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TWENTY A HISTORY OF RACINE HARBOR &* cmwA^A ft Hoiv the First Special Tax I rppf Was Levied to Build Proper Facilities; Interesting Valuations of Downtown Property as Set Forth in 1843 Appraisal for Taxation. 3 is- 'a 9 By E. W. LEACH. During the pioneer period in the settlement of Racine, beginning in 1S34-5, and extending through the forties, the west shore of Lake .Michigan was the frontier of civilization in the northwest, and the goal of thousands of high-grade, home-seeking emigrants from New England and New York, and from northern European countries. Many of these people came overland, by covered-wagon, on horseback or afoot, but the great majority took the water route, by steamboat around the lakes from Buffalo, for without roads of any kind within hundreds of miles of Wisconsin, the lake route was the easiest and quickest means of access. The early arrivals at Boot river by water, were put ashore, with their luggage, in the ship's small-boat, landing on the beach between Third and Sixth streets. Those boats were supplemented later by rafts and lighters from the shore, by means of which household furniture, merchandise and heavy miscellaneous freight could be put on the beach, in favorable weather, without great difficulty. Later still, as the settlement grew, and traffic increased, bridge piers, six or seven hundred feet long, were built out into the lake at Third and Fourth streets; they were open platforms, 12 to 14 feet above the water, laid on piles driven into I he lake bottom, alongside which steamers and sail vessels could tie up in fair weather. When the lake was rough ships were obliged to an- rh'jr outside and wait for the storm to subside, though sometimes they didn't wait, but disembarked their passengers and their goods at Chicago or Milwaukee, where they were left to make their way overland to Root river as best they could. Seed Recognized. In the early forties Racine and its hinterland began to assume the character and proportions of civilized and fast growing communities, urban and farming, and the urgent need of a harbor, where ships could «mter and tie up at. a dock, and discharge and receive passengers and freight in safety in any weather, was recognized by the business men of the pioneer village, and the farmers beyond its borders. United States engineers had made a survey rind plans for such a. harbor at Racine, but before the bill authorizing the construction of several Great Lake harbors was passed by congress, in the early spring of 1843. the senate committee on harbors struck out of it a proposed appropriation for Racine, which roused the people here to vigorous action. At a meeting of citizens held at the court house on Thursday morning, March IB, 1843, decisive steps were taken to assure the immediate building of a harbor on the plans of the tJ. S. engineers mentioned above. Resolutions were passed authorizing taking of subscriptions; appointing committees and recommending levy of a poll tax of two days' work ou every citizen, to be worked out on the highway to the harbo'r. More than $8,000 was subscribed the same day. A petition to the legislature was voted also, asking authority to levy a 15 per cent tax on all real estate in the village for harbor purposes. No more enthusiastic, single-minded, and determined meeting of Racine citizens has ever been held. Authorized lo Build. On March 21, 1.843, the Territorial legislature passed a bill authorizing a 15 per cent tax levy for three years, not exceeding $5,000 annually, for the purpose of building a, harbor; said tax to be levied on oil lands, town lots and out-lots which are not exempted fronr taxation by the laws of the United States, or the territory of Wisconsin: and not including any improvements made thereon, either in build ings or otherwise." Levy of this tax was contingent each year on the approval, at a special election, of two- thirds of the legal voters; freeholders alone being permitted to vote. At the first special election in the village to authorize the harbor tax, held at the court house April 22, 1843, the vote was unanimous; and in subsequent years.it was never less than 80 per cent in favor of the tax. Interest in the harbor was not confined to the people. in the village limits, but the settlers as far west as Rock river were interested in better shipping facilities at Racine. On March 23, IS43, a public meeting was held at Burlington, in the Brick school house, with George Batchelder in the chair, at which time resolutions were adopted pledging assistance, and the circulation of subscription lists, a committee of seven being appointed to solicit contributions. First Harbor Tax Roll. I have recently examined, somewhat critically, the assessment roll of the first special harbor tax, levied in the village of Racine in April, 1843. It is a document of very great historical interest and value. It is a home-made book, of legal cap paper size, hand-ruled and hand- bound, and of course everything is in hand-writ'ng. The writing and figures are perfectly legible, and the ink as black as when it was penned. The book contains the names of every property owner in the village; the description, or location, of each lot; its assessed valuation, not including improvements, and the amount of tax paid on it. which was 15.35 per cent of its valuation in. each case. (It is presumed that the additional 35-100 of one per cent over the authorized tax was to cover the cost of collection, etc.) There were 113 taxpayers on the