WISCONSIN STORIES IS A PARTNERSHIP OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF WISCONSIN AND WISCONSIN PUBLIC TELEVISION.

Tracy Will: IN THE BEAUTIFUL COUNTRYSIDE OF JACKSON COUNTY YOU'LL FIND A GEOLOGICAL FORMATION CALLED SILVER MOUND. FOR 12,000 YEARS, NATIVE AMERICANS JOURNEYED HERE TO QUARRY A HARD STONE FOUND IN THIS REGION AND NOWHERE ELSE. Debbie Kmetz: HIXTON QUARTZITE IS SAND CEMENTED TOGETHER WITH SILICA. WHEN IT'S CHIPPED, IT FORMS A REALLY SHARP EDGE. IT WAS A GREAT ROCK FOR MAKING SPEAR POINTS AND ARROWHEADS. HI, I'M DEBBIE KMETZ AND I'M TRACY WILL. TONIGHT, ON "WISCONSIN STORIES" WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT WISCONSIN HISTORY LITERALLY, FROM THE GROUND UP. AT SOME STORIES THAT REVEAL THE ROLE OF ROCK IN WISCONSIN HISTORY. WE'RE GOING TO LOOK AT ROCK ART, ART ROCK BROWNSTONES AND ROLLING ROCK OUTCROPS, CHIPS OFF THE OLD BLOCK AND ROCKIN' THE HOUSE. WHAT KIND OF PROGRAM WILL THAT BE ? I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE FUN.

MAJOR FUNDING FOR WISCONSIN STORIES IS PROVIDED BY THE MEAD WITTER FOUNDATION, INC. WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WISCONSIN. ADDITIONAL FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY THE HALBERT AND ALICE KADISH FOUNDATION PHILIP J. AND ELIZABETH B. HENDRICKSON AND AN ADVISED FUND OF THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF SOUTHERN WISCONSIN.

Robert Boszhardt: SILVER MOUND IS ABOUT A 200-ACRE HILL. IT'S JUST A SANDSTONE HILL. BUT AT A CERTAIN ELEVATION, WHERE WE'RE STANDING-- ABOUT HALF THE WAY UP THE MOUND-- IT HAS CEMENTED AND TURNED INTO QUARTZITE. THERE'S ABOUT A 10-FOOT-THICK VEIN OF THIS QUARTZITE, RIGHT HERE. WHO ARE THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE COME HERE ? THE FIRST PEOPLE COMING TO SILVER MOUND TO GET THE STONE TO MAKE THEIR STONE TOOLS ARE THE FIRST PEOPLE IN WISCONSIN. WE CALL THEM THE PALEOINDIANS, WHICH MEANS THE OLDEST PEOPLE. AND WHEN WOULD THAT HAVE BEEN ? ABOUT 12,000 YEARS AGO-- THE FIRST PEOPLE IN THIS AREA. A LONG TIME. THEY WERE MIGRATING THROUGH THE AREA AND FOUND SILVER MOUND. THEY CAME BACK, YEAR AFTER YEAR, FOR THE NEXT 12,000 YEARS. Kmetz: THEY FOUND IT AND KNEW A GOOD THING WHEN THEY SAW IT. RIGHT, THIS IS A SPECIAL SOURCE OF MATERIAL. YOU HAVE TO HAVE STONE LIKE THIS TO STAY ALIVE. CHIPPING STONE TOOLS, OR FLINT KNAPPING IS SOMETHING THAT ALL CULTURES HAVE DONE THROUGH TIME UNTIL VERY RECENTLY. IT'S HOW THEY MADE THEIR TOOLS FOR HUNTING THE ANIMALS THEIR TOOLS FOR BUTCHERING THOSE ANIMALS FOR PREPARING THE HIDES. PLACES LIKE SILVER MOUND WERE LIKE HARDWARE STORES. THEY CAME AND GOT STONE TO MAKE TOOLS. IF YOU DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO FLINT KNAP YOU WOULDN'T HAVE SURVIVED IN PRE-HISTORY. Kmetz: TELL ME ABOUT FLINT KNAPPING IT'S A REAL POPULAR SKILL THESE DAYS, ISN'T IT ? Boszhardt: WELL, FLINT KNAPPING IS BECOMING MORE POPULAR ALL THE TIME. AND AS ARCHAEOLOGISTS WE CAN LEARN A LOT ABOUT THE PAST FROM REPLICATING THE SKILLS IT TOOK TO MAKE STONE TOOLS. THAT'S GOOD, BUT THERE ARE CONCERNS. IF WE COME TO SILVER MOUND TO DO RESEARCH AND WE DO AN EXCAVATION AND PEOPLE FLINT KNAP WITHOUT USING A TARP THEIR FLAKES GET INCORPORATED INTO THE SITE JUST LIKE THE PREHISTORIC FLAKES DID. SO, WE CAN'T TELL THE DIFFERENCE. SO, THAT'S WHY HE'S GOT A TARP. THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT. I'VE HEARD THIS CALLED WISCONSIN'S FIRST EXPORT BUSINESS. WHAT DO YOU THINK ? WELL, IN THE AGE, IT IS. 12,000-YEAR-OLD SPEAR POINTS MADE FROM THIS STONE WERE SHIPPED OUT OF WISCONSIN THROUGHOUT THE UPPER MIDWEST SOME OF THEM, AS FAR AWAY AS MAMMOTH CAVE IN SOUTHERN MISSOURI. SO, SOME OF IT GETS TRADED AT DIFFERENT TIMES FOR DIFFERENT PURPOSES-- BUT A LONG WAYS AWAY FROM HERE. Kmetz: HIXTON QUARTZITE MAY HAVE BEEN THE FIRST ROCK EXPORTED FROM WISCONSIN BUT IT WAS CERTAINLY NOT THE LAST.

