River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1897-12-16

III was Thought JndJ tneSe arrange
ments, which were fully completed
prior TO 1872, concluded the burden o
the towns responsibilities and anxi
eties. 1t was not, however, till Jul.
IL, 1873. that the Board of Regent
passed a resolution confirming The
selection OF site made by the loca
ting committee and formally annOun
ced the establishment of the fourth
Normal school at River Falls. In the
meantime, the cOmmunity's hope:
went up and down, and the JOURNAL
of those days published periodical let
tiers advising its readers of all the in
formation that could be procured, anC
admonishing patience. The locating
committee met several times at Mad
iSOn, finally deciding on the Bracket
site, and appointing Judge Lyndes OF
La Crosse special committee TO look
after the abstracts and titles. In re-
spouse to his letter of April "a, 1873
the deed TO the property was executed
on April 2S by F. b. Bracket and wife
and forwarded 10 him without delay
The deed included clear title to a
plot Of ten and one quarter acres
which cost the community Sl,075.
This amount was raised entirely by
contribution through the judiciOus eff
forts of Osborn Strahl. The farmers
contributed largely to this fund, and
scarcely a man refused 10 give aid ac-
cOrding TO his means. AS the
subscriptions were not due till
the autumn of 1873, Mr.. Brackett
agreed to wait till that time for his
pay, Mr.. Strahl and several Others
amply securing him. About the mid
die OF May of this year, when the ac-
Invites in behalf of the Normal again
began TO thiCken, Mr.. Strahl sent a
communication TO the JOURNAL call
ing attention to the progress made
toward establishing the coveted
school. He mentioned, in the course
Of his very interesting letter, the pro-
vision which had been made at a re-
cent meeting held in Agricolitan Hall
NOW the home OF the Odd Fellows
for furnishing the Normal site with
shade trees. At the conclusion of his
letter he emphasized the vital i'm
pOrtance of the influence which was
bound to emanate from the Normal
and give tone TO the growing COM
munity. He added these significant
words: And when fully con- pleted
this institution will be no portable
collegiate Institute, but will stand al
most as steadfast as the distant hills. :"
With the exception of letter from
Prof. A. III. Weld on July Is, append
ing the resolution, previously refer
red to, that was passed July III by the
Board of Regents, of which Prof
Weld was a member, no further COM
ment on the Normal School question
in the columns OF the
JOURNAL until early in October. BY
the seventh of this month even editor
Abner Morse. who seems TO have
understood the situation quite as well
as anyone, and whose tone, through
out, had been one of the staunchest
optimism, felt called upon TO voice
the protest of his readers. This pro-
test was against the weary periods OF
inaction. For five years the COM
munity had been striving for the
school, encouraged by positive as
that it was coming their
way, yet up to this time not even the
plans of an architect had been para
ded before their eXpectant eyes. And
so the JOURNAL protested. "All the
required OF our citizens,
il argued, "have been complied with:
the So, 900 cash in hand demanded of
us, was long since in the hands Of the
state treasurer, subject TO the Orde
of the Board, the site has been select
ed, the deed of the same duly execul
ed, delivered and recorded" Why
then, il inquired, was nothing done?
The process for securing a Normal
School was not so well known in the
early seventies as now. News did not
travel so fast, and only direct com
f.., 3 f,,r, af n
town like River Falls, which had not
yet secured a railroad. The village
was connected by stage with Hudson
and Prescott; the greater part of the
freight, including the output of the
mills, was carried to Hudson by trains
of mule-wagOns, which labOred out of
town at early morning and came
jangling back again at night. Under
these conditions, it is not surprising
that the people murmured at the lack
of direct information and the long
delay. Even with the intelligence
furnished by Prof. Yields letters and
that secured by Mr.. Abner Morse on
his special trips to Madison, together
with the information gathered by
Hon. O. 5. Powell and Hon. G. ID.
Parker, the returns received by the
community seemed scant indeed COM
pared to the large amount of money
which il had invested.
But in good time the peoples pro-
test brought its response, and the
architect, in the person OF ID. r. Jones
of Madison, appeared before the
public. His plans were discussed with
hearty commentator by the Madison
State Journal for Decem Der 5. In early
January Of 1874 they were displayed to
contractors, and advertisements solic-
iting bids for the work. to be COM
pleted and ready for occupancy by
August 1915, were published over the
signatures of Regents Starr and
Chandler. From this time forward,
the community had no criticisms to
offer: well content with its efforts, it
smiled PLEASANTLY upcn the build
ers, and the work moved gayly to its
close.
1t is depressing to reflect that of all
these men who were most actively
engaged in this enterprise less than a
quarter OF a century ago. only two or
three have survived the buffetings OF
time. Most OF them departed from
the stage long ago: some in smiling
contentment, the sands in their hour
glass nearly run, their faculties still
in tact and the applause of the people
i'm their ears: others. checked short In
their vigorous pigments, left the
stage with pathetic hesitation. speak
ing their parts with un wonted pauses,
and but dimly remembering the
grandeur of their former roles; one,
at least. went with shocking violence,
his stalwart deeds still thick about
him, his dearest hopes still centered
in the future. and his heart so kindly
as to touch the unsounded depths OF
sym pathy. 1t is TO these men anC
their contemporaries that we owe
most Of our present comforts. 1t /:
because OF them that We now wall
the solid highways in and about The
town. that We live In com fortablt
dwellings with gardens at the dCOi
and civilization calling TO Us from th'
road
In speaking OF the services OF these
pioneer workers in the Normal cause
we should not fail to bring into ,lst
prominence the unfagging interes
and cooperation Of the mem bers o
the Board OF Regents, and especial!