newsletter_2006_august.htm

In Memory of Franklin B. Farvour (1919-2006)

Frank contributed in innumerable ways to the Ripon Historical Society. The texts of the various eulogies given at his funeral, held in the Great Hall at Ripon College with military honors, are in the Farvour family file in the Society archives. The eulogy by George Miller follows.

Frank was a remarkable man. I got to know him quite well through our involvement with the Ripon Historical Society. And I was constantly amazed by the breadth of his interests, of his experience, of his knowledge. It was a standing joke at the Society, if a question concerning Ripon history that we couldn’t answer came up, the solution was always “call Frank.” Local history was one of his major interests, although he always protested that he was just an amateur. This was misleading to say the least. Frank literally knew the City of Ripon and its history from the ground up, partly because he had lived here all his life, and because of his work as a surveyor, but mainly because of his scholarly attitude toward everything he touched. He knew how Ripon had been put together, how it was built, how it was related to the land—things professional historians are apt to overlook.

Fortunately Frank liked to write and he wrote very well. Many of his stories and articles were published in local newspapers and scholarly journals. Others became programs for historical societies and professional conferences. In other words, his knowledge became a matter of record. His most recent contribution to the history of Ripon was an autobiography in four separate volumes dealing with his relations with his grandfather, his military service, his own life in Ripon, and a series of his stories and recollections. Altogether his writings are a major source for the history of Ripon in the 20^th Century. Here, as in so many of his activities, there was a serious purpose. His writings gave him pleasure but they also provided a public service. Frank was a perennial volunteer, a volunteer in the service of his community and his country, asking nothing in return. He was a remarkable man. We can all find inspiration in his example.

Our last newsletter announced that Frank would present the April 20 program on Petroglyphs, the "rock art" of ancient peoples. Frank passed away on April 13, so the meeting became an open forum “Memories of Frank Farvour,” giving family and friends an opportunity to share special recollections of Frank and the many ways in which he had touched their lives.

The Society has received a number of memorial gifts in Frank’s name.

“Little Charlie” Now in Pedrick-Lawson Garden

A small, worn marble tombstone that originally marked the grave of Charlie Pedrick, son of Marcellus and Mary Pedrick, has been repaired and placed in the backyard garden of the Pedrick-Lawson house. Charlie was born in 1862 and died when only a year old. The tombstone was later replaced by a more durable one. The first stone was recently found in two pieces and donated to the Historical Society. Since Charlie was the son of the original owners of this home built in 1858, it seemed appropriate to place the tombstone in the garden of his parents’ home. Thanks to Gene Kain, Ripon College Art Department, and Kent Gallaway, the tombstone was repaired and set in the garden this summer.

Volunteer News

Several volunteers are new to us or are providing a special service. Norm Penke works on maintenance at Pickard House. Several summer gardeners are at work: Beth Homan-Combs, Barbara Scott, Don Amsden, Sue McConnell, and Katie Wild. Audrey Wesner, Tami Hubbard, and Kristine Moodie type society records.

Society Receives Major Bequest

Your Society recently received a major bequest of over $50,000 from the estate of Leone Hoffman, who died last year. Leone was a long-time friend and supporter of the Society. She provided an earlier gift that now sustains our museum and archival Collections operations. Leone contributed a great deal of time to restoring, maintaining, and developing the gardens. Her approach also inspired other gardeners to carry on this work.

Ripon College Summer Interns

What a difference our summer interns made! This year the Society had two excellent Ripon College students as interns. Jessica Fuoco, a senior majoring in education, created our first “traveling trunk,” a hands-on educational tool. Jessica used a new manual “Creating a Traveling Trunk Program” by Maureen Betz as her guide. Her trunk, filled with a variety of artifacts, was well done, and we plan to lend it to schools and other adult groups including nursing homes in the year ahead.

Lisa Verwys, a senior majoring in English and history, was busy in the archives. She examined each of our subject boxes and subject folders, did any necessary reorganization, and entered the contents into our museum software program. Her diligence and skill resulted in the completion of the accessioning of the archival boxes, making these documents and pictures more readily available in the Locator File and on the computer for researchers.

New Board Members

Katie Wild and Lara Grant have joined the Ripon Historical Society Board. Katie is a master gardener and has taken on the responsibility of managing the gardens. Lara brings to us a special expertise in genealogy.

Membership

Please welcome the following new members of the Society: Nancy Baker, Sue Kohl, Ralph Sherwood, Anna Sherwood, Lara Grant, Jeffrey Pick, and Ralph and Sarah Colonna.

Guided Tours Beginning

Joyce Rudolph, a member of our board, is sponsoring Sunday guided tours of all our buildings and grounds from 1:00-3:00 on August 13 and 27 and September 10 and 24. Volunteers will be available to guide the tours, which will start at Pickard House, 508 Watson Street. These summer tours are open to anyone who would like to come. Plan to arrive any time between 1:00 and 2:30.

