USA > Wisconsin > Racine County > Racine > Racine, belle city of the lakes, and Racine County, Wisconsin : a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Vol. I > Part 16
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45
In April, 1845, Moses Vilas was employed to lay out the town and made a plat. His employer was Samuel C. Russ, who then owned most of the land included within the village limits. Mr. Vilas had made a survey in March, 1839, but the plat was not filed with the register of deeds. The revised plat was filed on June 3, 1845.
In 1864 George Gale came to Waterford and built a paper mill, which he operated for three years, when he was compelled to close for lack of power. John Beck started a brewery in 1876. with a capacity of 200 barrels per day, and did a profitable busi- ness for several years, but lack of adequate transportation facili- ties placed him at a disadvantage and the business was discon- tinned.
On December 23, 1905, a petition asking for the incorporation of Waterford was filed in the circuit court. A census that accom-
174
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
panied the petition showed a population of 352. The court ordered an election for January 23, 1906, and appointed as inspectors John T. Rice, Christian Berger and William Shenkenberg. The election resulted in 118 votes for incorporation and only 25 against the proposition. Returns were made to the court and Waterford was declared to be an incorporated village.
Waterford has two banks, a flour mill, two cigar factories, several well stocked general stores, hardware and implement houses, lumber and coal dealers, a telephone exchange, a weekly newspaper (the Post), two hotels, a creamery, churches of dif- ferent denominations, excellent public school buildings, and its "high and dry" location makes it an ideal residence village The population in 1910 was 581, and in 1915 the assessed valna- tion of the property was $717,910.
WILLOW CREEK
Modern maps of Racine County show a settlement in Cale- donia Township, a short distance southeast of Tabor, as "Willow Creek." It is merely a thickly settled neighborhood, with a public school in the midst, and was never platted as a village.
YORKVILLE
The old postoffice of Yorkville was established at an early date a little north of the center of Yorkville Township. It was on the old mail route between Racine and Mineral Point and a little hamlet grew up there, but no plat of a village was ever officially made or recognized by the authorities. The postoffice was discontinued some years ago and the people of that section now receive their mail by rural carrier from the postoffice at Union Grove, which place is the nearest railroad station. York- ville, as shown by the Wisconsin Gazetteer for 1916, has a general store, a dealer in hardware and agricultural implements, a nursery, a creamery, a blacksmith shop and a few dwelling houses.
POSTOFFICES
As a conclusion to this chapter the following list of postoffices in Racine County at the beginning of the year 1916 is given. The figures in parentheses after the names of some of the offices show the number of rural mail routes emanating therefrom, to wit: Burlington (6), Caledonia (3), Corliss (1), Franksville (3), Kan- sasville (2), Lamberton, North Cape, Racine (4), Rochester,
175
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
Rosewood (formerly Dover), Union Grove (3), Waterford (2). The office at Racine has independent stations at Cooper and Racine Junction and three sub-stations. All the offices issue domestic money orders, good in the United States, and the offices at Burlington, Corliss, Racine, Union Grove and Waterford are authorized to issue international money orders, good in foreign countries.
٦
T
St. John's Lutheran
Howell
Jefferson Washington
Franklin
Lincoln
Winslow
High School
SCHOOLS OF RACINE
CHAPTER IX EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS
THE FIRST TEACHER - FIRST SCHOOL HOUSE -FIRST SCHOOL DISTRICTS - FIRST PUBLIC SCHOOL BUILDING -GROWTH OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM - LOOKING BACKWARD -OLD THIRD WARD SCHOOL TIIE WINSLOW SCHIOOL - HIGH SCHOOL OF 1854 -SIXTII WARD SCHOOL -RACINE FEMALE SEMINARY - ITS SUCCESSOR, RACINE COLLEGE - RACINE ACADEMY - AN EDUCATIONAL ACRE - MRS. M'MYNN'S SCRAP-BOOK - HIGH SCHOOL EXAMINATIONS - BOW- MAN'S ACADEMY -LUCRETIA MAY'S SCHOOL -THE HOME SCHOOL - INDUSTRIAL AND CONTINUATION SCHOOLS - WISCONSIN BUSINESS COLLEGE.
