USA > Minnesota > Wabasha County > History of Wabasha County : together with biographical matter, statistics, etc. : gathered from matter furnished by interviews with old settlers, county, township, and other records, and extracts from files of papers, pamphlets, and such other sources > Part 33
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The superintendent complains of the parsimony of boards in hiring teachers, and in supplying the schoolhouses with comfortable seats, desks and other fixtures. The average wages for the year was $19 per month.
From the report of Mr. Lord, the present superintendent, for 1882 we learn that one hundred and forty-two certificates were granted in the previous school year ; of these, thirty-four were received by males and one hundred and eight by females.
The class of certificates issued were three only of the first grade, while there were ninety-four of the second and forty-five of the third grades. This, together with the fact that thirty-four applicants were rejected, goes to show that the standard of teachers' examinations in Winona under Mr. Lord is a high one.
From the year 1880 until the present (1883) there have been no marked changes in the condition and character of the schools, ex- cept such slight ones as might be expected in the natural growth of educational work. With the yearly development of the country, its increase in wealth and material prosperity, the expenditures for school purposes have been more liberal, tending to better school- houses and fixtures, and to the employment of a higher grade of teachers. At the close of this year, thirty years will have passed since the organization of the first school district in this county. As the present superintendent of schools for this county was one of the trustees of that first organized district, and for the past eight years has been engaged in active schoolwork, it affords us pleasure to give the following brief recapitulation, furnished by him, of some of the important matters connected with the schools of then and now: "Thirty years ago our only schoolhouse was a small, roughly- covered log cabin, furnished with one small window and a door
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SKETCH OF THE STATE NORMAL SCHOOL.
creaking upon wooden hinges and fastened with a wooden latch. This rude structure was, after a short time, superseded by a small but snug frame building, which, soon proving too small for the accommodation of the rapidly growing district, was enlarged by putting an addition to it. This enlarged frame schoolhouse in turn gave place to a substantial brick one, which Mr. Burt has described as having been built at Minnesota City. The teacher of that first school received $48 for three months' work. The trustee made the rate-bill and collected the wages, and the text-books used by the scholars had been formerly used by fathers and mothers in nearly every state between the Atlantic seaboard and Minnesota.
" Now there are in Winona county (outside of Winona and St. Charles City) one hundred and eight schoolhouses, valued at over $50,000, while the teachers' wages for a single year aggregate $214,650. Besides this increase in the county schools, the school buildings and educational expenses of one independent district in the county aggregates a much larger amount than that above noted. Then (thirty years ago) there were about twenty children in that one school district of the county. Now, including those in attend- ance at the normal and parochial schools; they number nearly 7,000."
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE STATE NORMAL SCHOOL OF MINNESOTA, AT WINONA.
NEAR the close of the session of the first legislature of the state, August 2, 1858, an act was passed providing for the establishment of three state normal schools. This legislation was suggested by Dr. John D. Ford, of Winona, and secured by his untiring efforts through the legislature delegation from Winona county. Lieut. Gov. Wm. Holcombe, of Stillwater, gave the measure his earnest and cordial support, and became the first president of the state normal board of instruction. This board, consisting of Lieut .- Gov. Hol- combe, Dr. A. E. Ames, Dr. E. Bray, of Carver, and Dr. J. D. Ford, of Winona, held their first meeting at the Capitol at St. Paul, August 16, 1859. After receiving and considering an appli- cation from the city of Winona, accompanied by a subscription of
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$7,000-$2,000 in excess of the amount required by the act- the following resolution was offered by Dr. Ford, and passed unani- mously :
Resolved, That the first state normal school be located at Winona, provided the subscription from Winona of $7,000 be satisfactorily secured to the uses of said school, as directed by the board of directors.
And thus was located at Winona the first state normal school of Minnesota, and at that time the only state normal school west of the Mississippi.
The following named citizens of Winona were appointed as the first prudential committee : Sylvester J. Smith, Dr. J. D. Ford, Rev. D. Burt and Wm. S. Drew.
