The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-01-12
DING WORK THAT COUNTS.
Sixth Ward Improvement Association Working
for the Benefit of the West Side.

The Sixth Ward Improvement associa-
ton promises to figure largely in the in
dustrial and commercial life of st. Paul,
particularly in that portion of the city
lying on the west side of the Mississippi
river.
This association, which consists Of most
of the prominent business men of that
section, has for it's avowed object the
improvement and betterment of the West
side, particularly with the design Of
making it great manufacturing center.
The area to be covered includes, besides
the Sixth ward, the towns lying con-
tiguous to it, as their interests are nat
urally bound and identical with those of
the West side. These towns and the ter
ritory generally included in the work
of the club are South st. Paul West St.
Paul, Mendoza township, Mendoza village,
Inver Grove and Egan township, making
a total population of 24S34 persons in
all.
The purpose of the association, as set
forth in a little book issued by it
for the benefit of the club and of in
tending members, is explained to be to
encourage and assist our growing in
dustrial interests, to facilitate the i'm
provement of all West side roads lead
ing to our city, and to provide other con-
veniences beneficial to the incoming
farmers and others, as well as to aid in
keeping down taxes, and to protect the
business interests of the people of the
Sixth ward.
The club is unique in some respects in
its organization, and every member has
committee work to do, being assigned to
that committee upon which il is supposed
he will do the most good as soon as he
joins the association. This the mem
bers say, serves several purposes, as all
the members are active, and the new
member becomes at once vitality inter-
ested in the work. 1t also prevents a
large inert body of members with no i'm
mediate or personal interest i'll the asso-
citation or its objects.
The standing committees are divided
into those having in special charge man
ufactories, railroads, education, taxes,
statistics, finance, auditing and street
lighting and legislation.
The present club began it's existence
on June s. 1901 when a few business
men of the ward met in E. A. THEM S
office and banded themselves together
into an association devoted to the general
interests of the West side and having
as an especial purpose the building up
of that section of the city as a manu-
featuring center. The first members
were Judge E. H. Wood, f. B. Doran
w. r. Shaw, Paul Martin, Eugene Viii
laume, George Whitwell, Louis Yoerg,
Henry j. Peters, Charles S. Schurman.
For the temporary organization F. B.
Doran was elected president and E. H
Wood secretary, and when the organiza-
ton became permanent the same officers
were elected. The association now
boasts over 1870 members, with additions
every day.
One of the most active and energetic
promoters of the association is Paul Mar
tin, who has done much to increase the
membership.
The tabled Phoenix has been selected
by them as an appropriate emblem tai
ing into conjunction the fact that this
club has risen full fedged from the ashes
OF dead booms and defunct societies of
a somewhat similar nature, but of weak
and uncertain growth. This symbolic
bird appears upon all their stationery.
upon the postal cards sent out to notify
members of the next meeting, in the lit
tie pamphlet explanatory of their aims.
and containing their bylaws and, in
fact, upon all their belongings.
OF the charter members all have lived
on the west side of the river for from
htteen to thirty years. Judge E. H.
Wood, the secretary, has been a West
side resident for some thirty years: Paul
Martin has lived there for TWENTY-FIVE
years; +. 2. Doran, the president, about
twenty-five, and Messrs. c. S. Schur-
man, H. J. Peters and George WhitweIl
about the same length of time. w. r.
Shaw acknowledges a residence of some
fifteen or sixteen years. and e. A. THEM
five or six, and all firmly believe that
the West side is destined to be the great
manufacturing section of the city
The club went through quite a long pro-
cess OF incubation previous to the June
meeting, resulting in the present club
AS far back as April 1901, the matter
had begun to be agitated, and a tenn
porary organization effected, of which
August Hohenstein was chairman and
Charles S. Schllrman secretary but this
attempt died finally of hamilton, only to
spring later into full bloom as the West
Side Improvement association of today.
The present growth and Improvement
promises, so the club believes, to be solid
and steady, and entirely different from
the various booms which In former times
struck the town. The boom has been a
perennial feature on the West
side, according to the ''oldest
inhabitant'' and the first one
was started perhaps. hundred wears
ago. 1t broke out afresh in 1880, again In
1882, and once more in 1888 The present
movement, however, bears no resen-
blance to these booms, and its promises
as to the future, though neither so
gaudy, nor yet SO giittering, are based On