Good morning,
Whitewater’s forecast calls for a mostly sunny day, with a high of sixty-two degrees.
This afternoon, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., it’s CROP Walk Night at Culver’s. Our Culver’s is on the west side of town, at 1414 West Main Street in Whitewater. A total of 10 per cent of the proceeds will be donated to the Whitewater CROP Walk, which is on April 25th.
This is a fun way to help our hungry neighbors everywhere. To learn more, contact Rev. David Huxley at 262-749-1168.
There’s also a CDA Board of Directors meeting this afternoon, from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The agenda is available online.
Today marks two sad anniversaries, and one happy beginning.
In 1862, according to the Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Governor Harvey drowned in the Tennessee River, while
leading an expedition to relieve Wisconsin troops after the battle of Shiloh. The expedition was bringing doctors, nurses, and much-needed medical supplies to soldiers when Harvey, crossing from one steamboat to another, slipped, fell into the swift currents of the Tennessee River, and never re-surfaced. His body was recovered ten days later, nearly sixty miles downstream. When news reached Madison, Lieutenant Governor Edward Salomon was sworn in as Wisconsin’s first German-American governor. [Source: Wisconsin in the Civil War, by Frank L. Klement]
One hears much about what it means to be a great leader; Harvey’s a true example of service and leadership in response to dire need.
Today is also the anniversary of the bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma, in 1995, killing or severely injuring hundreds of innocent people, including children. The New York Times has details from early reporting on one of the worst crimes and acts of terrorism in our history.
On a much happier note, the History Channel notes that today is the anniversary of the first Boston Marathon, first run in 1897:
On April 19, 1897, John J. McDermott of New York won the first Boston Marathon with a time of 2:55:10.
The Boston Marathon was the brainchild of Boston Athletic Association member and inaugural U.S. Olympic team manager John Graham, who was inspired by the marathon at the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. With the assistance of Boston businessman Herbert H. Holton, various routes were considered, before a measured distance of 24.5 miles from the Irvington Oval in Boston to Metcalf’s Mill in Ashland was eventually selected.
Fifteen runners started the race but only 10 made it to the finish line. John J. McDermott, representing the Pastime Athletic Club of New York City, took the lead from Harvard athlete Dick Grant over the hills in Newton. Although he walked several times during the final miles, McDermott still won by a comfortable six-minute, fifty-two-seconds. McDermott had won the only other marathon on U.S. soil the previous October in New York.
The marathon’s distance was changed in 1908 in accordance with Olympic standards to its current length of 26 miles 385 yards.