New Tree at Pedrick-Lawson House

A celebrity maple tree was added to the front lawn of Pedrick-Lawson House this summer. It is in memory of Oleen Amsden, wife of member and volunteer Don Amsden. A plaque recognizing the memorial and its donor is placed in front of the tree.

Obituary Database

Early in 2004, Andy Lyke set up a computer database index for all obituaries that appear in the Ripon Commonwealth Press and all obituaries in the Oshkosh Daily Northwestern in which the word “Ripon” appears anywhere in the text. For two years, Audrey Lyke has been bringing home bound copies of the Commonwealth and catching up on 40 years of missing records. The index, which now contains about 8000 records, is up to date and a continuation plan is in place.

In Honored Glory

Peter Heckmanns, a young man who lives with his wife and two little boys in Kerkrade, The Netherlands, has put up a website at http://in-honored-glory.info to express his gratitude to the allied forces who gave his country their freedom from the Nazis. His goal is to record the stories of as many World War II veterans as possible—no matter what role they played. Jean Woolley is collecting stories for Peter. When the story of a Ripon person is finished, a printed copy goes to the family file in our Historical Society archives. George Miller is putting the final touches on his story. Already on the website and in the files at the Society are the stories of Mary Alice and Bob Wilkinson and Arden Gatzke. The picture shows Peter in his home working on Arden’s story. As it turns out, Arden’s tank division is the one that liberated the area where Peter lives. Individuals who are interested in contributing their own story or that of a friend or relative may contact Peter directly through the website or Jean Woolley at 748-2260. It is not necessary to use a computer to do this as Jean is willing to do the typing and technical work.

Bits of Ripon History

Whenever possible, we like to use a portion of the newsletter to feature personal accounts or material from our archives that tell something about Ripon’s past. We welcome contributions from our readers! Please send your stories to Jean Woolley, 611 Hillside Terrace, Ripon, WI 54971 or email them to: woolley611@yahoo.com.

(Editor’s Note: My home computer was the backup station for some of Frank Farvour’s stories. Frank and I selected one of those for the April newsletter, which was in the mail the day he died. I am printing another one in this issue, which is dedicated to Frank. I’m sure he would approve.)

The Barlow & Seelig Hardware Fire

By Franklin B. Farvour

At about five o’clock in the morning of Sunday, April 22, 1922 the steam fire whistle at the electric generating plant shattered the morning quiet. A passerby had seen smoke coming from Barlow & Seelig’s hardware store and turned in the alarm. The volunteer fire department had their first chance to put the new Winther fire truck to work. It was the unit’s first challenge and it proved its worth to everyone’s complete satisfaction. According to the newspaper account of the fire, it was stationed at the corner of Watson and Blossom Streets and provided two high pressure water delivery lines to the fire.

It appeared the fire had started in the rear of the second floor of the hardware store and quickly burned through to the third floor. It also penetrated the North wall of the building to ignite the grocery store next door. Early on it was feared it might also ignite the building to the South and perhaps involve the whole block. Assistance was requested from the Berlin fire department; their Seagrave truck and six men were immediately dispatched. Although they arrived in twenty eight minutes the Ripon firefighters had contained the blaze in the interim. The second and third floors of the hardware store were seriously damaged and the grocery store considered a total loss.

The fire was more dangerous than many and six firemen suffered injury fighting it. Chief Dodge suffered cuts from falling glass that required six stitches to close. Two other fireman suffered similar injuries, two from smoke inhalation and one fell from a ladder onto the roof of an adjoining building. According to the newspaper account, volunteers from the crowd of onlookers stepped into their places and did yeoman service in fighting the fire.

My namesake grandfather, Frank P. Farvour, was a building contractor and a good customer of Barlow & Seelig. As a result, he was hired to rebuild both of the buildings. What you now see as Farrell’s Furniture and Diedrich’s Jewelry are the products of his work.

I well remember his telling me about that building project. Of how, on a Sunday afternoon, he was at the site planning the coming week’s work. The North wall of the building had been so seriously damaged that it needed to be taken down to the level of the third floor and rebuilt. The masonry sub-contractor dutifully dismantled the wall and piled the stone on the fire damaged third floor. As he put it, “There must have been a hundred tons of stone in that pile and I was under it time and again, I just stepped out of the second floor into the alley when the whole works went through to the basement. Thirty seconds sooner and I sure wouldn’t be here now!” He shrugged his shoulders and continued laconically, “I guess my time just hadn’t come yet.”

RIPON HISTORICAL SOCIETY OFFICERS
President	Todd Berens
Vice President	Michele Benson
Secretary	Shirley Williams
Treasurer	Bill Woolley

NEWSLETTER: AUGUST 2006