roll, plus some miscellaneous unnamed nonresidents. All of the property taxed, except some few so-called out-lots, adjoining the borders of the village, were within the limits of the Original Plat of Racine, which may be loosely described as bounded on the north by St. Patrick street; on the east by Lake Michigan; on the south by Seventh street, and on the west by Villa and Erie streets. More than three-fourths of the total valuation was on the south side of the river, the north side being thinly- settled at that time. Jacob A. Barker, an associate of Gilbert Knapp, owned .5 lots there, and Lorenzo Janes, father of David G. Janes owned 92, a total of 167 between them, the average valuation of which Was $8.65 per lot. The names of the 10 largest property owners, with assessed valuation, and tax paid, are as follows:. Owners Valuation Tax Charles S. Wright $3460.38 $531.24 Lorenzo Janes 1728.00 265.25 Isaac McConihie 1349.00 207.07 Elias Smith 1268.00 194.75 Jacob A. Barker 1249.00 191.72 Gilbert Knapp 1130.00 173.46 Sidney A. Sage 1097.00 168.47 Truman O. Wright 676.00 88.42 Thomas Wright 550.00 84.42 Daniel Slauson 275.00 42.22 Total of non-residents, names unrecorded 2516.00 $386.21 An Kminent Chief Justice. Edward G. Ryan, a young lawyer, Now that the weather has become mild, we all feel the urge to be out and especially on Sunday. Why not put the task of cooking on Sunday aside and have luncheon or dinner at Richter's? $ .oast Young Kurlqey* Ghictysn Dinner Including Vegetables, Potatoes, Rolls or Bread, Coffee, Milk or Buttermilk R ICHTER'S ESTAURANT 231 MAIN STREET who later became Wisconsin's most | eminent chief justice, owned a house and lot at the northeast corner of Chippewa street (now Park avenue) and Seventh street, where he resided from 1842 to 1848, when he moved to Milwaukee. His lot was valued at $75.00, on which he paid a tax of $11.52. The house is still standing, but is about to be removed to make way for a business structure. Racine's First Lawyer. Marshall M. strong, the first lawyer to settle in Racine, where he arrived in June, 1836, owned a home at the southeast corner of Main and Fourth streets, the lot being valued at $300 on which he paid a harbor tax of $46.05. In 1845 he was next door neighbor to Mr. Ryan, on Chippewa street. Interesting Comparisons. Following is a list of a few of the most valuable business sites in the city today, with the official valuation placed on them in 1843, (not including improvements) when the population Of the village was 1.108. One hundred and twenty feet south from Sixth street, Main street to Lake avenue (Post office site); T. J. Cram, owner—$47 5.00. One hundred and twenty feet north from Seventh street, Main street to Lake avenue (Times-Call site); Gilbert Knapp, owner—- $500.00. Sixty feet north from Fifth street, Main to Wisconsin street (Manufacturers National bank site); W. H. Lathrop, owner—$450.00. 'Sixty feet north from Sixth street, Monument Square to Wisconsin street: Thomas J. Cram, owner— $250.00. Sixty feet south from Fifth street.; Monument Square to Wisconsin street (Zahn stores site); Charles S. Wright, owner—$250.00. Sixty feet north from S'xth street; Wisconsin street half way to College avenue; L. S. Blake, owner— $150.00. Sixty feet north from Sixth street; Main street to Lake avenue (Hotel Racine site); Thomas J. Wright, owner—$32 5.00. Present site of Arcade; 60 feet front; Jacob A. Barker, owner—- $200.00. ■ . .' Present site of First National bank; 60 feet on Monument Square; D. J. Wing, owner—$200.00. Location of First Harbor. There seems to be confusion in the minds of many people as to the exact location of that first harbor, built in 1843-4; writers and speakers have repeatedly stated that it was built a long distance south of its present location; some placing it as far as Sixth street. The fact is that Racine harbor has always been just where it is now,—at the mouth of the river, though it has been widened materially since, the .first piers were built. It is true, however, that before there was a harbor here, for the larger part of each year Root i-iver turned and emptied into the lake from two to four blocks south of its present outlet, because of sand-bars thrown up into its mouth by northeast storms. There Wajs much more water in the river in those days than now, and during the spring floods the sand bars' at its mouth were washed out. and for a time the river emptied directly into the lake,:-about where it does now, until choked by. another series of northeast storms. This probably accounts for the misapprehension concerning the first harbor location. First Ship in Koot River. ! Under the superintendence of Engineer T. J. Cram, without pay, the first piers were finished and the channel dredged by July, 1844, a_4 on the fourteenth of that month, the steamer. Chesapeake-—Captain, Kel- sey—-came in between the piers and tied up at the warehouse of Taylor & Cather—the first ship seen in Root river, and the first, to enter an artificial harbor in AVisconsin. j Rock in the Harbor. When the first piers were in process of erection,, it was discovered that there was, a large rock imbedded "in mid-channel, which, .was about 12 feet square, and 2 0 feet deep, the top being six feet below the surface. After strenuous and long-continued, but fruitless efforts by local talen tp, get it out, the contract was given to Abel Hawley, of Milwaukee. It required the building of a cofferdam, and the use of blasting powder to accomplish its removal, for which the village board paid him $250.00. .'
