USA > Wisconsin > Dane County > Madison > A history of Madison, the capital of Wisconsin : including the Four Lake country : to July, 1874, with an appendix of notes on Dane County and its towns > Part 32
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368
HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
MINOR BUILDINGS.
Many smaller buildings have also been completed during the year, and many 'valuable and costly improvements to other properties have been made, among which we refer to the changing of the fronts of the old Fairchild block and the transmogrification of the old Argus office into a steam ba- kery, together costing some thousands. A considerable num- ber of small cottages have been built. All these minor im- provements would probably aggregate -
50,000
In the month of November, Mrs. LAURA A. RICHARDS, of this place, formerly of Sparta, Wis., presented to the Congre- gational Church a bell from the foundry of MENEELY & KIM- BERLY, of Troy, N. Y., of 2,043 pounds weight, being some 800 pounds heavier than any other bell in the city, and costing over $1,000. Its rich, deep tones were heard for the first time on the 22d of November, and were greatly admired.
From BRAINARD's City Directory, for 1873, the following business statistics have been taken: Dealers in agricultural im- plements, 7 firms; attorneys, 23 firms; banking institutions, 8; blacksmiths, 10; booksellers and stationers, 4; boot and shoe dealers, 8 firms; breweries, 5; contractors and builders, 6; car- riage and wagon manufactories, 6; tobacco and cigars, 7; cloth- ers, 10; druggists, 6; dry goods, 13; fruits and confectionery, 7; furniture, 5; gentlemen's furnishing, 5; grocers, 30; hardware, 3; harness makers, 8; furriers and hatters, 3; hotels, 16; livery stables, 4; lumber dealers, 4; meat markets, 8; millinery, 5; music dealers, 4; house painters, 5; photographers, 4; physi- cians, 15; printing and publishing, 8; real estate dealers, 4; in- surance agencies, 10; saloons, 25; jewelry stores, 7, and a large variety of the usual occupations now found in every place, not above enumerated.
On the 19th of October, 1873, the 'Farwell Mills,' which, at the date of their erection, were hardly surpassed in the north- west, were a smoking ruin, hiding the body of one of the em- ployés in the debris. The enterprising proprietors, Messrs. ROBBINS & THORNTON, immediately took the preliminary steps toward putting up a new mill. On the 17th of November the work of erection begun, and on the 21st of February, 1874,
369
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
with all its complicated machinery, it had progressed so far that the feed stone begun grinding, and soon after was in the full tide of successful operation.
Externally, the mill is four square, the same size as the old mill, without the disused wing, and is four stories high, with unspliced timbers, 50 feet long on a side; 4 by 6 joists and tim- bers, 46 feet long, also unspliced, perpendicularly. It is set up 2} feet higher than the old mill. The sides are covered with matched boarding, sheathing paper and clap boarding, thus making the building very warm, and painted a pearl color, with dark drab trimmings. The roof is flat, thoroughly tinned. It has also an observatory commanding an extensive view. One hundred and fifty thousand feet of timber were used on the mill.
.
Lake Mendota furnishes the motive power, as it pours over four turbine wheels, each self-supporting, one of which is 65 inches in diameter; a second, 56 inches; a third, 66 inches, and the other 60 inches. There are five run of stone of the best French burr. Within, the mill throughout is supplied with all the modern improvements found advantageous in mak- ing the very best quality of flour, and furnished with the most perfectly adjusted and easily controlled machinery, which runs without jar and almost without noise.
The annual city election took place on the 7th of April, 1874. There was but little of the activity and enthusiasm sometimes shown. For the office of Mayor, Hon. H. H. GILES; Republican candidate, received 505 votes, and S. U. PINNEY,* the Democratic and Liberal candidate, 1,015, who was elected by a majority of 510. GOTTLEIB GRIMM received 942 votes for Treasurer, against RICHARD LYNCH, who received 585 votes.
