USA > Wisconsin > Wisconsin: comprising sketches of counties, towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form: > Part 3
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Bank Riot, Sce Riot, Bank.
Banks and Banking .- In 1835 the legislature of the territory of Michigan chartered the first Wisconsin bank, the Bank of Wiscon-
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CYCLOPEDIA OF WISCONSIN.
sin at Green Bay. The next year when the first territorial legisla- ture of Wisconsin convened the Miners' Bank at Dubuque, the Bank of Milwaukee and the Bank of Mineral Point were chartered. The wide spread financial distress of 1837 wiped these banks out of existence. In 1839 as the country was beginning to recover from the financial disaster the legislature granted to George Smith and others a charter for the Wisconsin Marine & Fire Insurance com- pany. This company, of which Alexander Mitchell became the active head, paid much more attention to the business of banking than to that of insurance. It issued notes, and named a number of points at which they could be redeemed. There was much opposi- tion to this and in 1844 the legislature revoked the charter of the Fire & Marine Insurance company but the two men, Mitchell and Smith, continued to do business under that name, and their bank, for such it really was, became not only the greatest banking institu- tion in the state, but was recognized as one of the strongest in the middle west. At one time, about 1850, this bank had outstanding a note issue of about $1,500,000 and this without any actual war- lant of law, but all were paid. In 1852 a general banking law was passed in accordance with a provision of the state constitution that the question of establishing banks of issue must be submitted to a vote of the people. Many banks of issue were established fol- lowing that. When the period of "wild-cat" banking came in Wisconsin for five or six years, this state did not suffer so severely as some of the other new states from it, but severely enough. The National Banking Act of 1865 put an end to state banks of issue and from that time until the panic of 1893, banking in Wisconsin was considered to be on a very conservative basis. Following that panic bankers were urgent in their appeal for a state bank examiner, and the legislature of 1895 created that office(See Commissioner of Banking). There being a feeling of uncertainty about the constitutionality of the new office, and a question as to the examiner's right to investigate, a new banking law was contemplated, and through the efforts of the State Bank- ers' Association such a law was prepared, submitted to the people in 1898 and became operative. Under that law there is a commis-
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sioner of banking (q. v.) to supervise state banking interests and he is given ample authority to make his duties effective. From the report of this officer for the year ending November 10, 1904, it ap- pears that the total deposits of the State, Savings and Private banks of the state were $75,592,855.08; while the total individual deposits of the national banks within the state are $82,968,398. This brings the total of individual deposits in banks in Wisconsin up to $158,561,253.08.
Banner, a discontinued postoffice in Fond du Lac county.
Baraboo .- This city with 5,835 inhabitants, is located on the banks of the Baraboo river and is the headquarters of the Madison division of the C. & N. W. Ry. Baraboo is the county seat of Sauk county. Two daily papers, which also publish weeklies, the News and the Republic, and one weekly, the Sauk County Democrat, are published. The city is built on a series of hills, 1,050 feet above the sea level. There are two banks.
Bar Association, State .- September 21, 1877, a meeting was held in the United States court room at Madison to express the sentiment of the bar relative to the appointment of a judge to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Judge Hopkins. A committee was appointed to consider and report upon the proposition to form a district bar association. The committee consisted of B. Dun- widdie, Monroe; E. E. Bryant, Madison; H. E. Medbery, Monroe ; C. M. Webb, Grand Rapids ; A. A. Jackson, Janesville; H. Cousins, Eau Claire. The report recommended the forming of a state asso- ciation and a committee made up of Chief Justice Ryan, A. C. Fish, Racine; L. S. Dixon, Milwaukee; H. B. Jackson, Oshkosh; David Taylor, Fond du Lac; O. B. Thomas, Prairie du Chien ; J. Losey, La Crosse; C. M. Webb, Grand Rapids; J. C. Spooner, Hudson ; Wm. F. Vilas, Madison; T. R. Hudd, Green Bay ; J. M. Bingham, Chippewa Falls; J. R. Bennett, Janesville and H. H. Hayden, Eau Claire, was appointed to plan the organization. November 12, 1877, a call was issued and organization was completed at a meet- ing of lawyers held in Madison, January 9, 1878, The object of the association is "to maintain the honor and dignity and to increase the
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usefulness and influence of the profession of the law." The asso- ciation holds annual meetings.