Object Description
Pagination | Box 6, Folder 6 Racine Harbor Clippings |
Title | Box 6, Folder 6 Racine Harbor Clippings |
Creator | Leach, Eugene Walter, 1857-1938 |
Folder Description | This folder contains newspaper articles about Racine Harbor, clippings concerning ships and ships that have sunk, and an article by E.W. Leach about property values. |
State | Wisconsin |
Place | Racine |
Subject | harbors; ships--abandoning of; property -- Racine; newspapers; lighthouse; lakes |
Date | 1901-1929 |
Language | English |
Source | Eugene Walter Leach Papers, 1842-1851, 1898-1938 (Parkside Mss 6 UW-Parkside, Box 6, Folder 6); WIHV99-A283 |
Type | Text |
Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
Publication Date-Electronic | 2017 |
Rights | Copyright to these documents belongs to the individuals who created them or the organizations for which they worked. The principal organizations have been defunct for many years and copyright to their unpublished records is uncertain. We share them here strictly for non-profit educational purposes. We have attempted to contact individuals who created personal papers of significant length or importance. Nearly all have generously permitted us to include their work. If you believe that you possess copyright to material included here, please contact us at asklibrary@wisconsinhistory.org. Under the fair use provisions of the U.S. copyright law, teachers and students are free to reproduce any document for nonprofit classroom use. Commercial use of copyright-protected material is generally prohibited. |
Digital Format | XML |
Digital Identifier | UWPMss006_B6_F6_000 |
Description
Pagination | Page 1 |
Title | A History of Racine Harbor |
Searchable Text | TWENTY A HISTORY OF RACINE HARBOR &* cmwA^A ft Hoiv the First Special Tax I rppf Was Levied to Build Proper Facilities; Interesting Valuations of Downtown Property as Set Forth in 1843 Appraisal for Taxation. 3 is- 'a 9 By E. W. LEACH. During the pioneer period in the settlement of Racine, beginning in 1S34-5, and extending through the forties, the west shore of Lake .Michigan was the frontier of civilization in the northwest, and the goal of thousands of high-grade, home-seeking emigrants from New England and New York, and from northern European countries. Many of these people came overland, by covered-wagon, on horseback or afoot, but the great majority took the water route, by steamboat around the lakes from Buffalo, for without roads of any kind within hundreds of miles of Wisconsin, the lake route was the easiest and quickest means of access. The early arrivals at Boot river by water, were put ashore, with their luggage, in the ship's small-boat, landing on the beach between Third and Sixth streets. Those boats were supplemented later by rafts and lighters from the shore, by means of which household furniture, merchandise and heavy miscellaneous freight could be put on the beach, in favorable weather, without great difficulty. Later still, as the settlement grew, and traffic increased, bridge piers, six or seven hundred feet long, were built out into the lake at Third and Fourth streets; they were open platforms, 12 to 14 feet above the water, laid on piles driven into I he lake bottom, alongside which steamers and sail vessels could tie up in fair weather. When the lake was rough ships were obliged to an- rh'jr outside and wait for the storm to subside, though sometimes they didn't wait, but disembarked their passengers and their goods at Chicago or Milwaukee, where they were left to make their way overland to Root river as best they could. Seed Recognized. In the early forties Racine and its hinterland began to assume the character and proportions of civilized and fast growing communities, urban and farming, and the urgent need of a harbor, where ships could «mter and tie up at. a dock, and discharge and receive passengers and freight in safety in any weather, was recognized by the business men of the pioneer village, and the farmers beyond its borders. United States engineers had made a survey rind plans for such a. harbor at Racine, but before the bill authorizing the construction of several Great Lake harbors was passed by congress, in the early spring of 1843. the senate committee on harbors struck out of it a proposed appropriation for Racine, which roused the people here to vigorous action. At a meeting of citizens held at the court house on Thursday morning, March IB, 1843, decisive steps were taken to assure the immediate building of a harbor on the plans of the tJ. S. engineers mentioned above. Resolutions were passed authorizing taking of