* Hon. Silas U. Pinney is a son of J. C. Pinney, a native of Becket, Berkshire county, Mass. He was born at Rockdale, Crawford county, Pa.,. March 3, 1833, to which place his parents had removed in 1815, and, in 1846, to Dane county, Wis. Was admitted to the bar in February, 1854,- and has ever since practiced his profession in this city. Mr. Pinney was' City Attorney in 1858; a member of the City Council in 1865, and elected Mayor at the spring election of 1874.
370
HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
THOMAS C. BOURKE, GEO. A. MASON, JOHN G. OTT and L. D. STONE were elected Supervisors. The Aldermen elected were: 1st ward, GEO. MEMHARD and THOS. HAYDEN; 2d ward, T. B. WORTHINGTON and W. K. BARNEY; 3d ward, DARWIN CLARK and F. M. DORN; 4th ward, P. L. SPOONER, Jr., and M. P. WALSH. For Municipal Judge, A. B. BRALEY; received an unanimous vote - 1,489.
Mr. PINNEY, the Mayor elect, in his message on taking the office, gave the following statistics: the receipts of the past year were, $112,720; the expenditures, $85,037; leaving a bal- ance on hand of $27,684. The bonded debt of the city amounts to $230,000, of which $50,000 is capital extension, the rest mostly compromise bonds.
Alderman BUNKER was elected President of the Council, and JOHN CORSCOT unanimously elected City Clerk. The Mayor nominated the following officers, who were unanimously con- firmed: Chief of Police, ANDREW BISHOP. Ward Policemen: T. C. BOURKE, 1st; H. A. DYKE, 2d; W. A. BRADLEY, 3d, and JOHN L. LEWIS, 4th.
The City Council elected the following officers: Street Super- intendent, ANDREW BISHOP; City Attorney, CHAS. K. TENNEY; City Surveyor, JAMES QUIRK; Janitor, JOHN JOY; Poundmas- ter, EZRA SQUIRES; Member of Board of Education, C. P. CHAPMAN.
A resolution was adopted fixing the pay of city officers, as follows:
City Clerk,
$1,000 00
City Treasurer,
800 00
Street Superintendent,
1,000 00
Arthur B. Braley was born in Wyoming county, N. Y., February II, 1822; came to Wisconsin in 1835, settled at Delavan, and was admitted to the practice of law in 1848, by Judge Dunn, then Territorial Judge. He practiced his profession, 'in 1849, at Johnstown, Rock county; came to Madison in 1853, and was a partner of Judge S. H. Roys. In 1869, he re- moved to Waukesha, but subsequently returned to Madison. He has held the office of Police Justice for the years 1856 to 1861, inclusive, and in 1872 and 1873, and Municipal Judge, 1874. In 1868, he was City Attorney.
371
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
City Attorney,
250 00
City Assessor,
500 00
Chief Engineer Fire Department,
150 00
Assistant Engineer Fire Department,
50 00
Engineers of Steamers,
400 00
Firemen of Steamers,
100 00
Stewards of Steamers, with leather hose,
50 00
Stewards of Steamers, with rubber hose,
25 00
Janitor (besides ' $1 for use of hall each night, paid by hirer), per day,
1 50
Poundmaster (besides fees), per day,
1 00
In the month of April a new iron bridge was set up across the Yahara, to take the place of the one consumed by fire in October, 1873. The new bridge is known as the PERRY & AL- LEN Eureka Wrought Iron Bridge, and was manufactured by O. B. OLMSTEAD & Co., of Beloit. This bridge is a single span, of eighty feet, and the floor is sixteen feet wide in the clear; its ends rest upon two buttresses of solid masonry. It is com- posed mainly of eight lower straining cords - four on a side - each of which is one and a half inches in diameter, supported by two arches, each of which consists of eight arch cords, of one and a half inches in diameter; the arches and straining cords being connected and braced by a vast number of iron rods. All the iron used in the structure is wrought, except the massive shoes which confine the ends of the arches and straining cords, and the clamps confining the arch cords where they break joints.