Will: OUR PASSION FOR BUILDING WITH STONE CAN BE SEEN ALL AROUND THE STATE. FROM LIGHT-COLORED LIMESTONE TO ROUNDED FIELDSTONE TO A UNIQUE USE OF ROCK-FACED RED GRANITE. ONE OF THE MOST DISTINCTIVE STONES QUARRIED IN WISCONSIN WAS BROWNSTONE.

IN TOWNS LIKE ASHLAND, WASHBURN AND BAYFIELD, IT'S EVERYWHERE. IN THE FOUNDATION OF HOUSES THE CONSTRUCTION OF CHIMNEYS AND EVEN IN A DELICATELY CARVED FIREPLACE. THIS STURDY STONE HELPED REBUILD CHICAGO AFTER THE FIRE OF 1871. AND EXTENDED A PROMISE OF PROSPERITY TO THE CITIES ALONG THE SOUTH SHORE OF LAKE SUPERIOR.

Bob MacKreth: QUARRIES ACTUALLY STARTED OUT ON THE APOSTLE ISLANDS. AND THAT WAS RIGHT AFTER THE CIVIL WAR. THEY WERE LOOKING TO BUILD A NICE, IMPRESSIVE NEW COURTHOUSE IN MILWAUKEE. Will: THE MILWAUKEE COUNTY COURTHOUSE, BUILT IN 1870, NO LONGER STANDS. BUT WHAT WAS ONCE THE BAYFIELD COUNTY COURTHOUSE HAS BEEN CONVERTED TO THE APOSTLE ISLANDS NATIONAL LAKESHORE HEADQUARTERS. THIS HANDSOME STONE LIES UNDERNEATH MOST OF THE ISLANDS AND EXTENDS, UNDERWATER, TO LAKE SUPERIOR'S SOUTH SHORE.

BROWNSTONE WAS PLENTIFUL BUT IT WAS MORE THAN AVAILABILITY THAT CREATED THE BOOM. YOU'VE GOT A FAMOUS ARCHITECT, NAMED HENRY HOBSON RICHARDSON WHO IS THE ORIGINATOR OF A STYLE CALLED RICHARDSON ROMANESQUE, OR ROMANESQUE REVIVAL. AND WHAT RICHARDSON ESPOUSED WAS TAKING THE STONE AND USING MODERN TECHNIQUES AND MODERN TECHNOLOGY AND REPLICATING SOME OF THE FEATURES OF THE MEDIEVAL ROMANESQUE STYLE. Will: THE ROMANESQUE STYLE FEATURED HEAVY, IMPOSING BUILDINGS THAT PROVIDED A SENSE OF SECURITY. IT WAS PERFECTLY SUITED TO BROWNSTONE'S DARK PERSONALITY AND IT QUICKLY CAUGHT ON. THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR EARLY ENTREPRENEURS WAS TRANSPORTATION. RAIL LINES HADN'T YET REACHED NORTHERN WISCONSIN. THE INITIAL SOLUTION-- SHIPPING BY SHIP.

TODAY, ON THE SHORE OF HERMIT ISLAND BROWNSTONE BLOCKS STILL WAIT FOR THEIR RIDE TO MARKET. AFTER THEIR SUCCESS ON THE APOSTLE ISLANDS BROWNSTONE QUARRIES WERE DUG ON THE MAINLAND. IT'S A GORGEOUS QUARRY. Will: DICK BODIN REMEMBERS GROWING UP NEAR A QUARRY JUST NORTH OF WASHBURN WHICH HAS SINCE FILLED WITH WATER. HOW WOULD THEY GET THE QUARRY STONE OUT OF HERE ONCE IT'S BEEN CUT ? AS A YOUNGSTER, I REMEMBER THAT BECAUSE THE DERRICKS WERE STILL HERE. REALLY ? THERE WAS A TALL DERRICK, AS TALL AS THOSE TREES AND CABLES SWINGING ACROSS. IF YOUR EYES ARE GOOD ON THAT CLAY SLIDING BANK, THERE YOU'LL SEE A CABLE STILL HANGING THERE. OH, SURE, I CAN SEE IT OVER THERE RIGHT NOW.

