Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1873-07-03

thus thInned out, was still further
crippled by violent dissentions and
Jealousies among its supporters, and
it never survived the war.
Mr.. Parsons removed to Dubuque.
The fine academy building went to
decay; and became an eye-sore to
the citizens and blemish upon the
landscape. 1t is now being recon-
structed into o fine church.
Several Intellectual attempts were
made to revive the school. The pub
lie school was kept in ruinous little
building, and amounted to but little.
Tho town was rapidly losing its lit
crary caste.
Finally, in the summer of 1870,
the district succeeded in erecting q
public school building. But a good
teacher was wanting until Mr.. P.
BARLEY was secured, since when our
village has been rapidly regaining
its educational status.
CHURCHES.
About the time the village was
started the Congregationalists talked
OF building church in the vicinity.
Those interested in Tafton tried to
induce the Society to build their
church in the village, but the latter
had other views. A town called
Waveland was projected about one
mile west of Tafton and the church
built Gin 1855 we believe On the site
of the talked of town. After waiting
vainly for eighteen years for the
town to grow up, the church has late
~ "gone west" to the vicinity of Mr..
McIvor's.
In 1862 the Baptist church was
built-the first one in the village
In 1871 the Methodist church was
finished and dedicated.
GROWTH.
The period of the most rapid growth
of the village was from the spring of
1858 to the breaking out of the war.
Two years ago the place seemed de-
clining, but this summer number of
improvements are going on.
NAME.
When the village was laid ont it
was named TaftoD. When after war
ward the post-office and town ship
were established, they took their
name from the village. In its early
career, when half dozen houses
comprised the village, it received
from the people of the neighboring
villages and country, the contemp-
tuous nickname of 'Plugtown.' But
this Sobriquet did not extinguish the
place. 1t grew rapidly, and it's
neighbors soon spoke of it with
has Sc been SO long II nd disuse eI as c. Be-
remembered only by our oldest citi-
zens. But the name Tafton, though
quite euphonious, became disagreea-
bic to many of our citizens, who sue
ceeded, in 1867, in having it removed
from the village, post-office and
township, and substituting for it the
strikingly original name of Bloom
ington. OF this latter name we shall
say more hereafter.
MAILS, &c.
A post>office was established here
in 1855. The mail was then carried
from Lancaster to West Union, Iowa,
by this Office. Previously efforts
had been made to get a side mail
from Beetown, but the postmaster
at Beetown did not favor the scheme.
He said there would never be more
mail for this place than q man could
carry in hat. But times have chang
ed and it would now take a larger
hat than was ever carried at the
head of Greeley procession to hold
one OF our mails from the east. Next
week we may give some statistics of
the business Of our p. o. About
year after the establishment of the
Office, a route from Potosi was secur-
ed. When the NJ. & p, du G. r. r.
was completed we got our present
route from Prairie du Chen to Lam
caster. This mail, a tri-weekly, does
not give US the mail facilities the
place should have. Its business
needs and deserves daily mail from
the railroad.