Papers of a Minnesota farm family that also had connections in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Included are correspondence from family members who served in the military during World Wars I and II, two brief diaries of Laura Sheldon Arnet from the l940's describing her life when she managed the farm alone, photographs, and financial records of the farm ranging from the late l920's to l970.
The military correspondence concerns daily life rather than combat and chiefly focuses on training, life in the trenches, and the post-war occupation of Japan. The financial records provide information on record-keeping practices on a family farm and some summary data on its overall economic condition.

Papers of a dairy and animal husbandry professor at Wisconsin State College, River Falls, consisting of personal papers, course notes and lectures, papers from his local civic activities, family papers, and photographs including some of agricultural scenes.

Interviews with Husband, Amery, Wis., publisher of the Balsam Lake Ledger, 1907-1939, and former Wisconsin state assemblyman; two statements and a series of newspaper articles in which Husband recalls changes in the St. Croix valley area during his lifetime; and one photograph of Husband.

Records of the El Paso Community Band which existed from the 1920's until 1934, including a ledger containing financial records and minutes of meetings for 1929, a copy of a 1926 photograph of the band with identification of band members; and a typewritten history describing the practice schedule, finances, and performances, and containing humorous anecdotes and a listing of band members and the instrument each played.

Biographical information on John M. Bartosh, mayor of River Falls, Wisconsin, farmer, and owner of the Park View Dairy; compiled from conversations with Mrs. Bartosh by Dr. and Mrs. E. N. Peterson; plus a 1922 photograph of Mr. Bartosh delivering milk.

The Lewis, Stephens, and McKay family collection consists of family papers of three generations of Welsh and Irish immigrants who settled in western Wisconsin. Daniel Lewis (1821-1887) emigrated from Wales, first settling in Green Bay and working in the logging business. In 1854, he moved to Hudson, Wisconsin continuing in the logging business before becoming a full time farmer. In 1859, he married Catherine Walsh (1836-1926) with whom he had six children, Hannah Eliza, Margaret Ann, Evan Walter, David James, Mary Frances, and Elizabeth Jane. Mary Frances (1873-1961) married John Stephens and had two children, Elizabeth and Mary Esther. Only Mary Esther (1906-1990) survived to adulthood and in 1936, she married Gerald Eugene McKay and they had six children. The collection consists of correspondence (both within the United States and family members in Wales), land transfers, tax receipts, obituaries, cemetery records, oral history transcripts, restoration records, class notebooks, certificates, diplomas, and photographs.

Letters, written by Maud Little Hoag of Everett, Wash. (formerly of River Falls, Wis.) to Sadie Johnson of River Falls, containing details of daily activities, punctuated with a collage of recipes, photographs, newspaper clippings, invitations, fabric swatches, and other memorabilia.

Articles and notes on the early history of Pierce County, Wis., some written by Paul B. Bjerkeng, some by unidentified authors; accompanied by papers relating to the Pierce County Historical Society, photographs, clippings (all in SC 8); and additional articles, several letters in Norwegian, a speech by Marion Neprud, and letters to the editor, 1941-1942, by Bjerkeng (all in SC 85).

This series contains 25 photographs taken of the interior of the Normal School during the presidency of J. Q. Emery, 1889-1893. The exhibit was shown at the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893 in Chicago.