A Series of Firsts

 

 

September 18, 1892 Oshkosh Northwestern

 

All too often, the route to one thing leads to riches in another; I found this article while looking up something else.  Some of this has been covered before in this blog, but it's nice to see it all in one concise place.   The Mr. Harney referenced in the first paragraph has been mentioned numerous times here before.  Richard Harney authored the 1880 History of Winnebago County and included many of these facts in those pages, 

Consolidation Defeated

 October 10, 1973 Appleton Post-Crescent

 

Last week's blog post about the joint city hall presaged the effort, once more, to try to consolidate the Twin Cities, this time in 1973.  In addition to the consolidation vote, there was a referendum to develop Menasha's Main Street by a mall developer into something other than, what was termed in another article, "tavern-town."  In 1973, this referendum passed.  However, with the passage of time, the original developer dropped out, the effort lost steam and the radical redevelopment foreseen for the downtown area never did take hold.

Clovis Farm

Clovis Farm, circa 1912, stands on land later donated to the city by Alva Grove in memory of his mother, Melissa Clovis.  This land ultimately became the site of Clovis Grove Elementary School in 1958 and Clovis Grove Park in 1963.

photo courtesy Neenah Public Library

"...Affording Unequaled Service..."

 

April 1, 1891 Oshkosh Northwestern

The original Wisconsin Central Railroad Company was established by an act of the Wisconsin State Legislature and incorporated in February 1871. It built track throughout Wisconsin, connecting to neighboring states, before being leased to the Northern Pacific Railway between 1889–1893.  It became the Wisconsin Central Railway Company in 1897, and back to Wisconsin Central Railroad Company in 1954. The railroad was merged into the Soo Line Railroad in 1961.

 

The railroad was organized in Menasha at the National Hotel in 1871.  This plaque was dedicated in 1955 by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin and mounted to the Hotel Menasha.  One hopes the plaque will somehow remain, regardless of what is built on the former site.

map source : 1898revenues.blogspot.com

 

Joint City Hall?

 

September 24, 1963 Appleton Post-Crescent

 

In the once neverending quest to merge the Twin Cities, this article discusses the need for a joint City Hall, if indeed, such efforts would ever come to fruition.  Studies went on for years and of course, we know the merger never happened, having been soundly defeated in October of 1973 by an overwhelming 4 to 1 margin.  More on that next week.

Standing on Racine

We first met young Mr. Loescher back in January.  See this link:

http://menashabook.blogspot.com/2014/01/clarence-loescher.html

Here, in an alternate photograph, Clarence, having now dismounted, now stands in front of his father's hardware store on the Racine Street side.  The exposure problems give his horse an otherworldly appearance.  This photo dates from, roughly, 1905/1906 or thereabouts.

photo courtesy, Menasha Public Library

Fritse Park Mounds

 photo from the Twin City News-Record, purported to be circa 1960

courtesy, A Brief Histiory of the Town of Menasha

 

The photo above and the accompanying article raise doubts in my mind regarding these Indian mounds.  Current references about Fritse Park state that there was a "reconstruction" effort to replicate the mound or mounds that were lost in 1863 when the railroad bridge was built, to include specific markers about this reconstruction effort.  See the link below:

 

http://wisconsinhistoricalmarkers.blogspot.com/2014/07/fritse-park-indian-mound-reconstruction.html

 

However, this 1960-ish photo above states that the mounds were always there and were not destroyed. Not to mention that there were 20 to 25 of them?!  Other current literature I've reviewed does not even mention the mounds shown in this photo.  What happened?  And what is meant by "Centennial Discovery" in the photo caption? The centennial of the bridge being built in 1863? The centennial of the Village of Menasha being founded in 1856?    That article about the founding of Fritse Park doesn't mention 20 to 25 mounds either. 

 

I appeal to you, dear readers, what IS the right answer?  Do you know what the real story is here?