Creating Old World Wisconsin: The Struggle to Build an Outdoor History Museum of Ethnic Architecture

Acknowledgments

h ix Ac­knowl­edg­ments Writing a book is a collective effort. Recognizing those who provided critical assistance is both exhilarating and humbling. Marty Perkins, the curator of research at Old World Wisconsin, sat for numerous interviews, searched relentlessly for documents and photographs, never balked at my numerous requests for information, and served as my ultimate fact checker. William H. Tishler (professor emeritus, University of Wisconsin–Madison) encouraged me to tell this story, sat for a number of interviews, shared his files and knowledge on OWW, and answered my many questions. Alan C. Pape and Mark Knipping, Jack Winn’s first OWW hires, also generously shared their memories and their papers. Tishler, Pape, Perkins, and Matt Blessing (now state archivist for the Wisconsin Historical Society) read relevant chapters and provided useful and critical commentary. No one knows the history of the Society better than Dr. Michael Stevens (state historic preservation officer). He read and critiqued the manuscript and made innumerable valuable contributions to the text. I also thank the two anonymous reviewers who read the manuscript for the University of Wisconsin Press and who pushed me to write an even better book. My son and colleague Dr. David F. Krugler (professor of history, University of Wisconsin– Platteville) and my wife, Dee, read various manifestations of this manuscript and made suggestions that greatly improved the readability of Creating Old World Wisconsin. Society archivists Harry Miller and Richard Pifer, among others, provided invaluable assistance by opening the vast treasures of the Society’s archives to me. I am indebted to those who allowed me to interview them for the record (identified in the sources section). They graciously shared their insights and memories of this complex creation story. x H acknowledgments I gratefully acknowledge the support of Marquette University for providing the time needed to research and write this book. I appreciate the encouragement of former chair Dr. Thomas E. Hachey (now at Boston College) and current chair Dr. James Marten. I remain indebted to my colleagues who encouraged my transition to a public historian. Numerous research assistants labored to make this book possible by transcribing interviews. Among them are Jose Blanco, James Bohl, Patricia Higgins, Laura Lindemann, Christina Makos, Jeffery Ramsey, Amanda Schmieder, and Craig Simpson. A special thanks to Marquette University photographer Dan Johnson, who photographed me at the Koepsell house for my author photo and who assisted in the selection and modification of the photos used for the photo galleries. The author gratefully acknowledges William H. Tishler, Alan C. Pape, and Arnold R. Alanen for the assistance they provided by sharing their photos, identifying the persons and buildings in the photos, and for their permission to reproduce their photos. The photos from the OWW archives, mostly supplied by Martin C. Perkins, are also reproduced with permission. I thank Patricia Nelson for vigorously recruiting me to serve as a trustee of the OWW Foundation. The experience gave me considerable insights into fund-raising. The Wisconsin Historical Society supported research through the John C. Geilfuss Fellowship. I gratefully acknowledge the support of the editorial staff at the University of Wisconsin Press—Gwen Walker, Sheila McMahon, and Matthew Cosby—as well as series editor Arnold Alanen and copyeditor Mary Magray. Their high standards made this a better book. Every effort has been made to avoid errors of fact. Despite the assistance of so many, I remain solely responsible for the text. Writing a book is a solitary effort. For that reason, I am most appreciative of the support received from my family. My wife, Dee, lived with this book as long as I did and I deeply appreciate her support. My son, David, and his wife, Amy Lewis; my daughter, Katie Pospisil, and her husband, Mike; and my two granddaughters, Megan and Kayla, all contributed to making this long-term project possible. The encouragement and support received over a lifetime from my parents, Marge and Fred, sustained me from afar. creat฀ ing฀old฀world฀wis฀ con฀ sin ...