Collection Summary

Title: Passed to the Present: Folk Arts Along Wisconsin's Ethnic Settlement Trail Project Collection
Dates: circa 1992-1995

Creator:

• Cedarburg Cultural Center (Cedarburg, Wis.)

Unique Identifier: CSUMC0036-CG

Contents: Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures: 34 folders, 24 audiocassettes, 417 35 mm color slides, 6 sheets 35 mm black-and-white negatives, 42 contact sheets, 11 5x7 black-and-white prints, 41 8x10 black-and-white prints, 1 8x10 black-and-white negative, 1 4x6 color print, 2 artifacts

Publisher:

Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures

432 East Campus Mall, Room 332
Madison, Wisconsin 53706
608-262-8180
Web site: http://csumc.wisc.edu

Archival Location:

Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures (Map)

Summary:

Ethnographic documentation (circa 1993) used to organize a traveling exhibition (1994-1995) by Cedarburg Cultural Center (Cedarburg, Wisconsin) focused on folk artists in communities along Lake Michigan, including African American quilt makers, Slovak wheat weavers, and German-American musicians, consisting of manuscript material, sound recordings, graphic images, and artifacts.

Language: The records are in English.

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-csumc-csumc0036cg

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Quantity	Physical Description	Location
Manuscript Materials
34	folders	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
Sound Recordings
24	audiocassettes	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
Graphic Materials
417	35 mm color slides	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
1	4x6 color photograph	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
11	5x7 black-and-white photographs	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
41	8x10 black-and-white photographs	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
6 sheets	black-and-white negatives	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
1	8x10 black-and-white negative	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
42	contact sheets	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
Artifacts
2	artifacts	Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures

“Passed to the Present: Folk Arts Along Wisconsin's Ethnic Settlement Trail” featured folk arts and artists in communities along Lake Michigan. Envisioned as a three-stage project, it included 1) a field survey of artists and craftspeople in communities along the Lake Michigan shoreline in eastern Wisconsin, 2) a traveling exhibition and an accompanying exhibition catalogue, and 3) a directory which would make the artists' work more accessible to heritage institutions and other residents and visitors to the area. Wisconsin's Ethnic Settlement Trail (WEST), a historic preservation organization established in 1991, had been collaborating with the Cedarburg Cultural Center (CCC) since its inception to promote cultural tourism in eastern Wisconsin. James P. Leary and Janet C. Gilmore's previous fieldwork in the state for the Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan provided the basis for further fieldwork for this project. Research for a previous CCC traveling exhibition, “In Tune With Tradition: Wisconsin Folk Musical Instruments” (1990-1991), also contributed to this project, since organizers reestablished connections made for the earlier exhibition. The exhibition featured eighteen artists, representing thirteen communities (African American, Armenian, Czech, Danish, German, Hispanic, Holland Dutch, Hmong, Oneida, Polish, Slovak, Slovenian, and Ukrainian). The directory included thirty-one artists, out of an initial group of 100-150 artists.

The National Endowment for the Arts, the Fund for Folk Culture at the Lila Wallace-Reader's Digest Community Folklife Program, and the Wisconsin Arts Board provided funding for “Passed to the Present.” After opening in January-February 1994 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Art History Gallery, the exhibition traveled to the Oshkosh Public Museum, the Mead Public Library in Sheboygan, the Cedarburg Cultural Center (running concurrently with the Museum of International Folk Art's national traveling exhibition, “America's Living Folk Traditions”), the Miller Art Center in Sturgeon Bay, the Kenosha Historical Society Museum, the Neville Public Museum in Green Bay, and the Racine County Historical Society and Museum, where it ended its tour in July 1995.

The collection is arranged in four series: Manuscript Materials, Sound Recordings, Graphic Materials, and Artifacts.

The Manuscript Materials consist of Administrative Materials and Research Materials. Administrative Materials document the planning process and implementation of the exhibition, as well as changes made due to reduced levels of funding or achieved through a reallocation of funds. Research materials for the exhibition consist of field reports on the artistic traditions and potential artists for project inclusion prepared by James P. Leary or Mary Zwolinski; files include fieldnotes, consent forms, correspondence, supporting materials, tape logs, and slide indexes.

Sound Recordings consist of interviews with the folk artists, twelve conducted by James P. Leary (June-August 1993) and ten conducted by Mary Zwolinski (July-September 1993), one recording of a Slovenian Harvest Picnic, and one commercial recording of the Badger Button Box Club, a button accordion band based in Milwaukee. All sound recordings consist of audiocassette tapes.

Graphic Materials consist of slides taken by James P. Leary and Mary Zwolinski during the fieldwork conducted for the exhibition, with contact sheets for some images; and black-and-white photographs, contact sheets, and slides by Lewis Koch and James P. Leary. Researchers should note that some of the images taken for this project were also used for a later Cedarburg Cultural Center exhibition, "Wisconsin Folk Art: A Sesquicentennial Celebration." Users should check the Graphic Materials series of that collection for additional images.

The Artifacts consist of two paper cutting cards by Bernie Jendrzejczak.