Barber, J. Allen, a native of Georgia, Vt., came to Wisconsin in 1837 and settled in Lancaster. He was a member of the first Con- stitutional Convention ; was a member of the assembly in 1852 and 1853 and again in 1863, serving as speaker the latter year; state senator in 1856-57. He was a republican representative from Wis- consin in the 42nd and 43rd congresses.
Barbers' Board .- In 1903 the legislature created a state board of examiners for barbers consisting of three practical barbers, each with at least five years' experience, to examine applicants who de- sire to work at the trade and to issue licenses to the same if quali- fed. They are also to promote cleanliness and sanitary conditions in the business. Every barber in the state, excepting apprentices, must pay a license fee of one dollar annually, which goes to the pay- ment of the examining board.
Bardeen, Charles V., was born September 23, 1850, in Brookfield, Madison county, New Jersey ; came to Wisconsin in 1869; gradu- ated from the law department of the University of Wisconsin in 1875 and began his law practice in Wausau. He was elected judge of the 16th circuit in 1891 and appointed associate justice of the state supreme court in 1898, which position he held until his death in Madison in 1903.
Bar Examiners, Board of .- This board consists of five attorneys appointed by the supreme court to examine applicants for admis- sion to the bar. It was provided for by the legislature of 1885. The board prescribes the examination, but the legislature of 1903 enacted that three years' study shall be required with the provision that any applicant who has studied two years may take the examina- tion. The board is required to hold one or more examinations each year in Madison. The members of the board receive $10 a day and necessary expenses while holding examinations.
Barker, a station on the W. C. Ry. in Dunn county, whose postal name is Boyceville. (q v.)
Bark River rises in Pewaukee Lake, Waukesha county, flowing
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southwest and joining the Rock river at Fort Atkinson, Jefferson county.
Barksdale, a country postoffice of Bayfield county, situated 4 miles from Washburn, the county seat.
Barnard, Henry, was one of the most distinguished of the early educators of the state. Was chancellor of the University of Wis- consin, 1859-61. He organized and put into operation the present system of teachers' institutes, and otherwise influenced favorably the educational development of the state. His death occurred July 5, 1900, at Hartford, Conn.
Barnburners, The .- This name was given to the radical wing of the anti-slavery element, first in New York, and later in western states. The Barnburners were never numerous in Wisconsin and did not figure importantly in the ante-bellum campaigns.
Barnes, Lyman E., was born at Weyauwega, Waupaca county, Wisconsin, June 30, 1855. He was district attorney of Outagamie county for several terms and was a Democratic representative from Wisconsin in the 53rd congress. His home is in Appleton.
Barneveld, a post town of 400 inhabitants in Iowa county, on the line of the C. & N. W. Ry. is 15 miles east of Dodgeville, the county seat, and has a bank and a weekly newspaper, The Register and Friend.
Barney, a discontinued postoffice in Marathon county.
Barnum, a post town of 150 population in Crawford county on the line of C., M. & St. P. Ry. and on the Kickapoo river. The first settlement of the place was in 1891. It is 30 miles northeast of Prairie du Chien, the county seat.
Barre Mills, a settlement in La Crosse county 10 miles northeast of La Crosse. Its postoffice is La Crosse.
Barron .- This is the county seat of the county of the same name and has a population of 1,674. It is on the M., St. P. & S. Ste. M. Ry., and on the Yellow river. It has two banks and two weekly newspapers, the Barron County Shield and the Barron County News.
Barron County, in the northwest portion of the state, is named after a legislator and judge, Henry D. Barron. It was organized
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as Barron county in 1868, but from 1861 until that year it had been called Dallas county, after Vice-president Dallas of the United States, 1845-9. Its soil in the northeastern portion is sandy ; in the other parts it is a dark clay loam. It covers an even 900 square miles, and in 1905 had a population of 28,376. Barron is the ju- dicial seat.
Barronett, a post town of Barron county on the C., St. P., M. & O. Ry. with 50 inhabitants. Barron, the county seat, is 26 miles southeast.
Barstow and the Balance .- During the Barstow administration in 1854-55 a number of scandals were unearthed concerning the peculations of some of the state officials, and, charges of bribery, malfeasance in office, etc., were freely circulated. An investigation revealed a shortage in the accounts of the state treasurer of nearly $-10,000, which was never made good. A Madison printer seeking to secure the state printing contract wrote an absent partner that "we must get a good bid, even if we have to buy up Barstow and the balance." This letter being made public gave a good catch phrase to the opposition who used it freely and effectively, although Gov. Barstow seems not to have been personally implicated in the scandals.