Racine was but a mere hamlet, with a few inhabitants and a house scattered here and there when the settlers began to pro- vide for the education of their children, in the best way possible and according to their limited resources and means. As in all new localities the subscription school took the initiative in odu- cational matters, and it is to a little select, or subscription, school, presided over by a pedagogue named Bradley, that the people of Racine revert when the beginning of things educational is on the tapis. The first building erected for school purposes was a primi- tive structure of frame, built on the northeast corner of Main and Third Streets in 1836. Here the children of the little settle- ment gathered and were taught the rudiments of an education by Mr. Bradley, the first schoolmaster of Racine.
On the 12th of June, 1837, the county commissioners divided the county into school districts, and placed the Town and Village of Racine in Distriet No. One: as a matter of course, the first school building was in this district. Under the territorial session laws of 1839-1840, which were revised in the session of 1840-01, Racine held her first annal town meeting on the fifth day of April, 1842, when Marshall M. Strong, Eldad Smith and Lyman K. Smith were elected the first school commissioners for the town. Their duties were to take charge of the school district, to colleet the revenue therefrom and to apportion the same to the several school sections in the town. Section 16 was located in the village . and proved of great value to the community. Other duties de- volving upon the commissioners were to divide the town into school districts, to examine and license public school teachers,
178
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
and to supervise the schools generally. Each district was pro- vided with three trustees, a clerk and collector, who were authorized to levy and collect all necessary school taxes, and to manage the affairs of their districts, the village and town authori- ties having no jurisdiction in such matters. The Town of Racine was divided into four districts, one of which comprised the village, and one on the north, on the south and on the west of it.
FIRST PUBLIC SCHOOL HOUSE
Lots situate on Section 16, in which is the Second Ward, were selected for the location of the first public school building, and on this site, near the corner of College Avenue and Seventh Street, a one-story briek structure was erected during the summer of 1842. This was the beginning of the many public buildings in Racine, put up and maintained for school purposes by the people of the town and, while very modest in design and dimensions, it answered the requirements admirably for a time at least. Sam- nel W. Hill was the first one to preside over the pupils of this school, and began his ministrations in the year the house was built. His successor was Simeon C. Yout, who for many years remained a citizen of the place. In a very short time the children began to increase in such numbers that the little one-story brick building became overtaxed and in 1844 a frame one was erected on the east end of the lot, to which the girls and small boys were assigned. Miss Margaret Carswell (later Mrs. Samuel G. Knight) was placed in charge.
During the village organization and the first three years of the city rule (1842 to 1852) the public schools were managed under `the general laws of the territory and state by trustees and other district officers, as neither the village nor the first city charter made any provision for maintaining them. The last town meeting was held April 4, 1848, preparatory to Wisconsin becoming a state and Racine taking on the dignity permitted a city. No town offi- cers were elected at this meeting and, as a consequence, the old officials held over. On April 3, 1849, at an election held at Slau- son's cooper shop, Floyd P. Baker was elected town superintend- ent of schools, and Isaac J. Ullman, Thomas J. Emerson and Thomas G. Burgess continued as town school commissioners.
Owing to the considerable growth of Racine between the years 1841 and 1852, a demand for more schools became impera-
179
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
tive and as a result the village was divided into three districts, on the north, south and west sides of the river, in which schools were established. The school on the west side, Marquette Street, between Liberty and State Streets, enrolled over 140 pupils in 1849. By that time the building was too small and many of the children were compelled for comfort's sake to resort to the shade trees then prevalent in that locality, where they studied their les- sons. In this year A. Constantine Barry became by election the first superintendent of schools in Racine. H. G. Winslow, long a superintendent, spoke of Mr. Barry as a "man of good attainments, of versatile talents and of various callings - a preacher of some reputation in the Universalist Church, the editor and publisher of the 'Old Oaken Bucket' (the organ of the Sons of Temperance), and an educator of considerable pretensions." He became state superintendent of schools in 1855 and held the position until 1858. In 1861 he became chaplain of the Second Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers, and served as such until the end of hostilities.