In Tune With Tradition: Wisconsin Folk Musical Instruments Project Collection (CSUMC0035-CG)

Wisconsin Folk Art: A Sesquicentennial Celebration Project Collection (CSUMC0037-CG)

Groups

• African Americans
• Armenian Americans
• Belgian Americans
• Czech Americans
• Danish Americans
• Dutch Americans
• French Americans
• French-Canadian Americans
• German Americans
• German-Swiss Americans
• Greek Americans
• Hispanic Americans
• Hmong Americans
• Ho-Chunk Indians
• Italian Americans
• Latvian Americans
• Luxembourg Americans
• Menominee Indians
• Norwegian Americans
• Ojibwa Indians
• Oneida Indians
• Polish Americans
• Slovak Americans
• Slovenian Americans
• Ukrainian Americans
• Woodland Indians

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Languages

• English language

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Locations

• Brown County (Wis.)
• Door County (Wis.)
• Kewaunee County (Wis.)
• Manitowoc County (Wis.)
• Milwaukee County (Wis.)
• Oconto County (Wis.)
• Ozaukee County (wis.)
• Racine County (Wis.)
• Shawano County (Wis.)
• Sheboygan County (Wis.)
• Walworth County (Wis.)
• Waukesha County (Wis.)
• Wisconsin

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Subjects

• Baked products
• Bakers
• Basket makers
• Basket making
• Canoes and canoeing
• Corn husk dolls
• Decorative painting
• Decoys
• Egg decoration
• Folk art
• Folk artists
• Folk music
• Lace and lace making
• Needlework
• Needleworkers
• Piñatas
• Paper art
• Quilting
• Quiltmakers
• Rugs
• Shoemakers
• Snowshoes and snowshoeing
• Storytellers
• Storytelling
• Wood-carving

This collection is one of three related to exhibits created by the Cedarburg Cultural Center (Cedarburg, Wisconsin) under Robert T. Teske's tenure as director (1987-1998). Since Teske's departure from the Center in the late 1990s, the collections remained in basement storage until they were transferred to the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures (CSUMC) in 2012. Two folders of grant materials relating to this exhibit were among Teske's administrative materials, and deemed to be part of this collection at the time of transfer to CSUMC's care. A deposit agreement between CSUMC and the University of Wisconsin-Madison Archives is planned, but not yet formalized.

Contact records custodians for access information.

Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures
432 East Campus Mall, Room 332
Madison, Wisconsin 53706
608-262-8180
Web site: http://csumc.wisc.edu

Consult the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures for information on use restrictions.

Please consult the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures for guidelines. CSUMC's archiving team suggests the following citation form when using direct quotes from a person documented: [Name of person documented]. [Date]. [Tape/video/other]-recorded interview by [Fieldworker name]. [Place interviewed]. [Name of collection/project]. [Repository, city, state]. When using a specific image: [Identify subject matter/people in caption]. Photo/image by [Photographer/fieldworker name]. [Date]. Courtesy of [repository]. To quote fieldworker, follow bibliographical style.

