May 15
Program to Feature Area Sculptor
If you
haven’t attended a program lately, you still have one more chance this spring.
Our speakers have been fascinating, our meeting room is nearly always filled
to capacity, our audience participation is lively, and the refreshments are
tasty. Programs start at 7:00 PM.
Photo of Shaler contributed by Jim Laird
Our May
program, presented by Jim Laird, will feature the life and sculpture of
Clarence Addison Shaler. If you have a chance
to stroll through the Ripon College campus, notice a statue of Abe Lincoln
near Farr Hall and one of a woman’s face emerging
from a boulder near West Hall. Both are the work of Clarence
Shaler, who graduated from Ripon College.
Shaler was born in Mackford
Prairie, Wisconsin, on May 29, 1860. After graduating, he started
manufacturing umbrellas and other inventions in Waupun. Eventually he made a
fortune through his invention of vulcanized tire patches in the early days of
the automobile industry. Being wealthy allowed him to retire in 1928 and
devote his time to his hobby of sculpting, which reached a professional level.
Shaler Hall, one of the Tri-Dorms at Ripon
College, is named for him. Come to the program to see and learn more about
Shaler from Jim Laird, who lives in Waupun, where
numerous Shaler sculptures are located. Jim has
done a great deal of research on Shaler and his
work and produced a DVD, which he will share at the program.
Ripon’s
150th Birthday Celebration Started Here
On March
20, 1858, the charter for the City of Ripon was approved. On March 20, 2008,
at the Ripon Historical Society, the city held the first in a series of events
to celebrate the 150th anniversary of its founding. Mayor Aaron
Kramer presented a proclamation; a representative from Rep. Tom Petri’s office
presented a U.S. flag that had flown over the nation’s capitol, and Paula
Price of the Chamber of Commerce gave the official kick-off message for the
celebration year.
Ripon
Postal History
Photo contributed by Paula Price
Tom
Worrall, the son and grandson of postmasters, began collecting postal
memorabilia when he was a little boy. With great enthusiasm and the help of a
projector, Tom showed and talked about Ripon-related pieces from his
collection—stamps, envelopes, postmarks, and the like—at our March 20 meeting.
To the great surprise of audience member Opal Griffiths, one of Tom’s
envelopes was addressed to her father! As usual, members of the audience asked
questions and contributed additional information, making this another very
interesting and interactive program.
Welcome
to the Historical Society, Robert and Suzanne Lennox
Robert and
Suzanne Lennox of Hinsdale, Illinois, purchased the Zobel
House at 603 Watson Street last October and plan to do some renovating this
spring. They are very excited about the home, its history, and its
150-year-old Linden trees. They have joined our Historical Society as life
members and are using our archives to learn more about the house. Bob and
Suzanne have longstanding Ripon roots. Both graduated from Ripon College.
Generations earlier, Suzanne’s grandmother, Mabel Kennedy, and Aunt, Barbara
Baldwin De Frees, were music majors at Ripon College. Being able to learn
about and care for the home where the Zobels
taught music is especially meaningful to the Lennox family.
What’s
New on Watson Street?
The man
with answers to that question, Craig Tebon of
Ripon Main Street, presented a program on April 17.
We learned
details about the strategic plan for downtown and engaged in a lively exchange
of comments, questions, and answers. Craig also showed a number of old
pictures he’s collected recently. He said many of the pictures in the Ripon
Main Street collection have been loaned by people who want to keep them. Craig
can scan a picture to create an electronic image without damaging the original
in any way. If you have interesting old pictures of the Ripon area please
contact Craig at (920) 748-7466. You can share your pictures without having to
part with them.
Gardeners
Already at Work
Our gardens
are getting their spring clean up. We have a lot of “green space” on our
properties. Thanks to these gardeners for keeping it
looking nice: Don Amsden, Sue
Loomer, Arlynn and Bonnie Sanders, Barbara
Scott, Marlene Wahoski, Audrey
Wesner, and Katie Wild.