In the latter part of the month of March, a chime of nine bells was received from the foundry of OCTAVOUS JONES, Troy, N. Y., for Grace church, and on the first of April were hung in place. The largest, "The Bishop's Bell," or tenor bell, and one known as the seventh was purchased by general subscrip- tion. The others are individual gifts, the donors indicated by the subscriptions, except the eighth, which was the gift of Mrs. WATERMAN.
The tenor, third and fifth are mounted, and can be rung separately, or as a peal. All are arranged with wires and lev-
372
HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
ers for chiming, and can be played either on the key of E flat, from one to eight of the scale, or, by substituting the flat sev- enth D flat for the seventh (D natural), in the key of A. flat, from five to five of the scale. All tunes to be played on the chimes will be transposed into one or the other of these keys.
We are indebted to the Rector of the church, Rev. JOHN WILKINSON, for the following schedule of the chime, with key, weight and inscription of the several bells in their order.
SCHEDULE.
No. 1 .- Key E flat. Weight, 2,531 lbs. The Bishops' Bell. In memory of the Rt. Rev. Jackson Kemper, D. D. and the Rt. Rev. Wm. Edmond Armitage, S. T. D, first Bishops of Wisconsin. "They rest from their labors, and their works do follow them."
No. 2 .- Key F. Weight, 1,601 lbs. In memoriam. Emma Eugenia Baker, ob. A. D. 1856. "He gathereth the lambs in his arms."
No. 3 .- Key G. Weight, 1, 364 lbs. The gift of Mrs. Amelia Curtiss Ful- ler, who entered into rest, A. D. 1872. "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord."
No. 4 .- Key A flat. Weight, 1,068 lbs. In memory of Sarah Maria Proudfit. "The maid is not dead, but sleepeth."
No. 5 .- Key B flat. Weight, 819 lbs. The Children's Bell. To the glory and praise of the Holy Child Jesus, " and the children crying in the Temple, Hosanna to the son of David."
No. 6 .- Key C. Weight, 669 lbs. In memory of Mrs. Emma Fuller Stevens, who died A. D. 1870. "I know that my Redeemer liveth."
No. 7 .- Key D flat. Weight, 604 lbs. In loving memory of William, John and James Sullivan. "Numbered with Thy Saints, in glory everlasting." M. A. S.
No. 8 .- Key D. Weight, 526 lbs. "We praise Thee, O God." No. 9 .- Key E flat. Weight, 415 lbs. "Glory be to God on High."
" The new Congregational church -Rev. C. H. RICHARDS, pastor - the construction of which has been watched with in- terest, not only by the members of the society for whom it has been built, but by the community generally, was dedicated on the 3d day of May. The event was the most important one in the history of the Congregational church of Madison, the pio- neer church of the capital, having been organized in 1840, and
373
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
whose chapel, built in 1858, has long been much too small for the uses of the Society. The following facts in regard to this edifice, which is one of the most beautiful and commodious in the State, and an ornament to the city, in which every public spirited citizen will take a pride, will be of interest.
" The church is built of gray cut stone, in the shape of a Greek cross, with the arms of equal length. It was designed by G. P. RANDALL, of Chicago, and is similar to the beautiful structure built by the same architect for the Union Park Church in Chicago. Its construction has been under the su- perintendence of Mr. D. R. JONES, architect of this city. The corner stone was laid June 13, 1872, and the walls were nearly finished at the end of that year. In 1873, the exterior of the building was completed, and most of the work in the interior of the main audience room, but the finishing touches were not given to it till within the last few weeks. The basement is not finished, and will not be at present. The length of each axis of the church is about 80 feet, and it is adorned with a steeple 180 feet high. It is intended ultimately to put a front on the old chapel which adjoins the new church, and opens into it, harmonizing with the main edifice, and making all one.