The second meeting of the board was held at Winona, November 9, 1859, at which meeting block 17, Sanborn's addition, was, after considerable deliberation, selected as a suitable site for the proposed school, the board wisely preferring a central location, in order that a model department might be maintained in connection with the normal school. On the evening of November 9, Lient .- Gov. Hol- combe, president of the board, delivered in the Baptist church an address on the subject of "Education with reference to the establish- ment of the first normal school of Minnesota." This address, which appears in full in the printed report of the board for 1859, was one of great merit. It is said to have made a deep impression upon the young community, and doubtless did much to elevate, if not to create, that sentiment of earnest support of educational interests which has marked the history of this city. In the closing paragraph of this admirable address the governor said : "I have in my hand a paper which contains the origin, the source and the earnest of the first normal school of Minnesota. It had its origin here in this city, and the names written on that paper are as pictures of gold, and should be handed down to future generations as evidence of their wisdom and benevolence. This paper subscribes about $7,000 to the establishment of the normal school here, the most of which, over $5,000, has been secured promptly to the state for that object. The duty I have discharged is everyway an agreeable one ; no cir- cumstances could have occurred with respect to the interests of the state to afford me higher gratification than to meet you here on such an occasion as this. The city of Winona has distinguished herself in taking the lead in establishing for the benefit of the rising gene- ration of this state [an institution] for all who shall yet call the state
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their home. I think the normal schools should precede the common schools of the country, for then we should have trained teachers to conduct them. When this school shall be in operation it may be regarded as an auspicious era, whence to date in future the origin of many blessings, and the commencement of a perpetual course of improvement and prosperity to the people at large."
In the first annual report of the normal board to the governor, Dr. J. D. Ford set forth in a clear and forcible manner the claims of the normal school to generous support, and its vital relation to the common schools of the state. In addition to other recommenda- tions to the legislature, he urged in behalf of the normal board that "a competent superintendent of public instruction be appointed," that "a general supervision of the subjects of schools, school teach- ing and school lands is absolutely necessary," and that "the school lands should be put into a condition to realize the largest possible annual fund for the support of schools." To the credit of this normal board, and its able secretary Dr. Ford, it may be said that the first state tax for school purposes was authorized and levied upon their urgent recommendation.
An appropriation of $5,000 having been secured, it was decided to open the school on the first Monday in September, 1860. Prof. John Ogden, A.M., of Columbus, Ohio, was elected principal for one year at a salary of $1,400, and William Stearns, a graduate of Harvard University, was chosen tutor.
The school was opened for the admission of pupils on the first Monday of September. A teachers' institute, the first ever held in this state, was convened at the commencement of the term. Teachers from' various parts of the state were present, and a number of distin- guished gentlemen, including Rev. E. D. Neill, chancellor of the university, ex-officio superintendent of public instruction, Ex-Lieut. Governor Holcombe, J. W. Taylor, Esq., Rev. Mr. Strong, and many others. On the evening of the first day Prof. Ogden gave his inaugural address. On the next evening superintendent Neill deliv- ered an eloquent address on "Education," the closing paragraph of which we cannot forbear to quote : "Twelve years ago the Winne- bago nation, by a treaty stipulation, abandoned their old homes in Iowa and commenced their long weary march to their new home near Sauk Rapids, in the northern part of this state. In the charm- ing month of June, by mutual agreement, parties by land and water to the number of 2,000 arrived on this prairie. As they viewed the
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HISTORY OF WINONA COUNTY.
vast amphitheatre of lofty bluffs, the narrow lake on one side, the great river in front, they felt that it was the spot above all others for an Indian's lodge, and purchasing the privilege of Wabasha, the chief of the Dakota band that then lived here, they drew themselves up in battle array, and signified to the United States troops that they would die before they would leave.
Twelve years hence, if the citizens who have taken the place of the rude aborigines will be large-hearted and foster the normal school, the public schools and the churches of Christ, Winona will be lovelier than the "Sweet Auburn" of the poet; and educated men and cultivated women, as they gaze on your public edifices and other evidences of refinement, will be attracted, and feel that here is the spot for a home, and, like the Indians in 1848, they will desire to tarry until they die."