	Series: I. Manuscript Materials.
	Subseries: Administrative Files
	Grant Files
Box   1 Folder   1	Fund for Folk Culture
Box   1 Folder   2	National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)
Box   1 Folder   3	Contracts Note: Includes fieldwork and photographic services contracts, tour rental agreement forms, insurance certificates and claims, budgets, and exhibit-related events records.
Box   1 Folder   4	Correspondence
Box   1 Folder   5	Exhibit Labels
Box   1 Folder   6	Exhibit Publicity
Box   1 Folder   7	Catalogue Copy, 1st Drafts
Box   2 Folder   1	Catalogue Copy, 1st Drafts (continued)
Box   2 Folder   2	Catalogue Sales and Publicity
Box   2 Folder   3	Study Guides
Box   2 Folder   4	Folk Artist Directories
	Subseries: Research Files	⇧
Box   2 Folder   5	African American: Allie Crumble (and daughter Ivory Pitchford), Milwaukee, Wisconsin, quilter
	Armenian
Box   2 Folder   6	Armenian Festival, Racine, Wisconsin Note: Fieldnotes and related material; no tape.
Box   2 Folder   7	Elizabeth Keosian, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, needleworker/Mirahni Samessian, Racine, Wisconsin, lace maker
Box   2 Folder   8	Armenouhi Savagian, South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, rug maker Note: Includes fieldnotes on interview with Mary Buchaklian, of the Milwaukee Public Museum on area craftspeople.
Box   2 Folder   9	Belgian: Laura Massart, Forestville, Wisconsin, pie baker and needleworker
Box   2 Folder   10	Czech: Joseph Buresh, Luxemburg, Wisconsin; Della Pleski, Foxboro, Wisconsin; Martha Wagner, Manitowoc, Wisconsin
	Danish
Box   2 Folder   11	Inga Hermansen, Racine, Wisconsin, needleworker
Box   2 Folder   12	Albert Larsen, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, paper heart basket maker
Box   2 Folder   13	Eric Olesen, Racine, Wisconsin, baker
Box   2 Folder   14	Dutch: Bob "Sieg" Siegel Jr., Mequon, Wisconsin; Larry Wieberdink, Cedar Grove, Wisconsin; et al., wooden shoe makers
Box   2 Folder   15	French: Betty Carriveau Sherman, Oconto, Wisconsin, storyteller
Box   2 Folder   16	Hispanic: Berta Mendez, Waukesha, Wisconsin, Mexican paper flowers, piñatas; Manuel Reyes, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Puerto Rican woodcarving
Box   2 Folder   17	Hmong: Xao Yang Lee, Sheboygan, Wisconsin; Seng Vanglo, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, needleworkers
Box   2 Folder   18	Luxembourger
Box   2 Folder   19	Oneida: Priscilla Manders, De Pere, Wisconsin, corn husk doll maker
Box   2 Folder   20	Polish: Bernie Jendrzejczak, Hales Corners, Wisconsin, paper cutter Note: Includes 2 paper cutting cards.
Box   2 Folder   21	Pomeranians: Freistadt
Box   2 Folder   22	Slovak: Sidonka Wadina Lee, Lyons, Wisconsin, wheat weaver, egg decorator, painter
Box   2 Folder   23	Slovenian: John Bambic and Joe Cimrmancic, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, woodcarvers
Box   2 Folder   24	Swedish: Kenneth Bruce, Franklin, Wisconsin, woodcarver
Box   2 Folder   25	Ukrainian: Betty Piso Christensen, egg decorator
Box   2 Folder   26	Waterfowling Traditions: Patrick Farrell, Green Bay, Wisconsin, decoy maker, skiff builder
Box   2 Folder   27	Mary Zwolinski Fieldwork Summary
	Series: II. Sound Recordings.	⇧
	James P. Leary Interviews
Box   3 Cassette   1	Betty Christensen, Suring, Wisconsin, 1993 July 12
Box   3 Cassette   2	Pat Farrell, Green Bay, Wisconsin, 1993 July 13
Box   3 Cassette   3	Sidonka Lee, Lyons, Wisconsin, 1993 August 3
Box   3 Cassette   4	Xao Yang Lee, Sheboygan, Wisconsin, 1993 August 4
Box   3 Cassette   5	Priscilla Manders, Oneida, Wisconsin, 1993 July 12
Box   3 Cassette   6	Laura Massant, Rosiere, Wisconsin, 1993 July 11
Box   3 Cassette   7	Berta Mendez, Waukesha, 1993 July 1
Box   3 Cassette   8	Polish ladies, Pulski, Wisconsin, 1993 July 13
Box   3 Cassette   9	Manuel Reyes (with Jose Martinez), Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1993 June 30
Box   3 Cassette   10-11	Betty Carriveau Sherman, Oconto, Wisconsin, 1993 July 12
Box   3 Cassette   12	Martha Wagner, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, 1993 July 14
Box   3 Cassette   13	Larry Wieberdink, Cedar Grove, Wisconsin, 1993 June 30
	Mary A. Zwolinski Interviews
Box   3 Cassette   14	John Bambic, Slovenian Woodcarving, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1993 August 3
Box   3 Cassette   15	Kenneth Bruce, Franklin, Wisconsin, 1993 August 2
Box   3 Cassette   16	Inga Hermansen, Racine, Wisconsin, 1993 July 28
Box   3 Cassette   17	Elizabeth Keosian, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1993 August 5
Box   3 Cassette   18	Albert Larsen, Bayview, Wisconsin, 1993 September 1
Box   3 Cassette   19	Eric Olesen, Racine, Wisconsin, 1993 July 30
Box   3 Cassette   20	Mirani Sammessian, Racine, Wisconsin, 1993 September 16
Box   3 Cassette   21	Harry Savagian, South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1993 September 9
Box   3 Cassette   22	Seng Vanglo, Milwaukee, 1993 September 9
	Musical Recordings
Box   3 Cassette   23	Slovenian Harvest Picnic, Racine County, Wisconsin, 1993 September 19
Box   3 Cassette   24	Badger Button Box Club
	Series: III. Graphic Materials.	⇧
	Fieldwork images by James P. Leary
Binder   1	Color slides (35 mm)
Binder   2	Prints Physical Description: 7 b/w 8x10 prints, 2 b/w 5x7 prints
Binder   1	Film Negatives Physical Description: 6 sheets, 35 mm b/w
Folder   1	Slide and photograph logs, contact sheets
Binder   1	Fieldwork images by Mary A. Zwolinski: color slides (35 mm)
	Images by Lewis Koch
Binder   1	Color slides Physical Description: 8 35 mm slides
Binder   2	Prints Physical Description: 31 b/w 8x10 pre-production prints, 9 b/w 5x7 prints
Folder   2	Contact sheets, slide log
Binder   2	Unidentified prints Physical Description: 3 b/w 8x10 prints, 1 4x6 color print
	Series: IV. Artifacts.	⇧
Box   2 Folder   20	Paper cutting cards by Bernie Jendrzejczak