In the audience room - to which there are two entrances, in front and rear - the seats are arranged in semicircles, about the the pulpit, with five aisles, and a graceful gallery encircles the entire room, that portion of it in the rear of the pulpit being occupied by the organ and choir. There are 152 pews in the auditorium, with sittings for 650 on the floor, and 350 in the gallery, leaving ample space for the accommodation of two or three hundred more with extra seats. Ample arrangements have been made for the perfect ventilation of this audience room, both in summer and winter. "a consummation devoutly to be wished " by all church-goers. It is heated with BOYNTON furnaces, of such power and capacity as to make it seem certain that the RUTTAN ventilation will be thoroughly secured.
" Of those engaged in the erection of this church, we may men- tion FISH & STEPHENS, as the builders of the mason work; SOR- ENSON & FREDERICKSON, as having done the carpenter work;
374
HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
BISHOP & MURRAY, as the plasterers; and POLLARD & EGGE, as the painters, all of this city. The beautiful stained glass win- dows were made by MISCH Brothers, of Chicago; and the taste- ful frescoing was done by SCHUBERT & KOENIG, of the same city, with an artistic skill that has elsewhere won them a repu- tation as being among the best workmen in this department in the northwest.
" The carpets are a rich dark red ingrain, and the cushions of the harmonious tint of 'ponso'; this portion of the fur- nishing having been energetically carried forward by the ladies of the Society, many of whom have labored inde- fatigably in the good cause, and the upholstery has been under the skilful direction of W. B. BARCKHAM, of this city.
" The splendid bell that summons the worshippers to the house, the gift of Mr. L. A. RICHARDS, was cast by MENEELEY & KIMBERLY of Troy, and weighs 2,045 pounds.
" The organ, one of the largest and finest in the State, was built by MARSHALL Brothers' Organ Manufacturing Company of Milwaukee, and has three manuals of keys, two octaves of pedals, and 36 stops.
At the dedicatory services held on the 3d day May, after the delivery of the sermon by Rev. J. S. BINGHAM, D. D., of Dubuque, Iowa, the President of the Board of Trustees, F. J. LAMB, Esq., read a statement of the financial condition of the Society, as follows:
" The cost of the church building proper was $37,716.47, as follows:
Mason work,
- $16,729 30
Carpenters,
15,805 00
Plastering,
1,275 00
Windows,
1,100 00 -
Iron work,
600 00
Painting,
873 00
Frescoing,
400 00
Architects' plans,
934 17
"The appurtenances of the church cost $10,950, as follows:
Gas fixtures,
$935 00
Lumber, walks, etc., 260 00
375
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
Furnaces, etc.,
600 00
Lot cost,
1,200 00
Carpets, etc.,
880 00
Upholstering,
800 00
Bell,
- 1,000 00
Chairs,
150 00
Lectern, - 50 00
Communion set,
75 00
Communion table, -
30 00
Organ,
5,000 00
"This made the aggregate cost of the church, so far as com- pleted, $34,666.47.
" There has been raised and paid on this outlay, from the general subscription list, $24,300. There has been paid by specific donations (including sundry items specified in the list of contributions elsewhere, and also the bell by Mrs. S. M. RICHARDS; $1,000, and the chairs by J. B. BOWEN, $150, not specified), $1,320.
" There has thus been paid in all, $25,620; leaving unpaid, $23,046.47. Of this, a permanent loan of $10,000, is made of the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, and there is owing to the builders, $7,013.47; for the organ, $5,000; to TIMOTHY BROWN, $1,033.
"To meet this, there is available on original subscription,- $3,500; on organ subscription, $1,320, making a total of $4,821, and leaving to be provided for at once, $18,225.47.