Will: ALONG THE LAKESHORE NEARBY CABLES, AND EVEN RAIL LINES REMAIN-- REMNANTS OF THE BROWNSTONE BOOM. I'M AT THE WASHBURN HISTORICAL MUSEUM AND CULTURE CENTER. I'M STANDING IN FRONT OF AN OBELISK THAT WAS QUARRIED NOT TOO FAR FROM HERE ON THE SHORES OF LAKE SUPERIOR. AS YOU CAN SEE, THE OBELISK BEHIND ME IS MADE OF SMALL BLOCKS OF STONE. BUT THE ORIGINAL WAS TO HAVE BEEN MADE OF A HUGE, SINGLE BLOCK OF STONE, 110 FEET TALL. THAT'S FOUR TIMES THE SIZE OF THE OBELISK THAT YOU SEE BEHIND ME.

THE MAN RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MONOLITH WAS FREDERICK PRENTICE. MacKreth: FREDERICK PRENTICE WAS DEFINITELY A GOOD ONE AT PUBLIC RELATIONS. AND HE GOT THE IDEA TO SPREAD THE WORD THAT HE WAS GOING TO SEND A FANTASTIC MONUMENT TO THE COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. THIS WAS GOING TO BE THE WORLD'S LARGEST SINGLE-PIECE MONOLITH. Will: THE WORLD'S LARGEST MONOLITH WAS CUT FROM THIS QUARRY NEAR WASHBURN. LOCAL NEWSPAPERS KEPT THE READING PUBLIC UP TO DATE ON EVERY MOVE THEY MADE. HOW IMPORTANT WAS THE COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION TO PROMOTE THE BROWNSTONE INDUSTRY ? THE COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND, WAS A VERY BIG DEAL AT THE TIME. IT WAS GOING TO SHOWCASE AMERICA'S PROSPERITY AND AMERICA'S INDUSTRIAL MIGHT. AND EVERYBODY WANTED A PIECE OF THE ACTION. SO, THE IDEA THAT THEY WERE GOING TO TAKE THIS MONOLITH AND MOVE IT TO CHICAGO, AND HAVE SOMETHING THERE THAT THEY THOUGHT WOULD BE THE NUMBER ONE ATTRACTION HAD PEOPLE REALLY SWOLLEN WITH PRIDE. IT WAS GOING TO BE SOMETHING BIG.

Will: IRONICALLY, THE EVENT THAT WAS TO HAVE BROUGHT IT FAME AND FORTUNE ACTUALLY LED TO THE END OF THE LAKE SUPERIOR BROWNSTONE INDUSTRY. MacKreth: AT THE COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION THEY HAD AN AREA CALLED THE WHITE CITY WHICH WAS AN EXHIBIT OF WONDERFUL NEW BUILDINGS AND THE MOST MODERN ARCHITECTURAL STYLES. THEY WERE LIGHT AND AIRY, AND WHITE IN COLOR. THAT WAS KIND OF THE DEATH KNELL FOR THE BROWNSTONE QUARRIES. Will: SO, WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE PRENTICE MONOLITH DESTINED FOR THE COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION ? MacKreth: THE STORY THAT WENT OUT WAS THEY TRIED BUT IT JUST PROVED ECONOMICALLY UNFEASIBLE TO SHIP THIS HUGE CHUNK OF ROCK. HOWEVER, I HAVE ALSO READ AN ACCOUNT FROM AN OLD RETIRED QUARRYMAN WHO SAID, "OH, THAT'S A LOT OF NONSENSE. "PRENTICE HAD NO INTENTION, EVER "OF SENDING THAT THING TO CHICAGO. "HE KNEW HE COULDN'T SHIP IT "FROM THE DAY HE CAME OUT WITH THE IDEA. "BUT HE ALSO KNEW THAT IT WOULD GET HIS OPERATION A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF PUBLICITY."

Will: BROWNSTONE FELL OUT OF FASHION AFTER ONLY 30 YEARS. BUT OVER A CENTURY LATER SOME OF THESE STURDY BUILDINGS STILL STAND. AND EVEN THOUGH ARCHITECTURAL FASHIONS HAVE CHANGED WE STILL APPRECIATE THE BEAUTY OF THIS ROCK TODAY.

