Experience firsthand how life in small towns began to change as the railroads challenged craft workers and local businesses to compete with new goods and services. Students will help craftsmen like the shoemaker and blacksmith ply their trades while they explain how the "new" economy affected their lives. Students will also visit the general store. Explore the Crossroads Village.

Inspire tomorrow's entrepreneurs by learning from yesterday's. Meet the "idea" people of our village: Mr. Sisel at the shoe shop, Mrs. Hafford at her house, and the Worthys, who own Four Mile Inn. Each of these people had to change what they did for a living as his or her situation changed. Mr. Sisel continued to make shoes by hand, but added to his profits by selling factory-made shoes. Mrs. Hafford's husband had been a railroad worker, but when he passed away she became a washerwoman for hire to feed her family. The Worthys' enterprise went from being a stagecoach inn to a boarding house as the railroad went to another town. Each of these people was able to adapt how he or she worked to make a better living, embodying the kind of resilience we associate with seeking the "American Dream." Explore the Crossroads Village.

Life for most children in the 19th century took place on farms. See how the importance and methods of farming in Wisconsin have changed over time. By weaving, using the flax break and visiting the oxen, students will learn about these changes as well as what children in the 19th century knew: All about feeding a family, caring for animals, and making a farm a home. Explore a sample of the things you might see in the German Area, such as historic breeds of animals, food and farms.

Life was very different for children in the 19th century. See how important it was for children to help around the farm. Children will get a chance to try their hand at baking, using a plow and working wood for use on the farm. Explore a sample of the things you might see in the German Area, such as historic breeds of animals, food and farms.

Why would people half a world away pack their belongings into a trunk and leave their homeland to come to America? Students learn the answers to thought-provoking questions as they pack a trunk or engage in traditional activities such as carding wool. At the same time they discover how hard-working immigrants transformed primitive homesteads into working farms. They'll also learn how one-room school education taught children not only their ABCs, but also how to be an American. Explore a sample of the things you might see in the Norwegian Area, such as a one room school and wool processing.

Enjoy an hour of your favorite hands-on activities at Harmony Town Hall and neighboring farms, including historic board games, toys, stilts, hoops and sticks, and interactive animal encounters. These are the same types of activities that had been offered at Caldwell Farmers' Club Hall in the past, and remain close to the Crossroads Village location. Explore the hands-on activities at the Harmony Town Hall.

Northern Wisconsin was full of timber when immigrants first came to settle. As building needs required lumber, many men moved north during the winter to cut logs and send them down stream to the sawmills. After the timber men were done, the stumps left were called the "cutover." They created a challenge to later immigrants, such as the Finns, who had to move into these lands for farming, since much of the good land south was already taken. Taking out the stumps and making the land grow a crop for cash was hard work. Finns often had to make money in other ways, such as blacksmithing or joining the timber crews in other parts of the state during the winter. Learn about the impact of the people on the land and vice versa as you explore this important aspect in the settlement of the Upper Midwest.