" After reading this statement an effort was made to por- vide for the liquidation of the debt, which was very successful, and it was announced at the close of the appeal, that more than $20,000 had been assumed and pledged -more than enough to meet the whole debt."*
Reference has been made to the elegant dwelling of Gen. DAVID ATWOOD on lot 4, block 85, corner of Wisconsin avenue and Clymer street. The following is an account of the building and its internal arrangements:
The house fronts on Wisconsin avenue, and the main part is nearly square, being 45 by 46 feet, two full stories high, with
* From the State Journal, May 4, 1874.
.
376
HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
French or Mansard roof, thus giving a complete third story. In rear, is a wing, 29 by 26 feet, one story high, with French roof. The front door opens into a vestibule and hall, 9 feet wide, which extends back thirty feet. Opening from it to the left is a double parlor, 16 by 29 feet; to the right, the sitting room is entered, being 16 by 15 feet, with a large bay window; adjoining that, with double doors between, is a library room, and adjoining that, is a large bed room with bath room and clothes press attached. From the end of the hall, the dining room is entered, the size of which is 14 by 26 feet. These rooms occupy the first story in the main part, which is 12 feet in the clear. In the wing is the kitchen, with the necessary pantries, etc. The cellar extends under the whole building, and under the kitchen part, a room is finished for a laundry. The second floor of the main part, is divided into six chambers, a hall and bathing room, with closets for each room. In the third story, a hall extends the length of the house, with rooms on either side. The second story of wing is divided into three bed rooms, and a store room, with closet for each. The rooms on the first and second floors are supplied with hot and cold water. Drainage from all parts of the house into the lake, is secured. Four rooms - the parlor, dining room, library and bed room - have fire places with grates. The mantels were furnished by ABIJAH ABBOTT, Esq. The house is built of light colored brick, made at Waterloo, and presents a fine appear- ance. It is thoroughly finished from top to bottom, and style and convenience, there are but few if any, superior to it, in the city. All the contractors have performed their work promptly and well; and Mr. ATWOOD and family moved into their new residence in July, 1874.
The Rev. Mr. HAYS of the Presbyterian church, on Sunday, May 4, preached his first anniversary sermon, and gave the following statistics: received as members on profession of faith 34, by letter 17, total 57. Contributed to foreign missions $250, home missions $185, education $109, church erection, $102, relief fund $89, sustentation $33, publication $29, freed- men $27, total $1,077; also, for congregational expenses, includ- ing part for repairs, $8,868.
377
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
Of late years, Madison has been visited in the summer sea- son by tourists from southern cities, who find it a desirable and pleasant location to spend their annual vacation. Few lo- calities possess the advantages of Madison in natural beauty of scenery. Volumes could be filled with descriptive letters writ- ten by the most distinguished literary men of the country, and published in various magazines and newspapers, setting forth the charms of our city. Some of these articles we have before alluded to.
The opening of the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, northwest of Madison, has opened up to tourists the romantic scenery of the Devil's Lake and Baraboo Bluffs; and, although this section is not strictly included in our history, a short no- tice of these points, we think, will be acceptable to the reader. We quote from Maj. H. A. TENNEY's account:
"The bluffs of the Wisconsin at the point where the Bara- boo river embouches into the valley, are 600 feet in height. In the midst of this enormous rocky stratum, is a deep fissure or gorge, depressed over 400 feet from the surface, hemmed in by mighty precipices, which constitute the basin of a body of wa- ter about a mile and a half in length by a half mile in breadth, known as the Devil's Lake. It reposes like a dew drop in its mighty casket, and from its profound depths reflects the dark shadows of the beetling crags that environ it. The level of the waters is 190 feet above the Wisconsin river, and it is sup- posed that the bottom reaches below that of the river. There is not in the west a sample of as bold, ragged and striking scenery, or one more pleasing to the tourist. The country about has been the former seat of intense igneous action, and it is generally supposed that the cavity was created by the sinking of the bottom through volcanic agency. This is not, probably correct, but no explanation of the origin of this strange lake has ever been vouchsafed, at least no satisfactory one. A two hours' ride on the cars from Madison will land the visitor directly on the shore, and a small steamer will give him every opportunity for exploration. The whole section is wild and full of interest."