Will: PEOPLE WALK PAST THIS BEAUTIFUL MARBLE STATUE EVERY DAY AS THEY ENTER AND LEAVE THE CAPITOL ON THEIR WAY TO SEE THE BEAUTIFUL BUILDING AND ELEGANT STONE WORK. BUT FEW PEOPLE REALIZE THAT THIS STATUE WAS ACTUALLY CREATED AT A STUDIO AT THE U.S. CAPITOL IN WASHINGTON. AND IT WAS CREATED BY ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS WOMAN SCULPTORS IN AMERICAN HISTORY. WISCONSIN'S OWN VINNIE REAM. FEW PEOPLE HAVE HEARD OF VINNIE REAM TODAY BUT DURING THE CIVIL WAR SHE WAS ONE OF AMERICA'S LEADING ARTISTS. HER POETRY, SONGS, PAINTINGS AND ESPECIALLY HER SCULPTURES BROUGHT HER INTERNATIONAL FAME AND CONTROVERSY. I'M HERE IN THE MUSEUM COLLECTION STORAGE AREA WHERE THEY PROCESS ARTIFACTS. I'M WITH HARRY MILLER, WHO'S FROM THE MANUSCRIPT ARCHIVES IN THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT VINNIE REAM. WHERE DID SHE COME FROM ? VINNIE REAM HAS STRONG WISCONSIN ROOTS. THE FAMILY CAME TO MADISON IN THE FALL OF 1838. THEY ACTUALLY TOOK OVER A HOTEL, OR BOARDING HOUSE AND THE LOG CABIN CONSTRUCTED BY EBIN PECK. Will: YOUNG VINNIE REAM GREW UP IN MADISON'S FIRST HOME ABOVE LAKE MONONA WHERE SHE PLAYED WITH THE LOCAL HO-CHUNK CHILDREN. IN HER EARLY TEENS, HOWEVER, VINNIE'S FAMILY MOVED FROM WISCONSIN TO WASHINGTON, D.C. DURING THE CIVIL WAR.

IN WASHINGTON SHE VISITED THE STUDIO OF RENOWNED SCULPTOR CLARK MILLS IN THE U.S. CAPITOL BUILDING. THERE, SHE MODELED HER MEDALLION OF AN INDIAN CHIEF'S HEAD AND IMPRESSED MILLS SO MUCH THAT HE MADE HER HIS APPRENTICE. UNDER MILLS' GUIDANCE VINNIE BECAME AN ACCOMPLISHED SCULPTOR AND BEGAN A LARGER-THAN-LIFE CAREER. SHE DECIDES SHE WANTS TO DO A BUST OF LINCOLN. AND SOMEHOW, LINCOLN IS PERSUADED TO SIT FOR HER. SOME SAY THAT IT HAS TO DO WITH THE FACT THAT SHE'S A GIRL FROM "THE WEST." THIS APPEALS TO LINCOLN, HIS FRONTIER SPIRIT. OBVIOUSLY, HE'S FROM THE WEST, THE VERY SAME WEST. HE SITS FOR HER AND SHE DOES A BUST. AND SHE COMPLETES THIS THING JUST MAYBE A MONTH OR SIX WEEKS BEFORE HE'S ASSASSINATED. SHE IS THE ONLY ONE WHO HAS SCULPTED LINCOLN FROM LIFE. Will: IN THE RIGHT PLACE... AT THE RIGHT TIME. Will: THE AFTERMATH OF LINCOLN'S ASSASSINATION BROUGHT VINNIE REAM EVEN GREATER FAME. HER SUPPORTERS VIEWED HER AS A NAIVE GIRL FROM THE WISCONSIN WILDERNESS AND CALLED HER "THE PRAIRIE CINDERELLA." BUT WHEN SHE WON A FEDERAL COMMISSION TO SCULPT A FULL STATUE OF LINCOLN FOR THE U.S. CAPITOL ROTUNDA HER AWARD WAS HOTLY DEBATED IN THE U.S. SENATE WHERE HER YOUTH AND BEAUTY MADE HER A CONTROVERSIAL CHOICE. BEING FEMALE IN THIS ARTISTIC FOLLOWING WAS NOT AN EASY TASK. Will: AND THE REALISM SHE BROUGHT TO HER SCULPTURE WAS ON THE CONTROVERSIAL CUTTING EDGE OF ART. SHE PETITIONED MARY TODD LINCOLN FOR A PRESIDENTIAL SUIT TO MAKE THE MEASUREMENTS AND WAS SENT THE BLOODY CLOTHES LINCOLN WORE THE NIGHT HE WAS ASSASSINATED. Miller: IT'S A REALISTIC STYLE IN THE KIND OF ATTIRE HE WOULD WEAR AS OPPOSED TO THE ATTIRE OF THE ROMAN ROBES. Will: HER REALISTIC FINAL STATUE WON CRITICAL ACCLAIM. REAM CONTINUED TO WORK AT THE CAPITOL CARVING MANY PERSONAL WORKS LIKE THIS BUST, CALLED "PASSION FLOWER" AND A HAND SCULPTURE SHE NAMED "IDLENESS."

