History Happens Here
Wisconsin’s New History Center
The Wisconsin Historical Society is bringing a new, 21st-century history center and cultural attraction to the people of Wisconsin and beyond.
Designed to be a welcoming beacon of inspiration and exploration, the new center set on Wisconsin’s Capitol Square in Madison will reflect a modern approach to sharing history and connecting communities.
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Iconic Location
The new history center will be located on Wisconsin’s Capitol Square in Madison, contributing to a thriving cultural district and offering a convenient location for school groups visiting from around the state.
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During construction of the history center, school groups can schedule hands-on history field trips in our temporary space in US Bank Plaza on Capitol Square and at our many interactive historic sites across the state.
We continue to welcome students and community members into the iconic Library Reading Room and archives at the historic Wisconsin Historical Society headquarters building in Madison, which opened in 1900.
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Temporary Program Space Secured
Temporary space has been secured to continue offering public and school group programming during the design and construction phase for the new history center…
Final Museum Collections Removed
This is an exciting, symbolic moment was we close the chapter on the Wisconsin Historical Museum in preparation for the future history center…
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The History of a Museum
The Wisconsin Historical Museum opened in 1986, at the top of State Street on Madison’s Capitol Square. The building was converted from an old hardware store.
Explore the exhibits that once filled this museum and learn more about it’s history.
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On this day in 1915, guitar pioneer Les Paul (aka Lester Polfus) was born in Waukesha, Wisconsin.
Best known for the guitar that bears his name, Les Paul was a country-music guitarist, jazz-pop musician and pioneer in music technology.
In 1941, Paul built his first solid-body electric guitar and over the next decade he developed revolutionary engineering techniques such as close miking, echo delay, and multi-tracking.
Paul was also well known for recording with his wife, singer Colleen Summers (a.k.a. Mary Ford). Their biggest hits included "How High the Moon" (1951) and "Vaya Con Dios" (1953), both reaching #1.
The recordings of Les Paul and Mary Ford were not only popular hits, they also showcased Paul's pioneering use of overdubbing, or the layering of guitar parts one atop another.
In 1952, Les Paul introduced the first eight-track tape recorder as well as the solid-body electric guitar he is known for. Built and marketed by Gibson, the Les Paul guitar has been used by such guitarists as Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page.
📸: Les Paul: www.britannica.com/biography/Les-Paul ... See MoreSee Less
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Tim Braun reminds me of our trip to Dave's Guitar Shop!
Went to NYC to see him at the Iridium. Sat so close as to be able to touch his foot on stage. He took to time to talk to each audience member who stayed after the show. My good friend grew up on his street in Waukesha and they spent 10 minutes reminiscing. A wonderful man! He passed away 2 months later. Unforgettable!
I remember both of them as we were growing up. We loved listening to their recordings! What a team...always great music!❤
I ran into him in NYC once. Leaving our hotel I accidentally bumped into a man in the sidewalk. We both said “Excuse me” and my family and I got into a cab. As we pulled away I saw the man go into the bar on the corner. A big sign proclaimed “Les Paul Tonight!” It was then I recognized him. My closest brush with fame.
On this day in 1867, architect Frank Lloyd Wright (nee Frank Lincoln Wright) was born in Richland Center.
An architect, author, and social critic, Wright's artistic genius demonstrated an extraordinary capacity to create architectural space and vocabulary that drew inspiration from both nature and technology.
The son of William Cary Wright, a lawyer and music teacher, and Anna Lloyd Jones, a school teacher, Frank Lloyd Wright's family moved to Madison in 1877 to be near Anna's family in Spring Green.
Wright briefly studied civil engineering at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, after which he moved to Chicago to pursue a career in architecture. Wright started his own firm in 1893 and between 1893 and 1901, 49 buildings designed by Wright were built.
Some notable Frank Lloyd Wright structures in Wisconsin include S.C. Johnson and Son, Inc. Administration Building in Racine, the A.D. German Warehouse in Richland Center, and Taliesin and Hillside in Spring Green. The Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center in Madison was also based on Wright's design. Frank Lloyd Wright died on April 9, 1959, in Phoenix, Arizona.
📸: Frank Lloyd Wright at Drafting Studio: WHI ID# 87749 ... See MoreSee Less
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He used to stiff the furniture merchants in Madison. I used to work with the wife of his barber at the Park Hotel. He insisted that the end of his cut hair be singed to prevent evil spirits from coming in.
Architectural genius. But not such a great human beyond that. The book "Loving Frank" tells a side to him that is less than stellar.
...You should probably tell MORE of the real story....
I love his work . Some day I want to build home using his designs
FLW achieved in Architecture to bring the outside inside the buildings giving a sensation of spaces being larger as well as connected with nature.
Orville 's brother.
A bank or two; several buildings in Iowa- Mason City bank/ po ??
He looks like Bernie Madoff...
John Repinski
Paola Sanchez
❤️
Lizzie Cohn-Martin 🦋
Should be “Ne” after his name because he is male
Visit the Burnham Block in Milwaukee! Www.WrightinMilwaukee.org
Awesome architect
I visited House on the Rock in Spring Green. Awesome home.
❤️❤️💙💙💙❤️
My big brother just got a job as a tour guide at Taliesin!👏👏👏👏😄
Enjoying Monona Terrace today! ❤️
A truly great innovator. He made space a tangible factor in defining it’s material manifestation of form. An introspective concept that reveals the structure expressed of space and not the inverse of a building containing space. Fresh, original, unique.
An absolute architectural genius! Love his work!
Taresa Grotte Hamann
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This Friday, head over to Villa Louis for our Historic Prairie du Chien Riverfront Walking Tour!
Visit historic buildings and landmarks and hear captivating stories of the people who helped shape the city's history, including that of the Ho-Chunk Nation, whose ancestral land the city was founded on. Stops include the homes of Michel Brisbois and Joseph Rolette, both of whom helped establish the French fur trade along the Mississippi River.
Stop by the site of Wisconsin's only War of 1812 battlefield and uncover the story of the conflict between British and American forces. Learn about the establishment of Fort Crawford and the history of the enslaved men and women brought to the fort by military officers.
Click here to learn more: wihist.org/3J3nUHb ... See MoreSee Less
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