[Magdalen] Musical County Seats Babbling.

[Lynn Ronkainen]

Thanks for this personal Paul Harvey 'rest of the story' insight David.
peace
Lynn 

Sent from my iPhone

On Apr 15, 2015, at 12:24 AM, Cantor03--- via Magdalen <magdalen at herberthouse.org> wrote:


I was reviewing a book my sister-in-law sent me about the history of  my
home county in Wisconsin.  In it was a faded obituary of a long  time
chairman of the county board.  

This man was a native of my home village, and graduated from that  local
high school, but after serving in WW-2, opened an insurance business
in a neighboring village 15 miles to the east.

He became quite successful at his insurance business, and also  dabbled
in real estate.  He also magnetized the county board and for  decades
exercised almost complete control of that entity.

He became a strong partisan booster for his adopted village.  My  father
(the county attorney) always admonished to "watch out" for this  county
board chairman because "he ultimately wants to move the county seat
to HIS village."

How right my father was.  In the 1970's this man spearheaded a  drive
to move the county seat at a time when a new government center was
contemplated.  He fomented enough support to do so, and thus the
almost unheard of maneuver - the changing of a USA county seat from
one location to another this late in the 20th century - took place.

In spearheading this move, he took advantage of the current  disenchantment
of several of the populous townships around my county seat village
over alleged village police brutality (arrests and one death  - involving
some youths from those populous townships - sound familiar?).   The
county-wide voting was very close but FOR moving the county seat.

This was the worst disaster ever in the history of my home town.   Not
only did the village lose the prestige of being county seat, it also  lost
the county jobs, and the impact of the economic benefits of visitors
to the village who had business at the court house.

Yet, this obituary of the culprit county board chairman mentions none
of this because the home town weekly, though printed in my home  village,
also serves the rest of the county villages and the paper was afraid  to 
mention
the controversy for fear of losing business.

How money talks and even alters history.

The faded obituary simply lays this man to rest as a prominent local
businessman and long time chairman of the county board.

David Strang.