Barstow-Bashford Contest, The .- After an exciting election con- test in 1855 between Barstow, the then governor, and Coles H. Bashford, the first republican candidate for governor, the canvass- ing board consisting of the attorney general, the secretary of state and the state treasurer, declared Barstow elected by 157 majority. The republicans charged fraud publicly. Feeling ran high as the day of inauguration approached. Troops were brought to Madi- son and there was every indication of trouble. Barstow was sworn in and held his position in the executive chamber. Bashford, also took the oath before Chief Justice Whiton of the supreme court, and then made a formal demand for the office, which brought the matter into court. The most distinguished lawyers of the state appeared in the case. During the taking of testimony Barstow withdrew from the contest, sending his resignation to the legisla- (tenant governor aken assumed the duties of gover-
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nor, but a few days later the supreme court decided in favor of Bashford and the acting governor, after filing a protest, vacated the office and Bashford assumed the duties. Thus ended quietly what seemed for a time to threaten a civil war.
Barstow, William A., was governor of Wisconsin 1854-55; served also as secretary of state in 1850-51. He was born in Plainfield, Conn., September 7, 1813, and came to Wisconsin in 1840, settling in Waukesha county, Soon after the Barstow-Bashford contest (q. v.) he left the state. He died at Leavenworth, Kas., December 13, 1865.
Bartel Station, a discontinued postoffice in Ozaukee county.
Barton, a post town in Washington county on the Milwaukee river and the C. & N. W. Ry. with a population of 500. West Bend, the county seat, is one mile away.
Barwig, a settlement in Dane county, 11 miles west of Madison, the county seat.
Barwig, Charles, was born in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, March 19, 1837. He came to Wisconsin in 1845 and as a Democrat was elected to the 51st, 52nd and 53rd congresses as a representative from Wisconsin.
Basco, a post town in Dane county on the I. C. Ry. with a popu- lation of 60. It is 14 miles southwest of Madison, the judicial seat of the county.
Bascom, John, author and educator, was born May 1, 1827, in Genoa, N. Y. He graduated from Williams college in 1849; and from Andover Theological Seminary in 1854. Was made professor oi rhetoric in Williams in 1855, which position he held until elected president of the University of Wisconsin in 1874. While in Wil- liams he published his first book "Political Economy" which at once became a text book at Yale and Williams. Later his "Esthet- ics" was published ; then followed his "Principles of Psychology ;" then "Science, Philosophy and Religion" and still later just before coming to Wisconsin his "Philosophy of English Literature." His "Philosophy of Religion" and "Comparative Psychology" ap- peared after he became president of the University of Wisconsin.
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The latter position he held until 1887 when he resigned and returned to Williams College.
Bashford, a discontinued postoffice in Richland county.
Bashford, Coles H., was first republican governor of Wisconsin, 1856 to 1857. He was judicially declared elected by the supreme court as against Barstow, his Democratic opponent. Bashford was afterward charged with receiving railway bonds as a gift from representatives of the La Crosse and Milwaukee Railway, while a measure to give that company a certain congressional land grant was pending in the legislature. An investigation asked for several years later by Bashford found that while he had received the bonds they were given him after the legislature had acted, and without any previous understanding or notice. His death occurred April 25, 1878.
Bassett, a post town with a population of 70 on the C. & N. W. Ry. in Kenosha county, 211/2 miles west of Kenosha, the county seat.
Bass Lake, a postoffice in Langlade county, 15 miles from Antigo, the county seat.
Basswood, a postoffice on Mill Creek in Richland county with a population of 50. It is 10 miles southwest of Richland Center, the county seat.
Batory, a country postoffice in Portage county, 20 miles from Stevens Point, the county seat.
