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UW-Eau Claire Public History Students to Present Research On Eau Claire County's 150-Year History at Chippewa Valley Museum May 18
RELEASED: May 15, 2006
EAU CLAIRE — Five University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire history students have dedicated the semester in one class to providing research for the Chippewa Valley Museum to use in designing a traveling history exhibit for the Eau Claire County Sesquicentennial Commission.
The five students will present their own exhibits from 5-6:30 p.m. May 18 in the Chippewa Valley Museum's auditorium.
Their 10 panels illustrate diverse themes in the 150-year history of Eau Claire County government and its efforts to serve the county's citizens, said Chad Ronnander, who taught the UW-Eau Claire Public History seminar course for which the students performed their research.
"All five students will be there, looking forward to discussing their work in person with everyone who attends," Ronnander said. "Their goal all semester has been to provide work that the Chippewa Valley Museum, the Sesquicentennial Commission and Eau Claire County citizens in general will find useful. The May 18 presentations will be their final exam. I think the pride they have taken in their work all semester, and their eagerness to show it to other people now, is a good indicator of its quality."
The students are pursuing public history certificates as part of their history major, Ronnander said. "They are learning to pub history skills to work in arenas outside the traditional school/college classroom," he said.
The research presentations include:
- "For Admission as a County Charge: County-Provided Tuberculosis Care at Mount Washington Sanatorium, 1913-1974," by Beth Erdey, a graduate student in history from Sheboygan Falls.
- "Locked and Loaded? Sheriffs and the Sheriff's Department in 1858, 1926 and 2005," by Matt Foss, a junior history major from Washington Island.
- "Managing and Enjoying the Eau Claire County Forest and Parks, 1930s-2006," by Caitlin Olejniczak, a sophomore history major from Thorp.
- "Building and Maintaining Eau Claire County's Roads, 1912-2006," by James Traczek, a senior history major from Fairchild.
- "Visibility of the Invisible Minority: County-Provided Care for Orphans, the Poor, and the Mentally Ill, 1890-1980," by Mark J. Westpfahl, a junior social studies and education major from Eau Claire.
The May 18 presentations are free and open to the public.
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JB
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