Good morning, Whitewater
There is one public meeting scheduled today in the City of Whitewater: the Irvin Young Memorial Library Board meets tonight, at 6:30 p.m. The evening’s agenda is available online.
The National Weather Service predicts a high of 32 degrees, with a wintry mix of snow, freezing rain, and sleet. The Farmers’ Almanac begins a four-day series predicting heavy snow for Wisconsin. They may just be right, before all is done.
Last week’s better prediction: NWS.
At Washington School today, there is a Fifth Grade Band Concert scheduled for 2 PM and again at 7 PM.
Students of Washington — Oingo Boingo’s Capitalism is always a crowd-pleaser. There’s still time to learn — it practically sings itself.
In Wisconsin history for this day, in 1917, a day of sadness, and mourning, according to the the Wisconsin Historical Society, as Inventor John F. Appleby Dies.
Why so sad, residents of America’s Dairyland? Oh my, steel yourselves, please —
On this date the inventor of the twine-binder, John F. Appleby died. Appleby was raised on a wheat farm in Wisconsin and searched for an easier way to harvest and bundle grains. His invention gathered severed spears into bundles and bound the sheaves with hempen twine. His invention, which was pulled by horses, was a great success.
In 1878 William Deering, a farm machinery manufacturer secured the right to use Appleby’s patent and sold 3,000 twine harvesters in a single year. In 1882 the McCormicks (of the McCormick reapers) paid $35,000 for the privilege to manufacture Appleby’s invention. Appleby spent the rest of his life in his shop trying to create additional successful machinery.
Appleby spent the rest of his life trying to create ‘additional, successful machinery?’
Now, Whitewater, there is a great man — any lesser man would have spent the remainder of his life resting on his earlier invention of a twine-binder. Only a great man would toil on, in the hope of additional gifts for all humanity.