Friday, August 2, 2024
The Little White Schoolhouse Listed in the National Register of Historic Places
RIPON, Wis. - The Wisconsin Historical Society announces the listing of the Little White Schoolhouse in the National Register of Historic Places on July 22, 2024. Constructed in 1922 as a school, the one-room building is located in Ripon, Fond du Lac County.
On March 20, 1854, the Little White Schoolhouse served as a meeting hall for 54 voters that were primarily Whigs, Free Soilers and Democrats. They were abolitionists that wanted to prevent the extension of slavery in the expanding territories. At this meeting, they agreed that a new party should be formed and called “Republican;” however, they did not formally adopt the name at this time, with the thought that a larger body should name the new party. This was the first location to use the name Republican with the establishment of a new political party. The Wisconsin Republican Party was founded a week after Michigan in July 1854, and the national party was established at the 1856 convention in Pennsylvania. Since 1874, the schoolhouse was acknowledged as the Birthplace of the Republican Party.
As a result, the Ripon community has actively preserved the building since 1908, when the building became available for purchase. Formerly used as a residence, the Ripon Commercial Club quickly raised funds to purchase and relocate the building to the Ripon College campus, where it was restored as a schoolhouse. On campus, it was used for commemorative events, relocated a couple of times, and provided tours. It was relocated to the center of town in 1951 by the Republican Education Foundation to be used as a museum with an adjacent restaurant. The Ripon Chamber of Commerce purchased the schoolhouse in 1953, where it was open to the public during the summer, held school field trips, and received a second restoration. It was recently relocated to its current site to have ample space for parking, interpretation, and a Visitor’s Center to commemorate the building and the Republican Party.
The schoolhouse was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1974 for the important role it played in establishing the Republican Party. The schoolhouse is located at 1074 West Fond du Lac Street in Ripon, where it is open to the public as a museum.
Additional information for the Johnson House is available at:
https://wisconsinhistory.org/Records/NationalRegister/NR2789
To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit: https://wisconsinhistory.org/hp/register/
About the Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. The Wisconsin Historical Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization, receives grants and private contributions benefitting the Wisconsin Historical Society and administers the membership program. For more information, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org.