subscriptions; appointing committees and recommending levy of a poll tax of two days' work ou every citizen, to be worked out on the highway to the harbo'r. More than $8,000 was subscribed the same day. A petition to the legislature was voted also, asking authority to levy a 15 per cent tax on all real estate in the village for harbor purposes. No more enthusiastic, single-minded, and determined meeting of Racine citizens has ever been held. Authorized lo Build. On March 21, 1.843, the Territorial legislature passed a bill authorizing a 15 per cent tax levy for three years, not exceeding $5,000 annually, for the purpose of building a, harbor; said tax to be levied on oil lands, town lots and out-lots which are not exempted fronr taxation by the laws of the United States, or the territory of Wisconsin: and not including any improvements made thereon, either in build ings or otherwise." Levy of this tax was contingent each year on the approval, at a special election, of two- thirds of the legal voters; freeholders alone being permitted to vote. At the first special election in the village to authorize the harbor tax, held at the court house April 22, 1843, the vote was unanimous; and in subsequent years.it was never less than 80 per cent in favor of the tax. Interest in the harbor was not confined to the people. in the village limits, but the settlers as far west as Rock river were interested in better shipping facilities at Racine. On March 23, IS43, a public meeting was held at Burlington, in the Brick school house, with George Batchelder in the chair, at which time resolutions were adopted pledging assistance, and the circulation of subscription lists, a committee of seven being appointed to solicit contributions. First Harbor Tax Roll. I have recently examined, somewhat critically, the assessment roll of the first special harbor tax, levied in the village of Racine in April, 1843. It is a document of very great historical interest and value. It is a home-made book, of legal cap paper size, hand-ruled and hand- bound, and of course everything is in hand-writ'ng. The writing and figures are perfectly legible, and the ink as black as when it was penned. The book contains the names of every property owner in the village; the description, or location, of each lot; its assessed valuation, not including improvements, and the amount of tax paid on it. which was 15.35 per cent of its valuation in. each case. (It is presumed that the additional 35-100 of one per cent over the authorized tax was to cover the cost of collection, etc.) There were 113 taxpayers on the roll, plus some miscellaneous unnamed nonresidents. All of the property taxed, except some few so-called out-lots, adjoining the borders of the village, were within the limits of the Original Plat of Racine, which may be loosely described as bounded on the north by St. Patrick street; on the east by Lake Michigan; on the south by Seventh street, and on the west by Villa and Erie streets. More than three-fourths of the total valuation was on the south side of the river, the north side being thinly- settled at that time. Jacob A. Barker, an associate of Gilbert Knapp, owned .5 lots there, and Lorenzo Janes, father of David G. Janes owned 92, a total of 167 between them, the average valuation of which Was $8.65 per lot. The names of the 10 largest property owners, with assessed valuation, and tax paid, are as follows:. Owners Valuation Tax Charles S. Wright $3460.38 $531.24 Lorenzo Janes 1728.00 265.25 Isaac McConihie 1349.00 207.07 Elias Smith 1268.00 194.75 Jacob A. Barker 1249.00 191.72 Gilbert Knapp 1130.00 173.46 Sidney A. Sage 1097.00 168.47 Truman O. Wright 676.00 88.42 Thomas Wright 550.00 84.42 Daniel Slauson 275.00 42.22 Total of non-residents, names unrecorded 2516.00 $386.21 An Kminent Chief Justice. Edward G. Ryan, a young lawyer, Now that the weather has become mild, we all feel the urge to be out and especially on Sunday. Why not put the task of cooking on Sunday aside and have luncheon or dinner at Richter's? $ .oast Young Kurlqey* Ghictysn Dinner Including Vegetables, Potatoes, Rolls or Bread, Coffee, Milk or Buttermilk R ICHTER'S ESTAURANT 231 MAIN STREET who later became Wisconsin's most | eminent chief justice, owned a house and lot at the northeast corner of Chippewa street (now Park avenue) and Seventh street, where he resided from 1842 to 1848, when he moved to Milwaukee. His lot was valued at $75.00, on which he paid a tax of $11.52. The house is still standing, but is about to be removed to make way for a business structure. Racine's First Lawyer. Marshall M. strong, the first lawyer to settle