This year marks Summerfest’s 50th anniversary and several organizations in the city are celebrating the milestone.

For an overview of Summerfest history that is intriguing and informative — as well as filled with novel and nostalgic memorabilia — check out Summerfest 50, the current exhibition at the Milwaukee County Historical Center.

As a special bonus, this show is essentially wrapped within another one — Melodies and Memories: 200 Years of Milwaukee Music.

The Milwaukee County Historical Society is housed downtown in a gorgeous Beaux-Arts building along the river. It is not a conventional museum, but rather a repository of records of local history that also hosts exhibitions such as the current offerings.

The displays at the Historical Center are more free-form than most museums. It’s possible to peruse and ponder at will, meandering in a way that often is prevented in a more architecturally prescribed exhibition.

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The first floor of the Milwaukee County Historical Center is filled with exhibitions.

This curatorial arrangement is especially beneficial for Melodies and Memories: 200 Years of Milwaukee Music. Informational wall displays, vintage photographs, ephemera and antique instruments are arranged in relation to various topics rather than any sort of strict chronology.

Fascinating tidbits of knowledge abound.

For example, did you know the first high-fidelity headphones were invented in Milwaukee by John C. Koss of Koss Headphones fame? Did you know the Florentine Opera is the oldest professional performing arts organization in the state — and the sixth oldest opera company in the United States? Did you know violinist Pearl Brice (1885–1971) was one of the few female conductors in the world when she was maestro of the MacDowell Club Orchestra?

The exhibition is rich in these historical facts, as well as displaying vintage instruments — and even models of significant local music venues of the past, such as the Palm Garden, which opened in 1896 and was part of the Schlitz Hotel at Third Street and Grand Avenue, since rechristened Wisconsin Avenue.

Melodies and Memories: 200 Years of Milwaukee Music connects us to a rich musical past.

Summerfest at 50

Summerfest 50 chronicles the festival from its origins as a collection of various street parties to its development into the world’s largest music festival.

For a rundown on the history of Summerfest, see the large freestanding walls and their timeline. But don’t miss the unusual and fun reminders of festivals past.

Everything from 1980s sunglasses sporting the Summerfest logo to programs, tickets and plastic cups are on display. These mass-produced items collectively show the changing aesthetics over the festival’s life. A full-color spread from a 1965 edition of the Milwaukee Journal and a group of 1970s pamphlets exemplify the Day-Glo colors and psychedelic look of the early days.

The exhibition touches on the musical history of the fest by noting famous performers and showing signed mementos — including posters, guitars and drum heads — as well as reproductions of photographs. These objects — which you may have stored in your own basement as the odd souvenir — help depict Summerfest as a celebration of music as well as an event that has become central to Milwaukee’s identity.

Taken together with the companion show of Melodies and Memories: 200 Years of Milwaukee Music, it is a testament to a musical culture that has long roots in this community.

On exhibit

Melodies and Memories: 200 Years of Milwaukee Music and Summerfest 50 run through September at the Milwaukee County Historical Center, 910 N. Old World Third St., Milwaukee.

Also Showing

NOW Figuration

Portrait Society Gallery

207 E. Buffalo St., Fifth Floor

Reception 6–9 p.m. July 7

Exhibition continues through Sept. 8

This exhibition of contemporary artists is a response to the idea of figure in art, inspired by the 1983 exhibition initiated by then-director of the Milwaukee Art Museum, Russell Bowman. Artists include Lois Bielefeld, J. Shimon, Rafael Salas and many others.

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