The State Historical Society of Wisconsin is in the process of preparing an
exhibit on the atomic age entitled "Living under a Mushroom Cloud."  The
exhibit's intent is to look at the effect of atomic weapons on everyday life
and popular culture between 1945 and 1965.  To that effect we are looking to
borrow artifacts that reflect this concept.

One section will reflect how the fear of atomic power was instilled in the
public mind primarily through "educational" efforts and civil defense
information.  We are looking for artifacts such as dog tags given to school
children and anything related to atomic attack survival.

Another section will deal with "the peaceful atom" concept.  For this section
we are looking for artifacts that incorporate the atom symbol or the words
"atomic" and "nuclear" into their design and were manufactured between 1945 and
1965.  Some specific items we are looking for include:
          *Ronson electric shaver with atom symbol
          *Atomic Bomb Ring from Kix cereal boxes (late 1940s)
          *Atomic Energy Set (Chemcraft No. 25)
          *Atomic Disintergrator cap gun (Hubley, 1940s)
          *Nuclear War card game

If you have any of the above or related artifacts and would consider lending
them from June 1997 through January 1998, please contact me at:

608-264-6551

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State Historical Society of Wisconsin
816 State Street
Madison, WI  53706-1488