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One of the agencies intimately asssoci- ated with the development of the Wis¬ consin Idea was the Extension EUvision of the University of Wisconsin, now^ ob¬ serving the fiftieth year of its founding. Not only does this paper recognize the part played by the Extension Division but it includes the diverse personalities and agencies which aided in the experi¬ ments and reforms, summarily denoted by the term, the Wisconsin Idea. These elements are so extensive in their out¬ reach that their influence is almost limitless.
J
Louis E. Reber
The Origin and Early Development of the Wisconsin Idea
by Wernon Carstensen
The Wisconsin Idea is a term that has had and stifl has both national and international currency. Indeed, in 1952, the Democratic nominee for the presidency of the United States characterized it as one of the truly creative ideas of the twentieth century. Others both before and since have spoken as raptur¬ ously about it. With the current celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Extension Divi¬ sion, an agency intimately associated with the early flowering of the Wisconsin Idea, it is appropriate to examine briefly some of the elements involved in its origin and early de¬ velopment.
In 1912 Charles McCarthy wrote a book entitled The Wisconsin Idea, devoted to a de¬ scription of the background, spirit, aims, and processes of reform legislation in Wisconsin. McCarthy declared that "no one categorical explanation of the Wisconsin idea can be given." He warned the reader that he would
not find in the book "vivid pictures of perfect legislation or administration or clear-cut phil¬ osophy. He wifl find, on the contrary, a seemly comprehension of the difficulties of the prob¬ lem as above outlined and a groping after and testing of one device after another to serve in combating the tendencies considered. He will find that patient research and care have been the watchwords used everywhere."^ The same year Frederick C. Howe declared that Wiscon¬ sin was "an experiment station in politics, in social and industrial legislation, in the democ¬ ratization of science and higher education. It is a state-wide laboratory in which popular government is being tested in its reaction on people, on the distribution of wealth, on social well-being."^ Theodore Roosevelt in his intro-
^Charles McCarthy, The Wisconsin Idea (New York, 1912), 16-17.
^Frederick C. Howe, Wisconsin: Experiment in Democracy (New York, 1912), vii.
181
Object Description
| Title | Wisconsin magazine of history: Volume 39, number 3, spring, 1956 |
| Article Title | Wisconsin magazine of history: Volume 39, number 3, spring, 1956 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | State Historical Society of Wisconsin |
| Series | Wisconsin Magazine of History ; v. 39, no. 3 |
| Format-Digital | xml |
| Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
| Rights | © Copyright 2007 by the Wisconsin Historical Society (Madison, Wisconsin) |
| Publication Date-Electronic | 2007 |
| ISSN | 1943-7366 |
| Identifier-Digital | vol39no030000 |
| Description | This issue includes articles on librarian Lutie Stearns, the renovation of Saint Raphael Cathedral, the Wisconsin Idea, and the Wisconsin State Department of Public Welfare. |
| Volume | 039 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Year | 1955-1956 |
Description
| Title | 181 |
| Page Number | 181 |
| Article Title | The origin and early development of the Wisconsin Idea |
| Author | Carstensen, Vernon Rosco, 1907- |
| Page type | Article home; Image |
| Format-Digital | jpeg |
| Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
| Rights | © Copyright 2007 by the Wisconsin Historical Society (Madison, Wisconsin) |
| Publication Date-Electronic | 2007 |
| ISSN | 1943-7366 |
| Identifier-Digital | vol39no030035 |
| Description | The Origin and Early Development of the Wisconsin Idea: This article examines the origin and early development of the Wisconsin idea at the time of its 50th anniversary in 1955. It begins by describing Charles McCarthy's (1873-1921) Wisconsin Idea, written in 1912, which focused on social, educational, and labor reform legislation in the state. It then credits McCarthy, Robert M. La Follette, Sr. (1855-1925), and Charles Van Hise (1857-1918) for their extensive contributions to the Wisconsin Idea, as well as the University of Wisconsin for faculty research and involvement in advancing state government, agriculture, and industry. A majority of the article details the initial difficulties in executing an effective agriculture education program and the efforts of farm groups to separate the agricultural college from the University in the 1880s. It also discusses the origins of the Short Course in agriculture and the development of the University Extension Division under University President Van Hise and Louis E. Rebner (1858-1948). The article concludes by acknowledging the University for its dedicated service to improving state programs, for supporting advanced reform legislation, and for creating long-standing educational agencies. (8 pages) |
| Volume | 039 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Year | 1955-1956 |
| State/Province | Wisconsin |
| County | Dane County |
| Community | Madison |
| Decade | 1880-1889; 1890-1899; 1900-1909; 1910-1919; |
| Personal Name | McCarthy, Charles, 1873-1921; Van Hise, Charles Richard, 1857-1918; |
| Organization Name | University of Wisconsin; University of Wisconsin College of Agriculture; University of Wisconsin Extension; |
| Full Text | One of the agencies intimately asssoci- ated with the development of the Wis¬ consin Idea was the Extension EUvision of the University of Wisconsin, now^ ob¬ serving the fiftieth year of its founding. Not only does this paper recognize the part played by the Extension Division but it includes the diverse personalities and agencies which aided in the experi¬ ments and reforms, summarily denoted by the term, the Wisconsin Idea. These elements are so extensive in their out¬ reach that their influence is almost limitless. J Louis E. Reber The Origin and Early Development of the Wisconsin Idea by Wernon Carstensen The Wisconsin Idea is a term that has had and stifl has both national and international currency. Indeed, in 1952, the Democratic nominee for the presidency of the United States characterized it as one of the truly creative ideas of the twentieth century. Others both before and since have spoken as raptur¬ ously about it. With the current celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Extension Divi¬ sion, an agency intimately associated with the early flowering of the Wisconsin Idea, it is appropriate to examine briefly some of the elements involved in its origin and early de¬ velopment. In 1912 Charles McCarthy wrote a book entitled The Wisconsin Idea, devoted to a de¬ scription of the background, spirit, aims, and processes of reform legislation in Wisconsin. McCarthy declared that "no one categorical explanation of the Wisconsin idea can be given." He warned the reader that he would not find in the book "vivid pictures of perfect legislation or administration or clear-cut phil¬ osophy. He wifl find, on the contrary, a seemly comprehension of the difficulties of the prob¬ lem as above outlined and a groping after and testing of one device after another to serve in combating the tendencies considered. He will find that patient research and care have been the watchwords used everywhere."^ The same year Frederick C. Howe declared that Wiscon¬ sin was "an experiment station in politics, in social and industrial legislation, in the democ¬ ratization of science and higher education. It is a state-wide laboratory in which popular government is being tested in its reaction on people, on the distribution of wealth, on social well-being."^ Theodore Roosevelt in his intro- ^Charles McCarthy, The Wisconsin Idea (New York, 1912), 16-17. ^Frederick C. Howe, Wisconsin: Experiment in Democracy (New York, 1912), vii. 181 |