ANOTHER WORK, NAMED "THE SPIRIT OF THE CARNIVAL" IS ON DISPLAY AT THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF WISCONSIN.

REAM ALSO CREATED A FIGURE NAMED "THE WEST" WHICH CAN BE SEEN AT THE STATE CAPITOL BUILDING IN MADISON.

BUT HER MAIN BODY OF WORK CONTINUED TO BE THE MAJOR POLITICAL FIGURES OF THE CIVIL WAR ERA. Miller: SHE RECEIVED ANOTHER GOVERNMENT COMMISSION TO WORK ON A MONUMENT TO DAVID FARUGUT THE CIVIL WAR NAVAL COMMANDER. I MEAN, HER OTHER SUBJECTS-- U.S. GRANT FREDERICK DOUGLASS-- YOU KNOW, A REAL LIST OF THE POLITICAL NOTABLES OF THE TIME. Will: VINNIE REAM CONTINUED TO WORK UNTIL THE MID-1870s WHEN SHE MARRIED ARMY LIEUTENANT RICHARD HOXIE. SHE DEFERRED TO HIS WISHES AND GAVE UP HER ART FOR OVER 20 YEARS. SHE EVENTUALLY DEVELOPED HEART TROUBLE. HER DOCTOR DIAGNOSED IT AS "SUPPRESSION OF FEELING" AND RECOMMEND THAT SHE BE ALLOWED TO SCULPT AGAIN. HER HUSBAND RELENTED, AND VINNIE REAM BEGAN A STATUE OF THE CHEROKEE LEADER, SEQUOYAH FOR THE U.S. CAPITOL. Miller: THERE IS SOMETHING OF THE WEST AND SOMETHING OF THE FRONTIER IN HER. THERE IS A REOCCURRING THEME OF AMERICAN INDIANS IN HER WORK. Will: VINNIE REAM DIED IN 1914. AND WAS BURIED AT ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY IN WASHINGTON, D.C. THOUGH FEW REMEMBER HER TODAY THIS YOUNG WOMAN FROM THE WISCONSIN FRONTIER BECAME ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS ARTISTS OF HER TIME.

Will: WISCONSIN HAS A LARGE VARIETY OF GEOLOGICAL WONDERS TO ENHANCE ITS LANDSCAPE. GLACIAL EROSION AND MELTWATER PROFOUNDLY AFFECTED WISCONSIN'S TEXTURE AND TOPOGRAPHY AND IT ENTICES PEOPLE.

AND IT MAKES WISCONSIN ROCK. WISCONSINITES LOVE ROCKS SO MUCH THAT THEY NOT ONLY WANT YOU TO SEE IT THEY WANT YOU TO EXPERIENCE IT. BUT HOW ? ONE WAY IS THROUGH TWO OF THE MOST UNUSUAL, YET COMPELLING TOURIST ATTRACTIONS THIS STATE HAS TO OFFER. THEY EMBRACE THE TERRAIN OF THE SOUTHERN AND WESTERN TERRITORY AND THEY LITERALLY ROCK. THERE'S THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK AND THE ROCK IN THE HOUSE. YOU WANT TO SEE THAT AGAIN ? YOU WANT TO HEAR IT AGAIN ? I'LL SHOW YOU. THIS IS THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK, NEAR SPRING GREEN. IT'S A HIGHLY POPULAR SITE THAT ATTRACTS PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, EVERY YEAR. AND ABOUT 130 MILES NORTHWEST OF HERE IS FOUNTAIN CITY'S VERY OWN ROCK IN THE HOUSE. IT'S NOT AS FAMOUS, OR EXTRAVAGANT. IT IS A ROCK IN A HOUSE. BUT THEY HAVE CERTAIN THINGS IN COMMON. BOTH OF THESE STRUCTURAL WONDERS USE ROCK FORMATIONS AS ARCHITECTURAL BASES. EACH BEAUTIFUL AND UNIQUE IN ITS OWN WAY EACH SET IN A VALLEY WITH ITS OWN SPECTACULAR VIEWS-- AND THESE UNCONSTRAINED SURROUNDINGS HELPED TWO MEN ACHIEVE THEIR VISIONS.