Battle Flags, Wisconsin .- The flag carried to war by the First Wisconsin (3-months) Regiment was presented at Camp Scott, Milwaukee, May 8, 1861, by Mrs. George H. Walker of that city, in behalf of the ladies of Milwaukee. When the regiment, in the following August, returned to the state, the colonel, John C. Stark- weather, kept the flag. Troops after this were enlisted for three years, and the state furnished every regiment with a stand of colors consisting of two flags, one, the stars and stripes; the other, a state flag, or banner. The following joint resolution of the legis- lature of 1863, approved March 25, made this state banner the official Wisconsin flag: "Resolved, By the senate, the assembly concurring, that the following be and is hereby adopted as the de- sign for a state flag for the State of Wisconsin: State flag to be
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cf dark blue silk, with the arms of the State of Wisconsin painted, or embroidered in silk, on the obverse side, and the arms of the United States, as prescribed in paragraph 1435 of the 'New Army Regulations,' painted, or embroidered in silk, on the reverse side; the name of the regiment, when used as a regimental flag, to be in a scroll beneath the state arms. The size of the regimental colors to be six feet six inches fly, and six feet deep on the pike ; the length of the pike for said colors, including spear and ferule, to be nine feet ten inches ; the fringe, yellow ; cords and tassels, blue and white intermixed." The flags of regiments seeing long service, especially of those re-enlisting as veterans, so suffered by exposure to shot and shell and all kinds of weather that the state took them up and gave new ones to take their places. When the troops came home from the war all the flags they brought were turned over to the state to be preserved as most sacred relics of the struggle for the preservation of the Union. They were kept in the capitol until the new historical library near the university was built, when Governor Scofield had them taken there. By act of the legislature of 1901 they were brought back to the capitol rotunda, there to be sealed in glass cases and remain permanently. But at the time of the capitol fire, February 27, 1904, they were hurriedly removed and taken again to the historical library, where they now are. Plans now made for the new capitol provide for them there a safe and permanent receptacle. The most of the old flags are now so frail that they are necessarily covered with muslin gauze to hold them together.
Bayfield .- This is an incorporated village of 2,000 inhabitants at the terminus of the C., St. P., M. & O. Ry. It is on the shore of Lake Superior, and noted as a summer resort. Washburn, the county seat, is 12 miles south. There is a bank and a weekly news- paper, the Bayfield County Press. Bayfield was formerly the county seat, and had a fine court house, but the rapid develop- ment of Washburn as a lumber city, and the consequent increase in population in the southern part of the county, led to the removal of the judicial seat after a sharp contest.
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Bayfield County, the northernmost county of the state, is named in honor of the surveyor of Lake Superior, Lieut. Henry Bayfield of the British navy. Its organization was completed in 1866. The soil is sandy in the northwest section and a clayey loam in the southeastern part. The area of the county is 1406 square miles, and it has a population of 15,904. Washburn is the judicial seat.
Bayfield, Lieut. Henry W., a British officer who made the first survey of the territory contiguous to the Great Lakes. Bayfield county is named in his honor. Lieut. Bayfield made his survey and chart of Lake Superior in 1822-23.
Bay Mill, a discontinued postoffice in Lincoln county.
Bay Settlement, a village with a population of 400 on the shore of Green Bay. It is located in Brown county, 8 miles northeast of the city of Green Bay, the judicial seat of the county.
Bay View, a station of the Milwaukee, Milwaukee county, post- office.
Bay View .- See Sawyer, Door County.
Beach, a discontinued postoffice in Richland county.
Bear Creek .- See Welcome.
Bear Island, one of the group of Apostle Islands in Lake Su- perior under the jurisdiction of Ashland county.
Bears Marsh .- See Cranmoor.
Bear Valley, a post town of 265 inhabitants in Bear Valley. It is on Bear Creek, a water power stream, located in Richland county, 16 miles east of Richland Center, the county seat.
Beatrice, a country postoffice in Adams county, 14 miles north of Friendship, the county seat.
Beauchen, a country postoffice in Sawyer county, 40 miles from Hayward, the county seat. 1
Beaumont, a discontinued postoffice in Racine county.
Beaver, a post town in Marinette county with 200 population. It is on the C., M. & St. P. Ry. and is 18 miles northwest of Marinette, the county seat.
Bear Creek, a discontinued postoffice in Jackson county.
Beaver Dam .- This is an incorporated city of Dodge county, with 5,615 inhabitants. It is well known as a summer resort, being on 4
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the northern division of the C., M. & St. P. Ry. There are two banks, and two newspapers are published, the Argus and the Dodge County Citizen. Wayland Academy, a Baptist institution, is located at Beaver Dam. Juneau, the county seat, is 9 miles southeast.
Beaver Dam River rises in Beaver lake, Dodge county, flowing south to empty into Mud lake in the same county.
Beaver Lake is in Dodge county. Beaver Dam is on its banks. That city is also the nearest rail approach.
Becker .- See Greenville, Outagamie County.
Beechwood, a discontinued postoffice in Sheboygan county.
