A PAGE FROM THE PAST. The good folks at Country Jam USA and Blue Ox Music Festival showed Volume One contributor Ambrosia Wojahn some memorabilia from the past – largely, the posters and marketing booklets of yesteryears. (All images by Ambrosia Wojahn or submitted)

Whether your preference is bluegrass, pop, country music, rock – or anything in between – it seems there is a music genre for just about everyone in the Chippewa Valley. 

For decades, music festivals from Shake, Rattle, & Roll and Country Jam, to Eaux Claires and Blue Ox, have helped to shape the community and strengthen the valley’s regional and national appeal. 

Troves of festival memorabilia, photos and magazines from years past depict the spirit that went into every last detail in the early years — a level of care and personality which sparked the region’s music festival renaissance and added a new branch to the area’s identity.

(The festivals) began with local interest and the kind of music that defines who we are collectively ... but interest also grows and evolves over time, gives us an identity. –Carrie Ronnander, Chippewa Valley Museum executive director

The Chippewa Valley Museum (CVM) serves as a living time capsule of the Valley’s history. Carrie Ronnander, the museum’s executive director, believes festivals play a crucial role in making the Chippewa Valley the vibrant destination it is today.

“(The festivals) began with local interest and the kind of music that defines who we are collectively,” Ronnander said. “That’s how fests like Country Jam way back in the day began.”

“But interest also grows and evolves over time, gives us an identity,” Ronnander continued.

The CVM has plunged back into music festival history with their enhanced picture show, “Have You Heard?” The installation features photos and music from events – past and present – in the Chippewa Valley.

In her 25 years of curation for the museum, Ronnander said she has come across few tangible items of music festival memorabilia. She theorized that people may not always think to save or donate certain items in the moment.

“You don’t realize at the time that, ‘oh, this might be an important historical item later on,’” Ronnander remarked.

Some of the items that could have otherwise been lost to history are still kept by the music festival organizers themselves.

All these festivals — Hoofbeat, Rock Fest, Country Jam — starting up all those years ago at the same time being only 40 miles apart is like one of the weirdest coincidences, you know? –Benny Anderson, Country Jam USA event support coordinator

Inside the Country Jam office, one can find a plethora of festival pamphlets and full-feature magazines dating back to the 1980s, when the festival was called “Shake, Rattle, & Roll.” The zines include camping information, autograph pages and full features on the big-name artists that performed each year.

The sheer volume of music festivals taking place in the Chippewa Valley has led some, including Country Jam Event Support Coordinator Benny Anderson, to question just what makes the area such an attractive music destination.

“All these festivals — Hoofbeat, Rock Fest, Country Jam — starting up all those years ago at the same time being only 40 miles apart is like one of the weirdest coincidences, you know?” Anderson said. 

“And then having all of the major music festivals that we do with the size of our metro is just ridiculous.”

Eau Claire's own Blue Ox Music Festival, too, shares a history with Country Jam – in the same ways the country event itself evolved from “Shake, Rattle, & Roll.” According to his son Mark Bischel, co-founder Jim Bischel was one of the early organizers of Country Jam, where he remained before branching off to start Blue Ox in 2015.

According to Mark, Blue Ox works with local merchandising company Powertex to develop designs for merchandise. He says the selection of items and designs have varied over the years, often influenced by his own observations of trends and reviews or comments from festival fans.

Mark describes Blue Ox as a “family reunion” of sorts for regular attendees. He notes that Blue Ox’s merchandise acts as a unifying memento for guests to carry a piece of the Chippewa Valley anywhere in the world.

“We’ve got stories of people all over the country and world seeing our shirts pop up on people,” Mark says.

Whether you’re a longtime music festival attendee or it’s your first year experiencing what these local events have to offer, merchandise has become the symbol of “you had to be there” from experiences which otherwise live in the memories of those in the crowd.

For more information on the Chippewa Valley's music festivals, browse through each event's respective webpage online, or visit the Chippewa Valley Museum (1204 E Half Moon Dr., Eau Claire) online at www.cvmuseum.com.