A complete reorganization of school affairs took place in Racine in 1852, owing to general dissatisfaction that had appeared above the surface. On April 14, 1852, a school law affecting Racine alone was enacted by the Legislature and modeled after the school system then in vogue in Rochester, N. Y. By this law all public schools of the city were consolidated into one district, and ample powers were placed in the hands of a board of education, con- sisting of two commissioners from each ward, and a city superin- tendent. The first board of education under the new law was organized in April. 1852, and was composed of Robert Cather, president; A. C. Barry, clerk; Orville W. Barnes, Robert Cather, Edwin Gould, Warner W. Wardsworth, Charles Herrick, Nathan Joy. John Osborne, Seneca Raymond, Edwin A. Robey, Sidney A. Sage, commissioners: A. C. Barry, city superintendent. Also, in this year, the City Council passed an ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds in the sum of $6,000 for the erection of a high school building. The site was already in the possession of the city and upon it was erected a brick building. 50x75 feet, two stories in height, with a basement. This was located in the Second Ward and was an excellent structure for the times, ranking with the best in the state. John G. MeMynn, then a successful teacher in the Kenosha public schools, was called to the principalship, and his wife, Mrs. Ella Wiley MeMynn, accepted the position of assist-
180
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
ant, which she retained with entire satisfaction to all concerned five years. Rev. M. P. Kinney was elected city superintendent in April, 1853, and for four years thereafter served the school interests of the city with fidelity and a high degree of ability. Ile planted the ehm trees that still adorn the walks around the high school. and "contributed not a little to the success of the system and the Racine High School soon became the pet and pride of the city." This is evidenced by the following excerpt of the superintendent's report for the year 1858: "It is now nearly five years since the present plan of organization went into opera- tion. Previous to this period, interest in education was confined to a few of our citizens. Under the district system, which was at first adopted, it was seen that no efficiency could be secured, and little progress could be made. School accommodations were poor and limited. Teachers were embarrassed and their well laid plans often thwarted by apathy or opposition. Schools, public and private, were mimerons but not permanent: teachers were quali- tied and self-denying, but not successful; and, while money was liberally provided, it was uselessly expended, so that many began to look with disfavor upon public schools, and if not unwilling to try the experiment of a thorough organization, they were not willing to co-operate and earnestly labor to carry it to a success- ful issue." In another place the superintendent, Rev. O. O. Stearns. continues: "During the past year a new school library, consisting of over a thousand volumes, has been purchased and placed within the reach of the scholars and parents. * At the close of the last term (December, 1857) a class of two young gentlemen and eight young ladies graduated from our high school and received appropriate diplomas. That was an event of too much importance to be overlooked in our annual report. The day of their graduation was a proud one for our city schools, and could all of our citizens have been present on that occasion, they would have felt amply repaid for the sacrifices they have been called upon to make to sustain them."
The "event of too much importance" will be more readily understood and appreciated by the present generation when it is stated that this was the first high school graduating class in the history of Wisconsin. The members of that class were Horatio (. Billings. William H. Myrick, Christia A. Sinclair, Julia G. Wheldon, Ana Byrne, Lucy A. Cather, Antoinette JJ. Russell,
ABOVE THE DAM, RACINE
RIVER VIEW, RACINE
181
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
Elizabeth J. Butterfield, Angelina Wells and Marion F. Clarke. With the exception of a few years within the decade beginning in 1859, the high school has furnished a class of graduates each year of its existence. "When the year of the rebellion broke ont in 1861, and during its continuance, the high school responded nobly to the country's call, furnishing from thirty to forty sol- diers, and many of the older pupils from the ward schools in- creased the number largely. Six members of the high school lost their lives in the cause and a marble tablet preserves the names and memory in golden letters on the walls of the high school study room. Principal MeMyn also volunteered and went as major of the Tenth Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteers: and. after doing soldierly service in the war in Kentucky. Tennessee and Alabama, returned as colonel of his regiment."
Selim H. Peabody was one of the early principals of the Ra- eine High School and after retiring from that position he made his valuable educational talents a leading and commanding factor in the rapid progress of the Chicago High School. He rose to various high positions in educational circles, among which may be mentioned the presidency of the Illinois State University. Special mention also should be made of George S. Albee, O. S. Wescott, and Colonels E. Barton Wood and Henry S. Pomeroy, both of whom attained distinction as commanders in the Civil War.
