Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1895-07-03

Southport's first president, Kenosha's first
mayor and the father of the public free
school system of the Northwest. The
date was, after some delay, fixed upon as
Friday, June %.
The third biennial reunion and banquet
of the Kenosha High School Alumni as
ISOLATION was the first event in the days
programme. This was held at the high
school building commencing at 80 p. H.,
and is to continue through this evening.
This gathering is made noteworthy by the
fact that it is the fftieth anniversary of
the founding of the Kenosha free school
system in which Col. Frank played a
prominent part. A large number of the
old pupils who began their school days in
the beginning and others who have gradu
ated ali along the years since then are in
attendance. Some of them have gone to
other parts of the country to make their
homes and have Judge professor"
colonel" honorable and various other
handles attached to their names, but here
they met today as the boys and girls they
used to be and have become for the occa>
sion simply Tom, Dick, Harry and May.
Among the features of this section OF
the programme are a paper by Col. John
g. McMynn on THE Events Preceding
1858 as They Relate to Our Schools"
Joseph Y. Quarles was the postmaster.
Prof. Mary d. Bradford read the paper
on Col. Franks life and character. Col;
Dennis Hynes told of the Free School
Boys of Kenosha in the War for the
Union" George w. Waryille pleasantly
referred to THE Kenosha Club in Chi
cago." large number of the old pupils
have been arriving he for the past sew
eral days, but the grea Ter portion came
up from Chicago this morning, which city
is inhabited by large colony of old he
nosha high school graduates.
The hand shaking, banquet and pro-
gramme of this association are expected
to close at 80 this evening. Then com
mences the programme in which the gen
eral public of Kenosha is to take a more
prominent part. The alumni meeting
dealt almost altogether with Col. Franks
efforts to establish the first free school
west of Boston. This evenings meeting
will show the official, citizen and home
sides of his life. The meeting is to be
held in the auditorium of the high school
building. ExMayor Emory L. Grant will
preside over the exercises. The pro-
gramme will include speeches by Mayor
William NJ Farr on the colonePs official
life, Col. j. @. McMynn of Madison on
the colonels character, Prof. Mary ID.
Bradford of Stevens Point on his love
as an editor, and possibly by others whose
names are not on the programme. The
speeches will be interspersed by songs by
Miss Lily Runals, who has a national
reputation as singer OF sacred music.
and by Miss Belle Head. These eXer
council and school board in bodies.
Col. NJ Frank died at the age of 80
years December y, 1894. He was born
in Virgil, CORTLAND county, n. Y, De
cember p, 1904 His early life was spent
in that vicinity largely in much reading
and study. He had u special fondness
for newspapers, but there were few of
them in those early days. He very early
developed passion for the discussion of
politics. He never had the advantage
as he became of age his public life be-
gan as an Inspector of common schools
and he was the youngest man ever chosen
supervisor in his native county. lie very
early identified himself with the anti
slavery societies and subscribed for the
''Emancipa tor" at the time that Postmas-
ter-General Amos Kendall declared it an
incendiary publication unit to pass
through the mails.
He came to Wisconsin with his wife,
whom he married in 1927, in October of
1899, and at once made Southport his
perance appeal to the people of the terri
tory through the Wisconsin Enquirer,
published in Madison. He remained a
staunch friend of temperance all the re-
mainder of his life. In June, 1910, he
associated himself with G. L. Sholes as
editor of the Southport Telegraph. His
connection with that paper continued to
y
death, altogether fifty-two years. That
same year Southport was incorporated as
a village and be became its first president.
Upon the incorporation of the city in
1850 he became its first mayor. 1t was
during his term as mayor that what is
known to early Wisconsin history as the
wheat riots" took place here. He dealt
with this affair firmly and won the adj
miration of all. even of the rioters.
Col Frank was elected a member of the
territorial council for 1913, 1914, 1915
and 1916 AS soon as he took hold of
the Telegraph he began the agitation for
a free public school. His opposition was
very strong. When he got into the terri
torial council he carried his hobby with
him, and in 1915 finally succeeded in
securing the necessary legislation to the
establishment of the school. His measure
was declared impracticable and the pro-
viso was tackled on that it must be sub
mitted to and accepted by a majority of
the legal voters of the town before it
could go into effect. At the first meet
ing called for voting on the measure the
excitement ran so high that no vote could
be taken and the meeting broke up in
confusion. The injustice of taxing those
who had no children to educate, to pay
for the education of their neighbors'
children, was so strongly pressed that
poor men unable to pay for the schooling
of their own children thought such a law
unreasonable Col. Frank perseyered in
his arguments until at q second meeting
the law was approved. The system soon
became very popular and the first school
established here continued until it was
merged into the free school system un-
der the state constitution.
Col. Frank was elected a state senator