The donation to the board of the use of the city building (now the Winona Library building) was another evidence of the friendli- ness of the citizens to this struggling institution. The use of this building was continued for eight years without charge to the state.
The $7,000 subscribed by the citizens of Winona was not used for running expenses, but was reserved for the construction of the permanent building in 1867-8, at which time the subscription with its appreciated values amounted to $10,000.
The first year was one of great promise throughout. Com- mencement exercises were held at the Baptist church on the last week in June, 1861, continuing the entire week. Mr. Allen, of Wisconsin, a distinguished educator, Mr. Hickock, ex-superinten- dent of schools in Pennsylvania, Hon. Ignatius Donnelly, and Gen. C. C. Andrews inade addresses. A part of the literary exercises consisted of a colloquy between Miss Charlotte Denman, Miss Thorne and others, in which was set forth, in an amusing and graphic manner, the current opinions concerning the establishment of normal schools, an exercise which will never be forgotten by those who were present.
At the session of the legislature in 1861 a special act was passed creating the first board of education of Winona. This board was to consist of one school director elected from each of the three wards, the principal and such members of the normal school - at Winona as shall be residents of said city and qualified. The word "board" was left ont of the law between the words "school" and "at," which made a very unwieldy board, or an intangible body.
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SKETCH OF THE STATE NORMAL SCHOOL.
The idea was to copy somewhat after the Oswego plan of uniting the jurisdiction of the normal and public schools of Winona, using the public schools as graded and model schools. At the municipal election held in April, 1861, Messrs. Thomas Simpson, Richard Jackson and John Keyes were elected members of the board of . education, from the first, second and third wards respectively ; and these, with Prof. Ogden as principal of State Normal School, consti- tuted the first board of education. Mr. Simpson was elected president, Mr. Keyes, recorder and John Ogden first superintendent of schools in city of Winona.
In the following year this law was repealed and the joint juris- diction ceased.
The normal school opened in the fall of.1861, with an increase of students. Prof. J. G. McMynn had been engaged as assistant teacher. He remained, however, but a short time, resigning early in October, to take a position as major in a Wisconsin regiment. It may be noted that many of the students of the normal, during Prof. Ogden's principalship, entered the volunteer army in defense of the Union.
Prof. Ogden resigned the principalship of the school December 14, 1861, at the close of the first term of that year.
The following extract from his letter of resignation clearly reflects the spirit of those stirring times :
WINONA, Minnesota, December 14, 1861.
To the Prudential Committee of the State Normal School.
GENTLEMEN,-I hereby tender you my resignation of the principalship of the institution intrusted to my care, thanking you most sincerely for the generous support and counsel you have given me.
In taking this step, it is proper that you and the public should understand the reason that impels me to it.
1. My distracted and dishonored country calls louder for my poor service just now than the school does. I have, ever since our national flag was dishonored, cherished the desire and indulged in the determination that - whenever I could do so without violation of a sense of duty - I would lay aside the habiliments of the schoolroom and assume those of the camp, and now I am resolved to heed that call and rush to the breach, and with my life, if necessary, stay, if possible, the impious hands that are now clutching at the very existence of our free institutions. What are our schools worth? What is our country worth without these? Our sons and our daughters must be slaves. Our beloved land must be a hissing and a byword among the nations of the earth. Shall this fair and goodly land, this glorious Northwest become a stench in the nostrils of the Almighty, who made it so fair and so free? No,
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HISTORY OF WINONA COUNTY.
not while there is one living soul to thrust a sword at treason. I confess my blood boils when I think of the deep disgrace of our country.
My brethren and fellow-teachers are in the field. Some of them -the bravest and the best-have already fallen. Their blood will do more to cleanse this nation than their teaching would. So will mine. I feel ashamed to tarry longer. You may not urge me to stay.
* * *
* * * *
With these feelings, I am with very great respect, Your most obedient servant,
JOHN OGDEN.