There were about 700 pupils in attendance and thirteen teachers employed in the schools of Racine in 1853. The schools consisted of five primaries, one high school, and a grammar school. which was then and for several years after combined with the high school. Crowded rooms and lack of conveniences had been dinned into the official cars of the authorities for some time, but it was not until the year 1855 that the City Council provided means for the erection of three school buildings, and during the fall and winter they were built, the Third, Fourth and Fifth Wards each getting one. The structures were constructed of brick, two stories high and 40x50 feet in ground dimensions. In each of these buildings were organized an intermediate school with four teachers and about 200 pupils. From this time until 1887 the general plan for providing increased room was by mak- ing additions to the old buildings, except in the erection of the Sixth Ward school house, a building designed to seat about 400 children. Plans were perfected in 1887 by Superintendent HI. G.
182
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
Winslow and the school board for the erection of a ward school building on advanced lines and in March, 1891, the idea met its fruition in the construction of the building in the southwestern part of the city, which was named the R. P. Howell School. This was the first really pretentious school building of Racine. Pro- vions to this happy consummation, owing to the increasing num- ber of children demanding attention and for many of whom there were no adequate provisions and accommodations at the school houses on the north and west sides of the river, the committee mentioned above caused to be erected on the corner of North- western Avenue and Prospect Street a school building in 1889. The Lincoln School was built and occupied in April, 1891. It had a capacity of 400 and was built with a desire to observe more than the ordinary efforts toward beauty and artistic architect- ural lines.
HI. G. Winslow assumed the duties imposed by the office of superintendent of the Racine city schools in May, 1881, when there were 40 teachers employed and the enrollment for the year was 2,388. In 1883 a full pamphlet report and manual of in- structions for teachers was issued, the first of the kind since 1858. The booklet contained about 100 pages of useful educational and statistical matter and this was followed in 1891 by a more com- plete one.
In June, 1881, A. R. Sprague, a graduate of Beloit College, and a teacher of wide experience in Wisconsin, was appointed principal of the high school and held the position eight years. He resigned to accept a place in the Milwaukee High School. His successor was A. J. Volland, who began his work here the school year of 1889.
LOOKING BACKWARD
A pioneer, who signs himself "One of the Old Boys," recalls the early school days in an article which appeared recently in a local paper, and in part relates: "The school facilities were hardly adequate to the needs of the place. There were private schools here and there, and different attempts had been made to start academies, but with only temporary success. I remem- ber Mr. Slater kept a select school in the old Sol Heath house, corner Seventh and Chatham Streets (it had not then arrived at the dignity of Lake Avenue, and indeed the street was of so
ĐÁNH 14'5
THE OLD THIRD WARD SCHOOL Erected in southern part of town in 1-56.
183
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
little account at that time that very few knew it had a name, but were content to designate it as the 'back street.'). Mr. S. C. Yont had an academy in a building standing on the site of the late Universalist Church. Then David Conger started what he called a 'high school' on the corner of Eighth and Wisconsin Streets. I can recall among the boys there were Sayers Knight, Ham Utley, James Fink and Garrett Van Pelt.
"Miss Emma Jane Winters had a school on Wisconsin Street: Miss Robinson taught on Barnstable Street; Mahlon and Melville Barry were among the pupils.
"Old Mr. Jones had a small school on Wisconsin near Elev- enth Street. I can remember it was one of the rules of the school that a scholar was to be forgiven once for any offense, but not the second time. It was always a successful plea that the culprit made, to say, no matter how grievous his fault, 'You never for- gave me for this,' and justice vielded to merey. The dear old man! He must have been nearly seventy years old, and yet he had that trust in human nature that hoped, the first offense, once forgiven, would never be repeated. Perhaps the old man's theory would be the right one.
"Mr. Stowe taught in the basement of the old Baptist Church. Henry and Anson Doolittle, Henry Jones, Orley Gates, 'Egg' Jameison, Ham Utley and Walter Stone were pupils of his.
"W. W. Carroll taught in the little brick school house on the southwest corner of the present Second Ward School grounds. Walter Clough is the only boy whose face I can now recall be- hind his desk."