Beer, Manufacture of .- The first beer made in Wisconsin was brewed in Milwaukee in 1840. At the present time Milwaukee breweries are brewing about 2,250,000 barrels of beer annually.
Beet Sugar Legislation .- The first state legislature, in 1848, passed a measure calculated to encourage the cultivation of sugar beets in the state. Similar laws were passed in 1868 and 1870. In the latter year beet sugar was exempted from taxation. In 1897 the legislature exempted from taxation for a period of 5 years all buildings and machinery used in the manufacture of beet sugar.
Beetown, a post town with a population of 200 in Grant county. It is 12 miles southwest of Lancaster, the county. seat.
Beldenville, a post town in Pierce county on the Trim Belle river and the C., St. P., M. & O. Ry., and 12 miles from Ellsworth, the county seat. Its population is 200.
Belgium, a post town of 75 population on the C. & N. W. Ry. in Ozankee county. It is 9 miles north of Port Washington, the county seat.
Bell, a country postoffice in Bayfield county, 35 miles from Wash- burn, the county seat. It is on the D. S. S. & A. Ry.
Bell Center, a postoffice on the C., M. & St. P. Ry. and the Kicka- poo river in Crawford county. It has a population of 300 and is 35 miles northeast of Prairie du Chier, the county seat.
Belle Plaine, a postoffice of Shawano county, with a population of 50. It is,on the C. & N. W. Ry.
Belleville, an incorporated village in Dane county on the I. C.
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Ry., 18 miles south of Madison, the county seat. The Sugar river runs through the village, which has 2 banks and a weekly news- paper, the Sugar River Recorder. It has a population of 423.
Bellwood, a recently established postoffice in Douglas county.
Belmont, an incorporated village with a population of 513 on the C., M. & St. P. Ry. in La Fayette county, 16 miles northwest of Darlington, the county seat. There is a bank and a weekly news- paper, The Success. The first permanent settlement was in 1868, although in 1836 the first territorial legislature of Wisconsin Terri- tory met here and determined upon Madison as the seat of govern- ment. In 1905, when there was some talk of capitol removal, a bill was introduced in the state senate to make Belmont the capital.
Beloit .- This city with a population of 12,855 is just north of the Illinois state line in Rock county and on both banks of the Rock river. An interurban electric line connecting Rockford, Ill., and Janesville passes through the city and it is also a station on the C., M. & St. P. and C. & N. W. Rys. In Beloit is located Beloit college, one of the best known educational institutions in the state. There are 3 banks and two daily papers, the Free Press and the News. Rock river furnishes abundant water power for many manu- factories.
Beloit College, Founding of .- A conference called by the general convention of the Congregational and Presbyterian churches for the purpose of promoting and establishing Christian educational in- struction in the then new country, including Iowa, Wisconsin and Illinois, met in the village of Beloit in May, 1845. Pursuant to a plan conceived by several members of the convention a number of years before Beloit was selected as the site of a seminary. In Oc- tober of the same year another conference adopted a form of char- ter and elected a board of trustees. In February, 1846, a charter was granted by the legislature. See Colleges and Seminaries.
Benevolent Aid Society, The Patrons' .- This association was organized about 1875 under the auspices of the State Grange, its object being to furnish aid to widows and orphans of its members and incidentally to provide cheap insurance for the order of the
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Patrons of Husbandry. The society has not been generally active for a number of years.
Bennett, a post town of 25 inhabitants in Douglas county. It is on the Middle river and a station of the C., St. P., M. & O. Ry. It was formerly called Bennett's Siding and is 24 miles southeast of Superior, the county seat.
Bennett Law .- Chapter 519, Laws of 1889, which afterward became famous as the Bennett Law, overthrew the Republican party in Wisconsin , elected two democrats as U. S. senators and gave the electoral vote of the state to Grover Cleveland in 1892. The general provisions of the law were not objectionable, but two clauses aroused the suspicions of the Roman Catholic and the Lutheran churches, that the purpose was to destroy their parochial schools. The offensive clauses were: (1) "No school shall be re- garded as a school under this act unless there shall be taught therein as part of the elementary education of children, reading, writing and U. S. history in the English language." (2) "That a child shall attend school in the town or district in which he resides." W. D. Hoard was governor and when the law was attacked he defended it. The Catholics and Lutherans organized their congregations throughout the state to fight Governor Hoard and his party and succeeded in electing the democratic ticket with Geo. W. Peck at its head by a majority of over 30,000.
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