25
378
HISTORY OF MADISON AND THE
A history of Madison and the Four Lake Country would not be complete without referring to the "Great Cave of Dane County."* We are indebted to Maj. H. A. TENNEY for the fol- lowing description:
" About 11 miles distant, and a little southwest of Madison. , near the crest of the dividing ridge which separates the lake region from the valley of Sugar river, there exists the basin of an ancient pond or lake covering about four thousand acres, whose waters have long since departed, and whose drainage is directly into the face of a bluff. This inlet, a quarter of a cen- tury ago, was penetrated to a depth of nearly two thousand feet, and yet has never been fully explored, or its mysterious. depths examined by mortal eye. It is about five hundred feet. above the level of the four Lakes, and the ppenings apparently tend to the west. Sugar river is about one and a half miles distant, but no evidence has ever been discovered to warrant the belief that these waters any where enter or make a part of . that stream. All indications, indeed, point to the certainty that it is an entrance to that vast subterranean river system known to permeate the lead region at a great depth, and whose unknown outlet may be hundreds of miles away. Early ex- plorers always halted from fatigue or lack of adequate prepara- tion to proceed, and not because the way was not open; and nothing like an end has ever been reached.
"The deposit in which this immense grotto exists, is the cliff or upper magnesian limestone, which at this point is known to be underlaid by a sandstone formation, whose thickness is prob- ably forty or fifty feet. That the channel has been cut down to this more friable material, at some point of its course, is not doubted, and hence it is naturally concluded that, if followed to the line of junction, the dimensions of the cave would swell to colossal proportions. As it exists at present, there are four narrow entrances, badly choked by the debris fallen at the. mouth, or material carried in by currents. The two most southern openings unite at the distance of some fifty or sixty
* This cave is located on the northeast part of section 5, in the town of Verona, on lands belonging to Mr. D. Richardson.
379
FOUR LAKE COUNTRY OF WISCONSIN.
feet, from whence cavern succeeds cavern, so far as known, for thousands of feet. Once within this rocky chamber, there was formerly no serious obstacle to progress; but the present diffi- culty of entrance has kept thousands from the spot. It has also had the effect of keeping the walls of the interior openings in a much damper condition than they otherwise would be, by preventing the draft of outer air, which passes steadily through the whole known extent of the cavern. The far inner rooms have all the usual characteristics of the most noted caves in the country. Pendent stalactite has its corresponding stalagmite, at present much discolored by the newly added sediment. The walls are worn into strange and fantastic shapes, and everywhere exhibit the erosive power of rushing water. Long corridors and halls, whose smooth, rocky sides would seem to bid defiance to any power, connect the numerous vestibules and chambers, some of which are from twenty to thirty feet in height, and of great and almost unknown depth.
"That the cave consists of several stories is evident from nu- merous indications, both exterior and interior. It is proved by the sound of voices when large parties are exploring the nu- merous ramifications; by variations in level; and more particu- larly by a whirlpool in seasons of flood, outside the entrance, which proves that the ancient channel has been choked by fallen rocks, and underlies the whole cavern thus far examined. It is still further proved by the clean cut bank of the outside water course, whose bottom is several feet below the present entrance - an impossible achievement if they were the natural inlet. Still further, no pond or water ever remains in front of the cave, in the basin below the existing entrance level, which would be impossible if it did not have a subterranean escape. Once cleared of accumulated debris, and instead of one or more, there would probably be found a cave of several stories, the lower of which would amply suffice to drain the region, leav- ing the others ordinarily dry and intact. Until this is done, the full extent and beauty of this mighty freak of nature will never be fully known or appreciated. Parties living close at hand give wonderful accounts of the phenomena witnessed
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