THE OLD THIRD WARD SCHOOL
When the old Third Ward School was built it was located at the extreme southern limits of the city and there were few houses in the immediate vicinity. The ground on which the build- ing was situate was part of the first cemetery, and in JJune, 1855, the City Council ordered the disposal of the poor house and of some of the cemetery lots, to provide funds to build three new schools - in the Third, Fourth and Fifth Wards.
On the purchase of Mound Cemetery in 1852, the City Coun- cil ordered the removal of all bodies buried in the old cemetery to the new grounds, stipulating that after April 15, 1853, all that remained would be removed by the cemetery committee. Despite
184
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
the care taken, human skeletons have been exposed to the light whenever excavations have been made in that block.
THE WINSLOW SCHOOL
The successor of the old Third Ward building is the Wins- low, named in honor of one of the best friends of education Racine ever had. The structure stands on the site of the old one, in the midst of one of the finest residence districts of the city. If asked, any one of the nearby residents would declare it to be the finest. In 1899, when the Third Ward School was rebuilt. it was given its present name. The building contains fourteen rooms, including a kindergarten and auditorin. There are twelve teachers and about 450 pupils enrolled.
HIGH SCHOOL OF 1854
The building erected in Racine in 1853 and occupied in 1854 for high school purposes was considered to be the finest and most pretentious school building in the State of Wisconsin. Many educators from distant cities paid special visits to Racine to see the structure and the people of the community were elated and quite "chesty," to use a modern expression, over having so noted a public building. Col. J. G. MeMyn, who was the first principal of the school, superintendent of the city schools and later state superintendent of schools, and whose influence on the publie educational institutions of the state was greater than any other man, in speaking of the high school on one occasion, in part said: "Coming to the state only a few months after its admis- sion into the Union, I worked in the public schools of Kenosha (then Southport ) until September, 1853, when I came to Racine, influenced not a little by the superior school house, then near completion, and which still remains now (1891) an object of less admiration than it excited thirty-eight years ago. Some of those present may recollect that we partly organized the high school in the basement of the old Baptist Church, where we remained until the high school building was finished during the last month of the year. The erection of such a school building had attracted the attention of the whole state. It was even superior to the new school house in Kenosha, which before ours was built had no rival in the commonwealth.
"On examination for admission to the high school, Mr.
185
HISTORY OF RACINE COUNTY
Mahlon Barry, Miss Ana Byrne, Miss Lucy Cather, Miss Marion Clarke, and Miss Mary Sherman were found qualified, and they were the first regular high school scholars in the state. A considerable number was added in a short time from those who were conditioned."
SIXTH WARD SCHOOL
The Sixth Ward School was finished in January, 1870, and the plans upon which it was built marked a forward step in school construction, as it was the finest school building in the place. Including the site, the total cost was $21,132. L. W. Briggs, who is an instructor in the State Normal School at Osh- kosh, was the first principal. At the expiration of a year or two he was followed as principal by Prof. Bridges, who in turn had for his successor Martin L. Smith, who assumed his duties in 1875 and still is holding the position with the greatest satisfac- tion to all concerned. Prof. Smith contributes very much to the interest of this article by his relation of the details here appended :
"In 1875 the Sixth Ward School consisted of an upright building of six rooms - three on the first floor and three directly over them on the second, one of them a large assembly room capable of seating seventy pupils. At that time there was no kindergarten room and none of them was decorated; all were in the natural color of plaster, with here and there a crack in the wall, and a very few cheap pictures.
"The force consisted of six teachers, including the principal. All of the rooms were over-crowded with children. The enroll- ment was 350. But in 1899 came a change for the better; an addition was built to the school, doubling the seating capacity, and transforming it into a modern building which, in the opinion of the present principal, has no superior in the state. The name now was changed to that of the Franklin School. There are twelve rooms, including one for the kindergarten department, decorated and further adorned with pictures. Four sanitary drinking fountains without cups are used in the building, which also contains a recitation or store room, a principal's office, a teachers' rest room and a room for the manual training classes. Under the entire building is a basement with cement floor, which contains separate toilet rooms. At present a corps of fourteen
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.