Prof. V. J. Walker, principal of the Winona high school, was placed in charge of the school temporarily, during the second term, which closed March 2, 1862, and remained suspended until Novem- ber 1, 1864. The reasons for this suspension of over two years may be inferred from Prof. Ogden's letter of resignation, and may be stated as follows: (1) The interest in the great struggle then pending for national life overshadowed and overwhelmed everything else, and, as a natural corollary of this, (2) competent teachers could not be found to take charge of the school. Such men were generally in the war. (3) The means for the support of the school was inadequate. The state had made no appropriations beyond the first $5,000. The state was too busy in the war to care for its educational interests.
During the session of the legislature in the spring of 1864, at the earnest solicitation of the citizens of Winona, led by Dr. J. D. Ford, an act was passed renewing the appropriations to the school and re-establishing it on a permanent basis. This act provided that the sum of $3,000 be appropriated for the current year, $4,000 for the following year, and $5,000 annually thereafter. At the annual meeting of the normal board in the following May Prof. John G. McMynn was elected principal. No movement was, however, made to reopen the school until the next meeting in the following Septem- ber, when the resignation of Prof. McMynn was accepted, and Prof. W. F. Phelps, former principal of the State Normal School of New Jersey was unanimously elected. The principal-elect, being present, accepted the position in person and immediately entered upon the duties of his office. Professor Phelps' rare ability as an organizer and disciplinarian was at once apparent in the prompt and efficient measures taken to re-establish the school on a permanent basis. To the wisdom of these measures and the executive ability of their author is largely due the high standing which the normal
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SKETCH OF THE STATE NORMAL SCHOOL.
school at Winona has subsequently attained, and still holds, among the educational institutions of this country.
The location of the site on block 17, Sanborn's addition, was not favored by the citizens generally. At the meeting of the board held in June, 1866, the following communication was received :
To the State Normal School Board:
The city council of the city of Winona makes the following proposition to your honorable hoard : That if the board will erect the normal school build- ing upon the present site, viz : block 4, Sanborn's addition, the city will pur- chase and donate to the state the east half of block 3, Sanborn's addition, and vacate and donate to the state that part of Johnson street lying between blocks 3 and 4; or, in case it can be procured, the city will purchase and donate to the state the whole of said block. This provided that the board will convey to the city block 17 in Sanborn's addition. R. D. CONE, Mayor.
This proposition was promptly accepted by the board. Subse- quently the city bought the whole of block 3, Sanborn's addition, and gave it ontright to the state, waiving the condition stated in the communication of the mayor.
During the session of the legislature of 1866 the first appropria- tion of $10,000 for the building was obtained mainly through the efforts of Hon. E. S. Youmans, then a member of the house, and Hon. Thos. Simpson in the state senate.
This appropriation was designed to secure plans and to supple- ment the contributions of the citizens and city of Winona, and was entirely used in constructing a foundation,-an important measure which committed the state fully to the erection of a building at Winona.
The plans for the building were drawn by the architect, G. P. Randall, Esq., of Chicago, and were adopted by the board at its meeting in June, 1866.
On the 19th of October, 1866, the corner-stone was laid with interesting ceremonies by Gov. Marshall, in the presence of a large and deeply interested assembly, citizens of Winona and surrounding country. Hon. Thos. Wilson, chief-justice of the supreme court of the state, delivered the address on this memorable occasion.
The foundation was erected under the direction of the credential committee, consisting of Dr. Ford, Hon. E. S. Youmans and W. S. Drew, Esq. Mr. Drew was appointed superintendent of the work, and gave it his personal and efficient supervision throughout the session of 1867, until the basement walls were completed and made ready for the superstructure.
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HISTORY OF WINONA COUNTY.
In the spring of 1867 an appropriation by the -legislature of $50,000 for building purposes was secured, largely through the influ- ence of Hon. Wm. H. Yale, then in the state senate. Only one half of this amount was appropriated for the first year. The citizens of Winona cashed the orders of the board for the other half, making the entire sum available for immediate use.
The contract for the erection of the superstructure was made with C. Bohn, Esq., of Winona, who had already demonstrated his qualifications as a builder in the construction of the high-school building of the city. In 1869 the sum of $34,000 additional was appropriated "to complete the building," and in 1870 nearly $9,000 more was generously granted by the legislature to liquidate the balance due the contractor.