in Racine, where he arrived in June, 1836, owned a home at the southeast corner of Main and Fourth streets, the lot being valued at $300 on which he paid a harbor tax of $46.05. In 1845 he was next door neighbor to Mr. Ryan, on Chippewa street. Interesting Comparisons. Following is a list of a few of the most valuable business sites in the city today, with the official valuation placed on them in 1843, (not including improvements) when the population Of the village was 1.108. One hundred and twenty feet south from Sixth street, Main street to Lake avenue (Post office site); T. J. Cram, owner—$47 5.00. One hundred and twenty feet north from Seventh street, Main street to Lake avenue (Times-Call site); Gilbert Knapp, owner—- $500.00. Sixty feet north from Fifth street, Main to Wisconsin street (Manufacturers National bank site); W. H. Lathrop, owner—$450.00. 'Sixty feet north from Sixth street, Monument Square to Wisconsin street: Thomas J. Cram, owner— $250.00. Sixty feet south from Fifth street.; Monument Square to Wisconsin street (Zahn stores site); Charles S. Wright, owner—$250.00. Sixty feet north from S'xth street; Wisconsin street half way to College avenue; L. S. Blake, owner— $150.00. Sixty feet north from Sixth street; Main street to Lake avenue (Hotel Racine site); Thomas J. Wright, owner—$32 5.00. Present site of Arcade; 60 feet front; Jacob A. Barker, owner—- $200.00. ■ . .' Present site of First National bank; 60 feet on Monument Square; D. J. Wing, owner—$200.00. Location of First Harbor. There seems to be confusion in the minds of many people as to the exact location of that first harbor, built in 1843-4; writers and speakers have repeatedly stated that it was built a long distance south of its present location; some placing it as far as Sixth street. The fact is that Racine harbor has always been just where it is now,—at the mouth of the river, though it has been widened materially since, the .first piers were built. It is true, however, that before there was a harbor here, for the larger part of each year Root i-iver turned and emptied into the lake from two to four blocks south of its present outlet, because of sand-bars thrown up into its mouth by northeast storms. There Wajs much more water in the river in those days than now, and during the spring floods the sand bars' at its mouth were washed out. and for a time the river emptied directly into the lake,:-about where it does now, until choked by. another series of northeast storms. This probably accounts for the misapprehension concerning the first harbor location. First Ship in Koot River. ! Under the superintendence of Engineer T. J. Cram, without pay, the first piers were finished and the channel dredged by July, 1844, a_4 on the fourteenth of that month, the steamer. Chesapeake-—Captain, Kel- sey—-came in between the piers and tied up at the warehouse of Taylor & Cather—the first ship seen in Root river, and the first, to enter an artificial harbor in AVisconsin. j Rock in the Harbor. When the first piers were in process of erection,, it was discovered that there was, a large rock imbedded "in mid-channel, which, .was about 12 feet square, and 2 0 feet deep, the top being six feet below the surface. After strenuous and long-continued, but fruitless efforts by local talen tp, get it out, the contract was given to Abel Hawley, of Milwaukee. It required the building of a cofferdam, and the use of blasting powder to accomplish its removal, for which the village board paid him $250.00. .' |
Language | English |
Source | Eugene Walter Leach Papers, 1842-1851, 1898-1938 (Parkside Mss 6 UW-Parkside, Box 6, Folder 6) |
Type | Text |
Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
Publication Date-Electronic | 2017 |
Rights | Copyright to these documents belongs to the individuals who created them or the organizations for which they worked. The principal organizations have been defunct for many years and copyright to their unpublished records is uncertain. We share them here strictly for non-profit educational purposes. We have attempted to contact individuals who created personal papers of significant length or importance. Nearly all have generously permitted us to include their work. If you believe that you possess copyright to material included here, please contact us at asklibrary@wisconsinhistory.org. Under the fair use provisions of the U.S. copyright law, teachers and students are free to reproduce any document for nonprofit classroom use. Commercial use of copyright-protected material is generally prohibited. |
Digital Format | JPEG2000 |
Digital Identifier | UWPMss006_B6_F6_001 |