May 2009 Archives
The "On This Day" feature of the Wisconsin Historical Society's website alerted me to the information that on this day in 1895 the voters of Oshkosh, WI approved the establishment of a free public library. The Oshkosh Public Library was the beneficiary of private and public funding totaling $150,000 that resulted in the construction of a grand new library building which opened in 1900.. The architect for the building was William Waters who had designed the Wisconsin building at the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The 1900 building is incorporated into the current library building which was completed in 1994. An excellent history of the library and its building is located on the library's website.
May is National Preservation Month and this year's them is "This Place Matters!". The website for the National Trust for Historic Preservation provides background information on National Preservation Month for 2009. The Wisconsin Historical Society provides the leadership for historic preservation in Wisconsin. Ironically the Wisconsin Historical Society's headquarters building has been in need of restoration for years. In my opinion this building is second only to the State Capitol in Wisconsin in its historic importance. This place definitely matters. Fortunately, good things are about to happen to this wonderful building. The magnificent reading room on the second floor is about to undergo a full restoration, and the front entrance to the building will also be restored. The building was completed in 1900 and was designed to house both the Wisconsin Historical Society Library and the University of Wisconsin Library. Jackson E. Town has written about the inception of the building in the Wisconsin Magazine of History in the Winter 1955-56 issue. When the American Library Association met in Waukesha in 1901, conference attendees came to Madison to visit the newly completed building and, "There was but one opinion of the entire party in regard to the beauty and arrangement of the building, and that was satisfactory to the highest degree." More on the history of the building can be found here. Wisconsin is celebrating Historic Preservation and Archaeology Month with a number of activities.
The Real Photograph Postcard (RPPC) of the Oakfield Public Library features the building in which the library was located in various configurations from 1913 to 2001. When this postcard was mailed the library shared the building with the Fire Department and the Village Hall. The message on the reverse of the postcard talks about the new fire whistle on the bell tower of the building which was run by an electric motor and cost $300. The person sending the card has also added comments to the front of the card relating to the new whistle. For a history of library facilities in Oakfield click here.
