ADMITTEDLY UNAUTHORIZED • MOSTLY UNRELIABLE • ENTIRELY UNCALLED-FOR

The entire fake history of Ouisconsin was originally housed in these 15 drawers, which are not currently on physical display.*

History is memory, which means that it can be molded by observers’ prejudices and politics. Fake history is the flip side of fake news.

One way to challenge the assertion that “only (I/we) know the truth of what happened” is to deliberately distort historical fact. Skewering history forces us to question claims about the real world. Inventing historical facts or stretching them to absurd degrees reveals how easily history can be corrupted.

On Ouisconsin: An Illustrated Historical Catalogue contains brief highlights of an alternate history of our beloved state. My hope for this fond but irreverent “re-imagining” is to stimulate a search for more accurate depictions of historical truth.

Table of Contents

Drawer One: Paleo-Pioneers
Drawer Two: Settlers
Drawer Three: Famous Ouisconsinites
Drawer Four: Disavowed Ouisconsinites
Drawer Five: State Secrets
Drawer Six: Official Symbols
Drawer Seven: Tourist Attractions
Drawer Eight: Beer
Drawer Nine: Inventions
Drawer Ten: State Slogans
Drawer Eleven: State Firsts
Drawer Twelve: Agriculture
Drawer Thirteen: Popular Culture
Drawer Fourteen: Ouisconsin Saga
Drawer Fifteen: Trivi-Addendum, notes of dubious value

* Because of edits and additions, online content no longer exactly matches that of the original wooden catalogue.