Year-end Report, December 31, 2007
Income—Submitted by Bill Woolley
Income from Endowment
$12,825.00
CD Interest
$2,085.05
Membership Dues
$1,940.00
Roundy We Care
$728.29
Donations
$3,249.71
Bequests
$36,747.51
Miscellaneous
$142.00
$57,717.56
Expenses
Telephone
$1,461.06
Office Supplies
$188.51
Postage
$414.06
Tax Preparation
$384.00
Miscellaneous
$340.62
Buildings Maintenance
$1,286.58
Grounds
$1,073.15
Cleaning Services
$384.99
Insurance
$1,432.75
Sewer and Water
$233.46
Power and Light
$6,090.70
Printing
$513.45
Computer Services
$143.40
Education
$18.51
Programs
$135.56
Donations, Fees, and Dues
$180.00
Collections Supplies
$3,836.34
$18,117.14
Living
Next Door to Belle Lawson
By Barbara
Scott
We were
Belle Lawson’s next-door neighbors for nine years, and three of our sons did
occasional chores for her. Two of them cleared the snow off her walks when it
was necessary—they would have been in Middle School then. The normal pay for
the job was 25 cents for each of them. One day the snow was about a foot deep
and very heavy so they bravely requested 75 cents which they felt each of them
had earned. Though startled, she paid them, 75 cents for the two of them. I
don’t know how they divided it. It must have been on one occasion of shoveling
that Belle gave each of them a piece of horehound. This was the first time
they had encountered horehound and one of them shoved his piece into a pants
pocket but the other one put his piece directly into his mouth—to his
subsequent dismay. He couldn’t remove it and throw it away fast enough!
Neither of them ever became horehound fans.
When Mike
was in his early teens he did some of the garden work for her that she had
long since had to give up. She would sit in the yard and tell him exactly what
she wanted done. And at the end of a gardening session, they both went into
the house and she taught him to play Acey-Deucey—which
she always won! And she always reminded him to have a look at some of her
button collection. David remembers working in the garden sometimes as well,
particularly the smelly dried manure she had him put on the gardens. And
Bobbie, though only 6 or 7 at the time, remembers helping Mike with the tomato
plants and seeing the button collection as well as a postcard collection. She
also remembers Belle telling her about Old Abe the War Eagle, the mascot of
the Eighth Wisconsin Infantry in the Civil War. But her brightest memory is of
the beautiful bouquet of flowers from Belle’s garden that she invariably
received from Belle on her Memorial Day birthday, always called Decoration Day
by Belle. (It wasn’t a movable holiday then.)
Leone
Hoffman eventually took over the Lawson gardens for the Historical Society.
She was a marvelous gardener! When my husband retired from teaching at Ripon
College, he spent much of his summers helping her and learning from her (and
working on our garden as well!). The lilac tree in the Lawson backyard is his
doing. He replanted part of the lilac tree that had to be removed from the
Historical Society’s backyard when necessary improvements were made to our
main building, and last year it put on its finest show yet! And when Leone had
to admit that she could no longer keep up with both her own and the Lawson
House gardens, Earle became the sole gardener until his death a few years ago.
I still try to look after one small part of it—and last year a
third-generation Scott (now in 7th grade) planted the northwest
corner. But fortunately other volunteers continue to help keep up the Lawson
gardens.
Open
House to be June 15 (Father’s Day)
The summer
open house is scheduled for Sunday, June 15, 2008, from 1:00 until 4:00.
Visitors may explore all three buildings—the Pickard House, the
Pedrick/Lawson House, and the barn. Summer is the
only time of year the barn and the Pedrick/Lawson
House are open to the public as they aren't heated during the winter. The
historic gardens are also featured during the summer open house. The gardens
are maintained by several volunteer gardeners, each of whom has adopted a
specific garden.
Summer
Guided Tours
The Society
will again offer guided tours every Sunday afternoon from 2:00 until 4:00
during the months of June, July, and August. Our summer Sunday afternoon
guided tours differ from our open houses in that a docent actually walks
through the properties and gardens with small groups of guests, pointing out
specific items of historic interest. These tours are open to the public on a
walk-in basis. No reservations are needed. Both guided tours and open houses
are family activities and all are invited to participate.
French
Students Visit the Society
Fifteen
students and two teachers from Lyon, France, visited the Historical Society
archives and museum on April 21, escorted by a couple from one of the host
families. They were part of the Ripon Public Schools French Adventure program.
They ranged in age from about ten to fifteen and had varying degrees of
proficiency in English. After George Miller showed them our archives and
explained how people use the collection there, Sue Loomer,
Joyce Rudolph, and Jean Woolley divided them into three groups and took them
through the museum using a modified version of the second grade curriculum.
Officers
|
President |
|
|
Vice President |
Todd Berens |
|
Treasurer |
Bill Woolley |
|
Secretary |
Shirley Williams |
Board of
Directors
|
Michele Benson |
Ralph Quinney |
|
Mary Brandt |
Joyce Rudolph |
|
Lara Grant |
Barbara Scott |
|
Nedra Martz |
Jean Woolley |
|
George Miller |
|
