Cranberry Love
Each fall, the nation’s biggest cranberry crop is harvested from Wisconsin marshes. And floods of travelers turn up to celebrate the tart star of the show.
Emily Bright shares the view from her corner of Wisconsin.
Up in the Trees
Climbing trees is a childhood pastime. But for arborists, scaling trees to keep them healthy is a serious pursuit. Seth Jovaag brings us this story from Dane County.
Learn more about Wisconsin’s working people The Working Lives Project from the Wisconsin Humanities Council.
Milwaukee Couple Makes Hats The Old-Fashioned Way
In this story by Litmus Pictures, meet John & Kate McLaughlin. The Milwaukee couple runs the Brass Rooster Hat Company; and in addition to handcrafting hats, they offer full cleaning and repair services, custom fittings and customer service as traditional as the 100 year old equipment they use to make their hats.
Running Wisconsin’s Tallest Building
13,000 volts of electricity flow into Wisconsin’s tallest building every day, and for the last 22 years, one man has been in charge of making sure the lights stay on.
Learn more about Wisconsin’s working people on The Working Lives Project from the Wisconsin Humanities Council.
U.S. Park Service Official Helps Restore Apostle Islands Lighthouses
Few things fuel as much curiosity as big bodies of water and the mysteries that lie beneath. For David Cooper, that curiosity spawned a life-long love for Wisconsin’s Great Lakes.
“I grew up over in Door County, and grew up around lighthouses and shipwrecks and that sort of thing,” Cooper said.
ER Nurse
Amid the hustle of the state’s busiest emergency room, nurses have to keep a cool head. Rebecca Ramizini takes us inside a hospital on Milwaukee’s northwest side.
Learn more about Wisconsin’s working people — and hear more from Rebecca Ramizini The Working Lives Project from the Wisconsin Humanities Council.
Trapper
Fur trapping drove Wisconsin’s economy for more than 200 years. Trapping remains a way of life for some Wisconsinites, including one man who runs a trapping store and teaches others how it’s done.
Rice Harvest
Wild rice isn’t actually a rice at all. It’s an aquatic grass that has been an important food for native people for centuries. Fred Ackley, Jr., from the Mole Lake Reservation learned to harvest rice from his grandmother, and he continues to harvest and process it to this day.
Migrant Worker
Wisconsin’s reputation as the dairy state relies on labor from countries like Mexico. In today’s Wisconsin Life, we meet one of those workers in Buffalo County.
Learn more about Wisconsin’s working people – and hear more from Alejandro Tepole at The Working Lives Project from the Wisconsin Humanities Council.
Car Restoration
On a dead end street in the tiny village of Brooklyn, a former windmill factory now houses some of the most beautiful cars in the world. Albrecht Stachel is the man behind the wrench.
Madison Guitar Maker Sells Instruments To Musicians Worldwide
Ten years ago, Todd Cambio quit his job as a carpenter to become a luthier, specializing in guitars from the early 20th century that he now sells to musicians worldwide. Seth Jovaag introduces us to the Madison craftsman.
Pro-Angler
For many Wisconsinites, fishing is more than just a pastime. One Shawano angler is making waves in a male-dominated sport.
Learn more about Wisconsin’s working people – and hear more from Marianne Huskey at The Working Lives Project from the Wisconsin Humanities Council.
Bay Beach
Wisconsin is home to one of the oldest amusement parks in the United States. Visitors from around the world come to Green Bay every summer to enjoy the rides and the beautiful views.
Mindoro Cut
A windy road makes for motorcycle paradise. Ron Davis tells us about a legendary stretch of highway near La Crosse.
Moskey Basin
The list of what makes a place special is endless. Writer Jill Sisson Quinn tells us about what is for her, Earth’s most perfect place.