front cover of Old Abe the War Eagle
Old Abe the War Eagle
A True Story of the Civil War And Reconstruction
Richard Zeitlin
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 1986
The story of Old Abe, the bald eagle that became the mascot of the Eighth Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. It is also the story of the men among whom Old Abe lived: the farmers, loggers, clerks, and immigrants who flocked to the colors in 1861.
[more]

front cover of Germans in Wisconsin
Germans in Wisconsin
Richard H. Zeitlin
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2001

Between 1820 and 1910, nearly five and a half million German-speaking immigrants came to the United States in search of new homes, new opportunities, and freedom from European tyrannies. Most settled in the Midwest, and many came to Wisconsin, whose rich farmlands and rising cities attracted three major waves of immigrants. By 1900, German farmers, merchants, manufacturers, editors, and educators—to say nothing of German churches (both Catholic and Lutheran), cultural institutions, food, and folkways—had all set their mark upon Wisconsin. In the most recent census (1990), more than 53 percent of the state's residents considered themselves "German"—the highest of any state in the Union.

In this best-selling book, now with updated text and additional historical photographs, Richard H. Zeitlin describes the values and ideas the Germans brought with them from the Old Country; highlights their achievements on the farm, in the workplace, and in the academy over the course of 150 years; and explains why their impact has been so profound and pervasive.

[more]

front cover of The USS Wisconsin
The USS Wisconsin
A History of Two Battleships
Richard H. Zeitlin
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 1988

Battleships were instrumental in America’s rise to world dominance at the end of the 19th century. Two battleships in particular, the U.S.S. Wisconsin BB-9 and BB-64, participated in wars and conflicts around the globe, demonstrating America’s strength and technological power. The keel of the BB-9 was laid down on the eve of the Spanish-American War, and she sailed with the Great White Fleet on its famous world voyage of 1907-1909. Representing a major advance in American naval technology, the Wisconsin both demonstrated American strength in the Pacific and served as the setting for peace talks between Panama and Colombia when the former gained independence in 1903. Recommissioned during World War I as a training ship, the BB-9 was then decommissioned in 1920. More than twenty years later, on December 7, 1943, the fast battleship Wisconsin (BB-64) was launched in response to Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor. The BB-64 served in the Pacific to the end of World War II and again in the Korean War. One of the Iowa- class battleships, the BB-64 was one of the fastest and sleekest on the ocean. In 1988, she was refitted and recommissioned for yet another tour of duty. This is the story of two proud vessels and their role in American naval and diplomatic history.

[more]

front cover of John Nelligan
John Nelligan
Wisconsin Lumberjack
John Zimm
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2015
Experience the adventures and tough life of a lumberjack in this newest addition to the Badger Biographies Series. Author John Zimm leads young readers on a journey through the lumbering heyday of Wisconsin’s North Woods as witnessed by lumberman John Nelligan, whose writings were the basis for John Nelligan: Wisconsin Lumberjack.
 
Born in 1852, Nelligan rose through the lumberjack ranks, starting out as a humble laborer and working his way up to foreman. He worked and lived in Maine, Pennsylvania, and even Canada before coming to Wisconsin in 1871. Learn what surviving and sawing wood for a living was like many years ago—from the story of one Wisconsin man who lived it!
[more]

front cover of The Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society
Collecting, Preserving, and Sharing Stories Since 1846
John Zimm
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2014
Explore the storied history of this grand Wisconsin treasure – the Wisconsin Historical Society, older than the state itself. From the Society’s earliest days as pioneers worked to record history even as it was happening, to its struggles to weather the Great Depression, and its landmark efforts to record the most important social and political movements of our times. From its very start, the Society has worked to “treasure up” the stories of people from every walk of life, in every corner of the state. The story behind the Wisconsin Historical Society is a uniquely Wisconsin story – one that belongs to all who call Wisconsin home.
[more]

front cover of Blue Men and River Monsters
Blue Men and River Monsters
Folklore of the North
John Zimm
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2014
The north is a treasure trove of folklore. From magical creatures of the old country to legends of the mysterious and macabre, such lore is a fascinating record of the stories people held on to and the customs, foods, and cures that filled their lives. Collected in the 1930s as part of the Federal Writers’ Program, a Depression-era works project, these are the stories of Norwegian and Swiss immigrants, Native American medicine men and storytellers, and pioneers with memories of the earliest days of settlement in the Old Northwest. In search of stories, legends, songs, and other scraps of traditional knowledge, researchers fanned out across Wisconsin and other states. The resulting handwritten notes, thousands of pages in length, capture history as people remembered it. Blue Men and River Monsters collects the most interesting and noteworthy of these tales, placing them alongside stunning artwork collected by the Federal Art Project in Wisconsin. Peruse these pages and discover a new history of the people and places of the old north.
[more]

front cover of This Wicked Rebellion
This Wicked Rebellion
Wisconsin Civil War Soldiers Write Home
John Zimm
Wisconsin Historical Society Press, 2012

Over one hundred and fifty years after it began, the Civil War still fascinates us—the vast armies marching to war, iconic leaders like Abraham Lincoln and Robert E. Lee, the drama of a nation divided. But the Civil War was also about individuals, the hundreds of thousands of ordinary men and boys who fought and died on either side and the families and friends left at home.

This Wicked Rebellion: Wisconsin Civil War Soldiers Write Home tells this other side of the story. Drawing from over 11,000 letters in the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Civil War collection, it gives a unique and intimate glimpse of the men and women who took part in the War for the Union. Follow Wisconsin soldiers as they sign up or get drafted, endure drill and picket duty, and get their first experiences of battle. Join them as they fight desperation and fear, encounter the brutality of slavery, and struggle with the reasons for war.

From impressions of army life and the South to the hardships of disease and battle, these letters tell the story of the war through the eyes and pens of those who fought in it. This Wicked Rebellion brings to life the heroism and heartache, mayhem and misery of the Civil War, and the powerful role Wisconsin played in it.

[more]


Send via email Share on Facebook Share on Twitter