ON APRIL 24, 1995, FROM HIGH ATOP A CLIFF ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER, A 55-TON BOULDER UNEXPECTEDLY ROLLED RIGHT INTO 440 NORTHSHORE DRIVE. 
( drum roll and fanfare music )
 AT THE TIME, IT WAS THE HOME OF MAXINE AND DWIGHT ANDERSON. AND IT WAS IN THEIR MASTER BEDROOM THE BOULDER DECIDED TO LODGE ITSELF. TALK ABOUT ROCK N' ROLL ! KNOWING THAT HUGE BOULDERS WILL FALL AS THEY DID NEXT DOOR, IN 1901 AT THE TIME, KILLING A MRS. DUBLER THE ANDERSONS SOLD THE HOUSE TO JOHN BURT, A LOCAL REAL ESTATE INVESTOR. I'M SCOTCH, I SAVE EVERYTHING. MOST PEOPLE WOULD JUST TAKE IT OUT OF THERE. THEY GOT A PRICE OF $2,000 TO TAKE IT OUT OF THERE. BUT THAT'S TOO UNIQUE TO TAKE OUT SO THERE IT IS.

Will: THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK ALSO STARTED WITH AN IMPACT-- BUT OF THE HUMAN KIND. IT BEGAN WITH ALEX JORDAN AND HIS SON, ALEX JORDAN, JR. AND ODDLY ENOUGH, FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT. THE SENIOR ALEX JORDAN WAS BUILDING A HOUSE IN MADISON CALLED "VILLA MARIA." THROUGH A MUTUAL FRIEND, A MEETING WAS SET UP BETWEEN HIM AND THE FAMED ARCHITECT. ALEX JORDAN, SR., SHOWED HIS BLUEPRINTS TO MR. WRIGHT, WHO, UPON SEEING THE PLANS REPORTEDLY RESPONDED...

TO SPITE THE INFAMOUS FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT ALEX, SR., WANTED TO BUILD A JAPANESE HOUSE NEAR TALIESIN. AS HISTORY SHOWS, IT WASN'T ALEX, SR., WHO BUILT THE HOUSE IT WAS ALEX, JR.

JORDAN DIED IN 1989 BUT ACCUMULATED ENTERTAINING COLLECTIONS BEYOND THE SCOPE OF HIS DREAM HOUSE. 
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AT THE ROCK IN THE HOUSE YOU HAVE THE ENTERTAINMENT OF A SINGLE TELEVISION. THIS TV WAS IN THE DOWNSTAIRS BEDROOM WHEN THE ROCK CAME CRASHING THROUGH THE BEDROOM WALL. AND SURPRISINGLY, IT STILL WORKS. BECAUSE SO MANY PEOPLE BUSTLE THROUGH IT HISTORIC PRESERVATION IS A PRIORITY AT THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK. WITH 14 ROOMS IN THE HOUSE ITSELF AND TWO MILES OF EXHIBIT HALLS FILLED WITH COLLECTIONS THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK NEEDS UNENDING CONSERVATION AND PRESERVATION. AND AT THE ROCK IN THE HOUSE THERE'S ONLY ONE PIECE IN THE COLLECTION BUT IT'S CAREFULLY MAINTAINED. THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK IS A HIGHLY ORGANIZED TOURIST ATTRACTION WHERE MEMENTOS OF YOUR EXPERIENCE CAN BE FOUND IN ITS MANY GIFT SHOPS. ROCK IN THE HOUSE ? IT'S SELF-SERVE AND ON THE HONOR SYSTEM. IT'S ONE LARGE, ORGANIZED HISTORIC ATTRACTION VERSUS ONE UNDERSTATED SIGN. WITH BOTH HOMES TAKING ADVANTAGE OF WISCONSIN'S ROCKY MANTLE. EASY THERE, BIG FELLOW. SO, NO MATTER WHAT THE DIFFERENCES OR SIMILARITIES ARE BETWEEN THESE HISTORIC MAGNETS IT'S MORE THAN WHAT YOU COULD EVER IMAGINE. AS ALEX JORDAN ONCE STATED: "IT DOESN'T LOOK GOOD, IT DOESN'T LOOK BAD. IT JUST HAS TO BE."

Kmetz: ONE WISCONSINITE WHO ROCKED THE MUSIC INDUSTRY IS A GUITAR PLAYER AND INVENTOR FROM WAUKESHA NAMED LES PAUL. HIS CUTTING EDGE RECORDING TECHNIQUES AND PIONEERING IMPROVEMENTS TO THE ELECTRIC GUITAR CHANGED, FOREVER, THE SOUND OF ROCK AND ROLL MUSIC AND NOW MAKE ROCK MUSIC ROCK. LES PAUL AND SINGER MARY FORD SENT ONE GOLD RECORD AFTER ANOTHER UP THE POP CHARTS. BUT HIS MUSICAL ROOTS GO BACK TO THE COUNTRY AND JAZZ MUSIC HE GREW UP WITH IN WAUKESHA.

