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At the time of going to press tentative arrangements have been made for a joint meeting of the State Historical Society and the Sauk County Historical Society to be held at the site of old Fort Winnebago near Portage on Labor Day, 1918. There will be a picnic dinner, but as the place is in the outskirts of Portage any who prefer to eat at the hotel may easily arrange to do so. A short historical address will be given, followed by visits to the site of the fort and the “Agency house,” the latter made famous by Mrs. Kinzie in her book,
Wau Bun. Near by, also, may be seen the place of the famous Fox-Wisconsin portage, first crossed by white men, so far as our knowledge goes, by Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette in 1673, and the old United States military cemetery. Such a gathering should attract a large number of visitors from all the surrounding communities.
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Dr. A. Gerend, of Cato, addressed the Manitowoc County Historical Society on the evening of March 8, on the subject, “The Indians of Manitowoc County.” Dr. Gerend is an industrious investigator in the local field of Indian history and archeology, and has supplied some interesting material to the State Historical Library.
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On February 10, 1918, the First Baptist Church of Sheboygan Falls celebrated its eightieth anniversary. Organized February 11, 1838, this church is ten years older than the Commonwealth itself. The present church building was dedicated December 18, 1850, and like the organization which it houses, is one of the oldest in Wisconsin. In the eighty years of its existence the church has had twenty pastors, ten clerks, and six treasurers.
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The Catholic diocese of Green Bay was created by a breve of Pope Pius IX, March 3, 1868. The semicentennial of its birth was celebrated throughout the parishes of the diocese during the first week of March, 1918. Upon organization fifty years ago the diocese had 26 priests, 27 parishes and 41 missions, 12 schools, and a population of 40,000. Today it contains 164 parishes and 75 missions with churches; 106 parish schools with over 24,000 pupils enrolled; besides 3 colleges for men, an academy for women, 2 Indian schools, 9 hospitals, and a population of 149,000.
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