4.12.12

PDQ Car Wash, Calumet Avenue, Manitowoc, WI

PDQ Car Wash, Calumet  Avenue, Manitowoc, Wisconsin, December 2010
Found: Texaco (Complete Lubrication), Lake Tomahawk (Oneida County), Wisconsin
all rights reserved by L. L. Cook Co. on Kodak EKC paper, circa 1940s
In Wisconsin, streets are named for their association with native tribes that once inhabited the land. Street names like Calumet (a north American peace pipe) are abundant while town names like Manitowoc (dwelling of the great spirit or evil spirit) or Lake Tomahawk (named for the shape of a nearby lake) in Oneida County) are unique to the history of specific locations. Written as they are on state and federal signs appearing along the highways and byways, these words becomes further abstracted and distanced from their meaning. Back in the 1960s, farmers found arrow heads as they plowed their fields and would display the. Earlier generation remember "Indians" coming into town, attending school, or existing on the periphery. Institutions like reservations and casinos have reshaped the 21st century landscape in Wisconsin while a young generation seeks to reclaim native identity and traditions as they raise consciousness about a history so important to America.

1 comment:

  1. Nato21:16

    I like getting my car washed there. Every year my twin uncles and I exchange gift certificates for car washes. It is quite a pointless tradition.

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