LES PAUL WAS BORN LESTER POLFUS, IN 1915. AND FROM AN EARLY AGE THE RED-HEADED BOY SHOWED A NATIVE TALENT FOR BOTH MUSIC AND ELECTRONICS. HIS MOTHER, EVELYN, ENCOURAGED HIS EVERY EXPERIMENT EVEN WHEN IT MEANT TAKING APART HER PRIZED PLAYER PIANO OR PUNCHING NEW HOLES IN THE MUSIC ROLL TO ADD NEW NOTES TO A SONG. 
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 GROWING UP WITH RADIO IN THE 1920s LESTER ABSORBED THE MODERN SOUND OF JAZZ PLAYERS LIKE GUITARIST, EDDIE LANG AS WELL AS THE COUNTRY SOUND OF MUSICIANS LIKE HARMONICA PLAYER, DE FORD BAILEY. IN HIS EARLY TEENS, LESTER TOOK ON THE NAME "RED HOT RED" AND BEGAN PLAYING COUNTRY SONGS AT LOCAL EVENTS AROUND WAUKESHA AND IN THE BAND SHELL THAT NOW BEARS HIS NAME. PIANO PLAYER, FRED ROSENMERKEL, PLAYED SWING MUSIC WITH LESTER IN THE EARLY 1930s AT VARIOUS DANCE HALLS AROUND WAUKESHA. FRED, COULD YOU PLAY A TUNE THAT YOU WOULD'VE PLAYED WITH LES BACK IN THE OLD DAYS ? SURE. 
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YOU STARTED PLAYING WITH LES PAUL A LONG, LONG TIME AGO. WAY BACK IN THE '30s-- THOSE WERE THE OLD DAYS. I WAS ABOUT 18. HOW OLD WAS LES PAUL ? HE'S THREE YEARS YOUNGER THAN I AM. HE WAS 15. HE WAS A YOUNG GUY. OH, YEAH. I'M A LITTLE BIT AHEAD OF HIM. THERE WERE TWO KINDS OF BANDS IN THOSE DAYS-- A COUNTRY BAND AND A MODERN BAND, THEY CALLED THEM. I PLAYED THE MODERN STUFF, THE SWING STUFF. A LOT OF TIMES, AT HIS INTERMISSIONS HE'D DO HIS COUNTRY STUFF WITH A MOUTH ORGAN. IT WENT OVER BIG. WHY DO YOU THINK HE PICKED UP ON COUNTRY MUSIC ? WELL, EVERYBODY IN THOSE DAYS LIKED COUNTRY MUSIC BECAUSE OF THE WORDS AND EVERYTHING THEY HAD MEANING TO THEM. THEN, THE MODERN MUSIC CAME OUT WITH SWING AND THAT KIND OF TOOK OVER. 
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WHEN YOU PLAYED WITH LES LET'S SAY YOU PLAYED OUT AT -- WERE PEOPLE DANCING ? OH, YEAH, IN THOSE DAYS, PEOPLE DANCED. THERE WAS NOTHING ELSE TO DO. NO TELEVISION NO JUKE BOXES. NO, YOU HAD TO DANCE TO LIVE MUSIC. 
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 WE HAD QUITE A FEW DANCE HALLS IN WAUKESHA. FRIDAYS AND SATURDAYS WERE DANCE NIGHTS. AND THE MORE THEY DANCED, THE BETTER YOU FELT. YOU KNEW YOU WERE DOING SOME GOOD. NOW, HE DIDN'T AMPLIFY HIS GUITAR OUT THERE. NO. WE DIDN'T HAVE ANY AMPLIFICATION AT ALL IN THOSE DAYS. HE INVENTED THAT LATER. 
( piano playing ends and both laugh )

