“Bathing, as it is practiced at our coast resorts, is, no doubt, a delightful recreation; but if to it swimming could be added, the delight would be increased, and the possible use and advantage much extended.”
Physical Exercise for Females, 1866

SWIMMING

Whether in the 21st or the 19th century, Lake Winnebago and the connected waterways is a tremendous recreational asset. For generations, area waterways have been the place for swimming, boating, sailing, fishing, hunting and ice skating. Click here for more information about fishing.

The beach at Menominee Park was a popular place to cool off. In the early years of the 20th century, a short streetcar ride south along the lake brought people to EWECO Park, short for Eastern Wisconsin Electric Company. EWECO had a fine sand beach and a long water slide. EWECO Park was also called “White City” or “Electric City” because it was lit by thousands of electric lights and had a circus-like midway.

During the heat and humidity of summer, swimming is a wonderful way to cool off. But swimming was not always considered appropriate, no matter how hot the weather.

In the years before the Civil War (1861-1865), swimming was viewed as a masculine skill. Women enjoyed “bathing,” which meant they entered the water and played and lounged, but did not actually swim. For bathing, women wore loose clothing similar to the common chemise under-garment. The legs were covered with loose-fitting pants that fit tightly around the ankles. These outfits were referred to as “bathing suits.”

During the 1860s there was a widespread health movement that encouraged the belief that physical exercise was good for a person’s well-being. This coincided with a growing understanding that washing the whole body – actually immersing your entire body into water — was necessary for good personal hygiene. Women were encouraged to practice swimming as a healthful exercise and this practice steadily grew in popularity. By 1870, clothing designed for swimming was being referred to as a “swimming suit,” distinct from garments designed for bathing.

Swimming suits in the 1800s covered most of the body and revealed very little skin. Linen and wool were used, but the most popular fabric for this garment was flannel. The Wetlands & Waterways exhibit includes a woman’s bathing shoes, circa 1900. These lace-up canvas shoes covered the ankle and lower calf and also protected the foot. “Unless a woman is very slender,” an 1896 bathing article stated, “bathing corsets should be worn.” Men wore a one-piece suit that covered the torso and about half the leg.

With the emergence of the “modern woman” in the 1920s, swim wear changed rapidly. By the 1930s, the one-piece suit similar to what we are familiar with today was in use. Women were encouraged to buy a new suit every year rather than use “last year’s.” New man-made fabrics like “Lastex” and rayon were lighter and held less water, making swimming more enjoyable. Men no longer wore suits that covered both the upper and lower body, but instead wore suits similar to what is worn today. The bikini was not quickly adopted by women when it came out in the 1940s, and did not gain widespread acceptance and use until around 1960.

BOATING

In addition to the construction and repair of steamboats, Oshkosh had a thriving recreational boat building industry along the banks of the Fox River. Canoes, rowboats, skiffs, powerboats and sailboats were all built along the river. The Wetlands & Waterways exhibit displays some of the tools used by the skilled men who constructed these watercrafts. In the second half of the 19th century, wealthy mill and business owners often had their own yacht or large boat to escape the heat of summer and the pressures of business. Edgar Sawyer had a large and beautiful boat, the “Nia,” named after his beloved daughter. These early craft were all powered by steam.

For people who could not afford their own vessel, it was easy and affordable to rent a rowboat at one of the many boat liveries that lined the Fox River. The rowboats of this era were designed to glide through the water. The hull shape was gently rounded, often with a stepped transom, and frequently had dual oarlocks to accommodate two rowers. These beautiful wooden rowboats were not like today’s aluminum boats, which are designed to be propelled by an outboard motor rather than by oars.

The electric boat was another common vessel on area waterways. The Electric Launch Company (ELCO) was incorporated in New York State in 1892. In 1893, ELCO introduced the first commercially produced electric motor boats to America and the world at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago. By 1900, electric powered pleasure boats outnumbered steam-powered boats and explosive engines (as gasoline powered motors were called) combined. Many in Oshkosh, including the Sawyers, owned ELCO boats because they were quiet, clean, simple, inexpensive to maintain, much easier to start and operate and did not have obnoxious fumes like gasoline powered boats.

By 1910, the advantages of the range and power of gasoline grew to dominate the market. These gasoline powered boats were often referred to as “autoboats.” With the growing popularity of gasoline powered engines in the early 20th century, both the rowboats and electric boats began to fall out of favor.


The first annual motorboat race on Lake Winnebago was held in 1906. Thomas Day Fleming, the editor of The Rudder, a magazine devoted to boating, wrote, “Everyone’s talking about the 22 mile-an-hour boats. The powerboats on Winnebago are wonders. No Eastern city has faster boats for the same size.” The Oshkosh Power Boat Club was formed in 1905 and within a year it had 200 members.


Outboard motors came into common use in the 1930s. The Wetlands & Waterways exhibit contains a Johnson Sea-Horse outboard motor from about 1940. The years after World War II saw fast growth in boating, with Oshkosh’s Dunphy Boat one of the premier boat makers in the United States,

As for other forms of boating, sailing was and remains a popular sport. Click here for more information about sailing on Lake Winnebago. During the winter, ice boating was popular. When the lake froze smooth without a heavy covering of snow, it was time to bring out the ice boats! These amazing crafts ran on polished steel runners and could reach speeds in excess of 100 mph when conditions were ideal (smooth surface and strong and steady wind).

John D. Buckstaff, sailing his ice boat, Debutante III, set a speed record while sailing a 20 mile course on February 6, 1928 during the Stuart Cup Race. His time was 36 minutes, 45 seconds, reaching the speed of 124 mph and setting a world record. Buckstaff was inducted into the Wisconsin Sports hall of Fame 1960. In the winter of 1932, Reginald MacKinnon claimed to have traveled 125 miles per hour across the surface of Lake Winnebago in his iceboat, Blue Bill, but the time was not verified.

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