garden of Eden
Curds and Whey Came to Wisconsin
Civil War Cost Wisconsin Dearly
First Cars Brought First Car Race
All-American Girls Played Ball
Henry Dagget’s Corset Campaign
Mexican Immigrants Found Hope in Wisconsin
The Idea Behind the Wisconsin Idea
The Sinking of the Lady Elgin
Houdini Couldn’t Escape Edna Ferber
Washburn’s Boom Times
The Lights Went On in Appleton
The Bilious Man’s Friend Cures All
When Abe Lincoln Slept Here
Why It’s Called Pabst Blue Ribbon
James Groppi and the Assembly Sit-In
George Poage Ran to Glory
Father Marquette’s Roughest Journey
Braves Baseball Filled Streets with Joy
When Murrow Took Down McCarthy
John Savage, Dam Builder to the World
Hasenfus Fell into Iran-Contra Mess
Unfounded Panic on the Frontier
When Fire Raged in Peshtigo
Frances Willard, Temperance Crusader
Belle La Follette Was a Fighter, Too
Ground Observers Kept Eyes on Skies
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Spring Green Days
Morgan and Elizabeth Martin, Green Bay Pioneers
Anger in the Milk House
Justice for the Workers
History Was Key to Reuben Gold Thwaites
Iron Brigade Was Story of Valor, Loss
First Train Had Rocky Ride
When Fond du Lac Snubbed the President
World War I Met with Resistance
Black Hawk’s Tragic Last Stand
State Slogan Grew from Civil War Gamble
Carl Schurz Had Lincoln’s Ear
The “Merci” Train Came to Wisconsin
“Bowie Knife” Duel Never Drew Blood
Watertown’s Delectable Stuffed Geese
Janesville Tankers’ Cruel Death March
Increase Lapham, Weather Pioneer
Goodell Won Women Right to Practice Law
Dreamers Wanted Canals, Not Railroads
Nelson Dewey, Wisconsin’s First Governor
The Gubernatorial Showdown of 1856
“Julius the Just” Was Dairy Defender
Peace in Europe Brought Joy to Streets
Chester Thordarson’s Icelandic Retreat
When Protest Came to Campus
Strange Bedfellows, and Hogs in the Basement
When Ice Came in from the Cold
Index
About the Author