The building was occupied by the school September 1, 1869, and completed in the following December.
The following description of the building is taken from the report of the normal board for 1859 :
The general form of the building is in the form of a cross. The main edifice is 63×78 feet ; the wings are each 50×75 feet. The basement story is 10 feet high ; the first story is 13 feet ; the second, 16 feet ; the third, 19 feet, and the fourth story of the west wing is 28 feet to the crown of the ceiling at the base of the skylights. The southeast corner of the west wing terminates in a ventilating shaft 8×8 feet and 105 feet high ; and the northwest corner of the east wing terminates in the main tower, 15×15 feet at base and 130 feet high. The building is of red bricks, with facings and trimmings of a drab-colored calciferous limestone. Its beauty is due not to super- fluous ornamentation, but to the harmony of its proportions and its massiveness. Through the basement there is a corridor 10 feet wide running through the center from end to end. The first story has a main corridor 10×166 feet, running entirely through the building. This is intersected by cross-corridors extending from the front to the rear entrances. On the north side of the main corridor there are four large schoolrooms for the use of the model classes. On the right of the entrance of the main tower there is a reception- room 20×25 feet. On the opposite or south side of the main cor- ridor the rooms above described are duplicated. Opposite the reception-room is a gentlemen's cloakroom. In the main building, in the second story, is the normal school "assembly-room"; its dimensions are 63×78 feet. In the east wing, beginning with the
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CHORMAL SOPOGL
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CROSSCUP & WE
MINNESOTA STATE NORMAL SCHOOL.
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main tower, we find the principal's office, the library and two large recitation-rooms. In the west wing are two large recitation-rooms, one in each corner, and two large wardrobe-rooms for ladies, each 12×35 feet, communicating with corridor and assembly-room. In the third story of main building we have "Normal Hall," capable of seating 800 to 1,000 persons. In the west wing, and connecting with corridor and Normal Hall, are four recitation-rooms. The east wing is occupied by a suite of rooms connected by open arches, designed to be used for a museum. In fourth story of the west wing there are two rooms, 32×35 feet each, separated by a corridor, and with ceiling extending to the crown of the roof, 23 feet in height. These rooms are lighted by skylights, and are intended for a gallery of art. The steps at each of the five entrances of the building are of massive, solid masonry, and are of easy ascent. The corridors at each extremity are entered by spacious vestibules. The stairs leading to the several stories are easy of ascent, the risers being seven inches each, and the treads, which are very wide, being made of solid two-inch oak plank, finished in oil. The heating and ventilation of the building are upon the plan known as the Ruttan system. There are seven furnaces properly located in the basement. Underneath the furnaces the cold air from without is introduced through ducts having an area of section equal to from eight to ten square feet each.
Space cannot be given to a further description of this beautiful structure, which is acknowledged to be, even at the date of this writing, in 1883, the most perfect building of the kind in the Northwest. The plans of this building were subsequently adopted, with little change, for the State Normal Schools at Buffalo, New York, and at Carbondale, Illinois.
It should be stated that the admirable adaptation of this building to the existing and prospective wants of the school, and its nearly faultless construction, are largely due to the experienced judgment, wise forethought and energetic management of the principal, Prof. Wm. F. Phelps, who was permitted to enjoy the fruits of his zealous labors, and to carry forward in this building his plans for the organization of a normal school of national' reputation, until he voluntarily resigned this position in 1876.
The following is a summary of the contributions made by the citizens of Winona to the school and building :
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Original subscription of $7,000 to secure site, with appreciation in values $10,000 Subscription for purchase of block 4, Sanborn's addition 5,000
Donation by city of block 3, Sanborn's addition. 6,000
The vacation of street and alleys. 2,500
Cash in bonds of city. 15,000
Use of city building for eight years, and furnishing expenses. 4,500
Total contribution. 43,000
In addition to the above the citizens of Winona have paid into the treasury of the school for the tuition of pupils in the model department the average sum of $1,500 annually for twenty years, amounting to about $3,000. The present valuation of the site of the building is $25,000.
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