I'M AT THE WAUKESHA COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY ARCHIVES WITH COUNTRY MUSIC HISTORIAN BILL MALONE. AND WE'RE HERE TO TALK ABOUT LES PAUL OR LESTER POLFUS AS HE WAS KNOWN IN HIS EARLY YEARS. AND I'M LOOKING AT WHAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE ONE OF THE VERY FIRST PHOTOS OF LESTER POLFUS AS A PUBLICITY PHOTO. AND AT THE TIME, HE PLAYED A LOT OF WHAT WE CALL HILLBILLY MUSIC. WHY WAS IT SO POPULAR THEN ? I THINK THERE WAS JUST A PROFOUND HUNGER IN THE LATE '20s AND EARLY '30s FOR HOMEMADE MUSIC. REMEMBER, THIS WAS THE JAZZ AGE, SO-CALLED. WHEN THE CITY WAS BECOMING SUPREME IN AMERICAN CULTURAL LIFE. AND YOUNG PEOPLE IN CITIES WERE BEING SWEPT AWAY BY THE SOUNDS OF JAZZ BANDS. SO, BY LISTENING TO HILLBILLY MUSIC AND BY PLAYING IT THAT WAS A WAY OF TUNING IN TO THE PAST. Kmetz: EARLY ON-- ACTUALLY, HE'S ABOUT 17 WHEN HE DOES, IN FACT, LEAVE WAUKESHA. HE QUICKLY GOES DOWN TO MISSOURI AND GETS ON THE RADIO WITH SONNY. AND NOW, HIS NAME IS "RHUBARB RED." Malone: I BELIEVE THAT THEY GAVE HIM THAT NAME. Kmetz: THE RADIO WOULD BE VERY DIFFERENT THEN, THAN IT IS NOW. I MEAN, THIS IS LOTS OF LIVE PERFORMANCE. IT'S VERY INTIMATE, VERY FAMILIAR. THE HILLBILLIES BUILT UP A RELATIONSHIP WITH THEIR AUDIENCE. IT WAS LIKE A FAMILY. THEY TRIED VERY HARD TO DO THAT. THEY TRIED TO GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT, "I'M ONE OF YOU. "I MAY HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE TALENT THAN YOU DO, PERHAPS "OR A LITTLE BIT MORE NERVE OR GALL "BUT I CAME FROM THE SAME BACKGROUND YOU DID. I COULD BE YOUR BROTHER OR YOUR COUSIN." 
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 THEY WOULD GO FROM ONE STATION TO ANOTHER. THEY WOULD PLAY UNTIL THEY WORKED THE TERRITORY. IT WAS A TRAINING GROUND, TOO. HE LEARNED HOW TO ENTERTAIN PEOPLE. COMEDY WAS AS IMPORTANT AS THE SERIOUS SONGS. Kmetz: IN CHICAGO, HE PLAYED EARLY MORNING RADIO SHOWS AS "RHUBARB RED" AND THEN PLAYED WITH JAZZ MUSICIANS AT NIGHT. TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT TIME. CHICAGO MUST HAVE BEEN QUITE AN EYE-OPENER FOR HIM. WHAT AN EXCITING PLACE TO BE FOR A BUDDING MUSICIAN. YOU CAN GET EVERY KIND OF MUSIC IMAGINABLE IN THAT CITY. IT HADN'T BEEN TOO MANY YEARS BEFORE THAT TIME THAT LOUIS ARMSTRONG, KING OLIVER AND THOSE PEOPLE HAD COME UP FROM NEW ORLEANS AND INTRODUCED JAZZ TO CHICAGO. IT WAS ALREADY BEGINNING TO BE THE CENTER OF THE BLUES AND OF COUNTRY MUSIC. SO, HE BEGAN TO ABSORB IT ALL. Kmetz: LESTER POLFUS SOON BEGAN PLAYING JAZZ UNDER A NEW NAME-- LES PAUL. PLAYING GUITAR DAY AND NIGHT PAID OFF IN NEW YORK CITY WHERE HIS TRIO LANDED HIGH-PAYING JOBS WITH FRED WARING AND "THE PENNSYLVANIANS." LATER, HE MOVED TO HOLLYWOOD, FINDING REGULAR WORK PLAYING WITH BING CROSBY AND OTHER STARS ON NATIONAL RADIO. IN HIS GARAGE STUDIO LES PAUL INVENTED THE MULTI-TRACK TAPE RECORDER AND MADE RECORDS WITH A STYLE SO UNIQUE IT WAS CALLED, SIMPLY, "THE NEW SOUND." § BYE, BYE, BLUES BYE, BYE... § IN 1949, LES PAUL TEAMED UP WITH SINGER AND GUITARIST, MARY FORD TO PRODUCE A STRING OF OVER 40 HIT RECORDS. § SUN IS SHININ' NO MORE PININ'... § HIS FAME LED TO A DEAL WITH GIBSON TO PRODUCE A SOLID BODY GUITAR CALLED THE "LES PAUL." WHICH REMAINS THE INSTRUMENT OF CHOICE FOR MANY ROCK MUSICIANS TODAY. § BYE, BYE, BLUES... 
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 LES PAUL, MUSICIAN AND INVENTOR EXTRAORDINAIRE FROM WAUKESHA.

SO, THAT'S OUR BRIEF TOUR OF THE ROLE THAT ROCK HAS PLAYED IN WISCONSIN HISTORY. YOU WERE RIGHT TRACY, THIS WAS REALLY FUN. WE DIDN'T HAVE TIME TO SHOW YOU AS MUCH AS WE WANTED. IF YOU'D LIKE TO KNOW MORE ABOUT "WISCONSIN ROCKS" OR ANY OF THE OTHER WISCONSIN STORIES PROGRAMS LOG INTO OUR WEBSITE AT: wisconsinstories.org WE HOPE YOU'LL TUNE IN AGAIN NEXT WEEK FOR MORE WISCONSIN STORIES.

§ OH, BYE, BYE, BLUES BYE, BYE 
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