On this date Charles Ingalls and Caroline Quiner were married in Concord, Wisconsin. They were the parents of noted Wisconsinite Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the "Little House" series. [Source: Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum]
1863 - Theodora Winton Youmans Born
On this date Theodora Winton Youmans was born in a log cabin in Ashippun. She was raised in Prospect Hill -- now part of New Berlin -- where she learned both English and German. She graduated from Carroll College and became a writer for the Waukesha Freeman in the early 1880s. She was given a regular women's column in the paper, where she regularly wrote about the women's rights movement. In 1889 she married Freeman editor, Henry Youmans. In 1896 Youmans was one of the founding members of the Wisconsin Federation of Women's Clubs (WFWC) and served as its president in 1900. WFWC leaders chose to pursue a broad program of social reform, such as educational reform and improved public health services for children, in addition to women's rights. From 1895 to 1925, Youmans continued to promote WFWC's program through her column. She led the 1911-12 campaign for a women's suffrage amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution. In 1913 the WFWC and WWSA merged under WWSA's name and Youmans was elected the first president of the re-organized WWSA. Youmans served as a member of the Electoral College in the Harding campaign of 1920. She also ran for Wisconsin State Senate in 1924 but was defeated by John C. Schumann. She continued to be active in politics and civic improvement projects until her death in 1932.
1865 - (Civil War) Traitors Reported at Washington, D.C.
The Weekly Wisconsin Patriot reported that an investigation by a House committee had found more than 500 Confederate sympathizers working for the U.S. government in Washington, D.C.
1875 - First German Kindergarten in Milwaukee
On this date the first German-language kindergarten was opened in Milwaukee and housed in the German-American Academy building.
1906 - Loretta Sell Hildegarde Born
On this date singer Loretta Sell Hildegarde was born in Adell, Wisconsin. As a young girl, Hildegarde toured the United States as a vaudeville accompanist and eventually developed a solo act. She was discovered when a scout from London's Café de Paris saw her in New York and invited her to perform in London. Known simply as "Hildegarde," she was the toast of café society, capturing the fancy of King Gustavus V of Sweden, who called her "the girl with the eternal touch of Spring," and performing at well-established venues such as the Ritz, the Carlton, the Monte Cristo, and the Savoy. Back in America, Hildegarde held court at the Persian Room of the Plaza for six straight years, charming audiences with her beauty, her couture gowns, her witty and risqué patter, and her evocative soprano voice. [Source: Marquette University Archives]
1926 - General Billy Mitchell Resigns
On this date General William "Billy" Mitchell resigned from the United States Air Service after he was found guilty of insubordination at a court martial hearing. He was suspended from active duty for five years. A Milwaukee native, Mitchell vigorously opposed the Army's concentration on maritime power instead of air power. Mitchell devoted his life to the study and execution of air power, and was recognized as the top American combat airman of World War I. There was one dissenter in the court martial hearing - General Douglas MacArthur, an old Milwaukee friend. [Source: American Airpower Biography]
1937 - Gambling Devices Protected in Rock County
On this date an injunction halted enforcement of a new law banning "digger" games as gambling in Rock County. These games involved trying to capture a prize with a toy crane, and they were banned along with punch boards, slot machines and pinball games. Pinball was allowed as long as no prize, not even a free game, was offered. The injunction eventually was dissolved, and digger machines were impounded as gambling devices. [Source: Janesville Gazette]
1950 - Lambeau Resigns as Head Coach
On this date Curly Lambeau resigned as head coach of the Green Bay Packers to accept the same position with the Chicago Cardinals. His resignation came after months of bitter in-fighting with several influential members of the team's board of directors. [Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]
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