The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1929-06-14

! !.
as the G. o. P. because its adherents
III ii pointing with pride to its achieve
IL ments, among them the fact that in
Ill eighteen Presidential elections since it
Ii was founded it has been victorious
III II thirteen times, call it the "Grand Old
IL Party"), celebrated its seventy-ffth
lyI birthday this month. And thereby
hangs "a tale of two cities" or rather
the tale of the rivalry of two cities for the honor
Of being known the birthplace of the Repub-
lican party" The two cities are Ripon, Wis, and
Jackson, Mich.
In support of it's claim residents of Ripon will
take you to a little white schoolhouse and show
you the tablet beside the door on which you may
read, SIN this schoolhouse March 20, 1854, was
held the first mass meeting in this country that
definitely and positively cut loose from old parties
and advocated a new party under the name Repub
lican." In celebration of that event there was
held on the campus of Ripon college, centering
about that historic schoolhouse, recently, pag
cant depicting the growth of the Republican par
ty and a celebration of the diamond jubilee of the
party. The principal speakers at this event were
James w. Good, secretary of war in President
end Walter j. Kohler, Repub-
Ican governor of Wisconsin.
Residents of jackson, Mich, in support Of their
claim to the honor, will take you to group of oaks
standing at Second and Franklin streets and tell
you that here the Republican party was born on
July g. 1854, when the name Republican was
adopted by convention of state delegates Wheth-
er the Republican party was born on March ~, or
July g. 1854, and whether its birthplace was Rpon,
Wis, or Jackson, Mich. is relatively unimportant.
compared to the event ITSELF the critical era in our
history during which it took place and the signfi-
cant aftermath of that event.
The Republican party was born at time when
the dispute slavery was at its height. 1t grew
out of the growing opposition to slavery as an in
sttution especially in the states which had been
formed from the old Northwest territory. In ac-
cordance with the famous ordinance Of 1857 the
Northwest territory was to have no slavery within
its boundaries after the year 1900 The ordinance
gave to the owners of fugitive slaves the right to
recover them even after the runaways had escaped
beyond the Ohio, but as a matter of fact the
"undergrounds railroads" which aided escaping
slaves to their freedom were active throughout
this territory The northern part of the territory
was once known Michigan and included the
present states of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota
and a part of Dakota. Wisconsin became state
in 1S4S and from its beginning as commonwealth
was dominated by ardent foes of slavery.
Two years after Wisconsin became state there
came to the town of Ripon from New York man
who was to give Ripon its claim to the title of
birthplace of the Republican party" He was
Avan Earle Bovay, born in Jefferson county, New
York, July -, 1918, and a lawyer by profession.
Bovay soon became a leading citizen in the little
hamlet of Ripon and his best friend was Jededah
Bowen, the principal merchant OF the place. Inere
were only about hundred voters in Ripon at the
time but they had wide choice Of parties for 1t
was at time in American history when the lines
which separated the traditional Wings and Demo-
Gratis were breaking down and new parties were
constantly being formed
Bovay himself was Wing and an eloquent and
ardent one He was mot so partisan however but
that he recognized his party was likely to crumble
at any time from the dscOrdant factors within it.
The dispute slavery was becoming more acute
all the time. The great leaders who had sought
some way of reconcng the differences between
the North and the South over the slavery question
were in their graves and the threat of disunion
and possible civil war was already looming over
the horizon. II seems that in 1852 Boyay suggested
that strong antislavery party be formed to be
called the Republican party He preached the sub
ject while on visit to New York city to- Horace
Greeley, the famous editor of the New York Trib.
une. But nothing came of the suggestion at that
time.
Two years later matters reached crisis when
on January %. the famous Kansas Nebraska bill
was introduced into congress- Kansas and Ne
braska were to be admitted as territories with
power to do they pleased about slavery, despite
the fact that the Missouri Compromise of 1920 had
forbidden slaves in any states or territories north