Reedsburg High School - Gleaner Yearbook (Reedsburg, WI)

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of . o, 425,19 .5521 is-5, ,,,! ,,, 7 '1 mf ' fl E T 1 I 1 'ig WI ll gl to the Circuit Court. The coin had to be proved spurious, which was difficult. Because a banker had admitted that he was no expert, although he had handled money for thirty years. his testimony was rejected. A practical chemist then tested the coins, and pronounced them fakes. The prisoners were set free after a Baraboo clerk testined that counterfeit money had been passed to the men by him at the Baraboo store. The next day a peck of bogus half dollars were found near lronton where the men had slept. REAL ESTATE DEAL L. Gay Sperry owned the block on which the St. Peter's Lutheran Church now stands, which he wished to sell. In the autumn of 1856, he devised a plan to get rid of this property at a tidy profit. A letter was prepared, supposed to have been written in England to a friend in Cincinnati by the last survivor of a band of Mississippi River pirates. The letter declared that the pirate band at one time ascended the Mississippi to a certain point, landed on the east bank and traveled eastward to a point on the Baraboo River, where they buried a large amount of gold and silver coin. There was a minute description of the locality of the treasure enclosed in the letter. It was written that the treasure was in an iron pot, with a charred stick planted upon it and running to near the surface of the ground. This letter was dropped near the residence of a banker in Beaver Dam. He soon found it and hastened to Reedsburg. He met a Reedsburg Judge on the way and confided his business to him. The Judge immediately became eager for treasure, and accompanied the banker to Reedsburg. After a thorough search they became convinced that the treasure was buried on Sperry's property. The banker inquired the price of the property, and Sperry told him that a stranger from Cincinnati had offered him 52,300 for it, but his price was fB2,400. The men immediately purchased the property. At night they brought big sacks to their new purchase to carry the money away in. They found the charred stick, but after many hours of digging, they failed to locate any treasure. Sperry had put across one of the biggest real estate deals in Sauk County. Page Ten

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1 Ag lx Ed is 0' 6 S 1 'a F X : j F' E r ' 4 , 9 ' The largest cooperage factory Cmanufacturing staves and headings for barrelsj in the state of Wisconsin was built in 1871 by J. P. Stafford. It was destroyed by fire on March 7, 1880, and a new one was completed by May of the same year. lt seemed as though every improvement of the town should be halted by a Ere, and this was the case after the first brewery was built. A new one was built again. however, and in June, 1880, the Reedsburg Brewery Company was formed. composed of William Dierks, Henry Geffert and John and Peter Hagenah. A summer beer vault was installed northeast of the brewery. In those days many a keg of beer came from Reedsburg. SCHOOLS The first school was taught by Miss Amanda Saxby, 1849-50. Second school was taught by Mrs. S. H. Chase, in the Mill House and in the Saiby House, later Green Tavern. The first schoolhouse on the present school site was thirty by forty feet in size. lt had three teachers. Various teachers were in charge until 1868, when the schoolhouse burned down. The second schoolhouse was forty by fifty feet. It contained three depart- ments and four teachers. The departments were: Grammar, intermediate and primary. J. H. Gould was the first principal in 1874. ln 1879 the fourth department was added, second primary. The complete school history is given elsewhere in this book. THE FIRST FOURTH OF JULY The Hrst Fourth of July was celebrated in Reedsburg in 1849. Because they had no flag, the women of the town got together to make One. Blue mate- rial for a background was scarce, so the flag was made with blue stars and a white groundwork. Red stripes were made of men's shirts. The first dance in Reedsburg was held that evening in the mill. In later celebrations, fireworks, speeches, and music were on the program. They were held in the public square, or in various picnic grounds in and about the town. Fourth of July has always been one of the biggest events in Reeds- burg. CRIMINAL TRIAL One Sunday, October 5, 1851, two men by the names of Judson Baxter and William Reynolds, paid counterfeit coin for their services in the hotel and blacksmith shop. They had also stolen a hammer from the latter place. Papers were made out for their arrest, and they were followed by the Constable and several others. They were found west of Ironton the second night, sleeping by a fire. Pouncing upon them, the ollicers bound them with ropes and brought them to Reedsburg. A search in the vicinity had resulted in finding counterfeit money. They were arraigned for theft and were convicted, but they appealed Page Nine

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. T. X J vu -vnfl 57,1 W . KW 1 . . . P' iw 4 lik , -,-,lv 1' W .y-1' 3 - N George Keyes Flora Richards Ora Huntington Allen B. West fPrinD Lillie Tec! Maude Merrell Maude Whitney FACULTY O13 1887. X BUCK TWU Administration J Q, .126 A A 5 My Q , K Wx Q si A ,wr , , -' .A i xl -6 M 35x y ea fi, :gif-rs-if i-Sb -l f foi .f X, Y, f f W-, f .1 '