Potawatomi speak a language of the Algonkian language family and have lived in the Great Lakes region for at least four centuries. Throughout their history, the Potawatomi have moved and been moved many times, but their aboriginal territory was in Michigan’s lower peninsula. Oral traditions of the Potawatomi, Ojibwe, and Ottawa assert that at one time, all three tribes were one people who lived at the Straits of Mackinac.
The Ho-Chunk -- formerly called the Winnebago -- are members of a Siouan-speaking tribe who were established in Wisconsin at the time of French contact in the 1630s. The oral traditions of the tribe, particularly the Thunderbird clan, state that the Ho-Chunk originated at the Red Banks on Green Bay.
The Kwakiutl are one of several indigenous First Nations that inhabit the western coast of British Columbia, Canada, from central and northern Vancouver Island to the adjacent mainland coast. In the 1980s, the Kwakiutl officially changed their name to Kwakwaka'wakw, meaning “Kwak'wala speaking tribes”, though the two names are often used interchangeably by scholars and some Kwakiutl bands.
Wisconsin's most-visited museum is getting a new home in an iconic, one-of-a-kind building that will stoke curiosity, awe, and connection before guests even step inside. Through the architectural homages to natural environments and the intentional gathering places that will bring diverse groups of people together, every inch of the Future Museum is designed to show the inter
This is due to the fieldwork conducted by Ritzenthaler and Peterson in the 1950s and Felipe and Dolores Latorre in the 1960s and 1970s.
Aztalan, located on the Crawfish River in south-central Wisconsin near present-day Lake Mills, is approximately 50 miles west of Milwaukee. Occupied from about AD 1100-1250, Aztalan is the northernmost known outpost of the Mississippian culture. The site consists of large earthen temple mounds, houses, and an enormous stockade that enclosed 20 acres of the site.
The Milwaukee Public Museum's Aztalan collection is comprised of over 3,600 archaeological artifacts. The majority of the collection comes from the excavations of 1919, 1920, and 1932 conducted by Museum Director Samuel A. Barrett. This collection is the largest assemblage of cultural remains from a single North American archaeological site in the Museum's collections. See select items in the Wisconsin Archaeology exhibit on the Second Floor and on the Museum's website here.
Arthur Niehoff making friends with a Trinidadian prehensile-tailed porcupine. (MPM Neg.#: 80051A)
This exhibit created one of the first walk-through dioramas in the world, transporting the visitor back to a fall evening in Milwaukee at the turn of the 20th century. It was an immediate hit and continues to be the most visited spot in the Museum. In honor of the Streets 50th anniversary, the exhibit was reimagined by further incorporating themed storytelling and a heightened sensory experience to give the visitor a different perspective on every visit.
The Aztalan collection of the Milwaukee Public Museum is composed of over 3,600 archaeological artifacts primarily excavated and collected by Dr. Samuel A. Barrett in the field seasons of 1919, 1920, and 1932. This collection is the largest assemblage of cultural remains from a single North American archaeological site in the Milwaukee Public Museum.
