City of Ripon looks back on 175 years, built from idealist dreamers and pragmatic 'go-getters.'

RIPON – The city of Ripon turns 175 this year, marking a time of looking back at the community's origins and its future.

Founder David Mapes came to the area from New York in 1845 and grew interest in development, encouraging incoming settlers to see the potential in the land's future, according to Ripon Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Mandy Kimes.

John Scott Horner, who owned land even before Mapes' arrival, worked in cooperation with Mapes to establish Ripon in 1849, named after Horner's ancestral hometown in England, according to the Ripon Historical Society .

The Ripon Chamber of Commerce celebrated the anniversary in May with the return of its annual dinner for the first time since the pandemic, themed around the community's famous street fairs from the 1900s.

"Ripon fairs were a time when communities would come together to take time off from hard work, provide group activities and recognition for achievements, and look forward to the future," Kimes said at the event.

Here's a look at Ripon's development over the past 175 years.

Ripon's founding was built on dreamers and doers

Ripon's origins also started with a group of idealists who formed the Wisconsin Phalanx , following the teachings of French philosopher Charles Fourier , according to Kimes. Led by Warren Chase, the community was called Ceresco, after the goddess of agriculture, Ceres .

Fourier's teachings included a belief in a utopian society , so Ceresco embodied an experiment in living communally, settled on what is now Ripon's west side in 1844 and established as a town by the next year, according to the Ripon Historical Society.

"I always like to say that Ripon has always been made up of idealist dreamers, but then also pragmatic, hardworking people," Kimes said. "And with that combination, Ripon grew really fast."

Members lived in the Longhouse together, and the Phalanx owned all land and personal property, including almost 1,800 acres of land holdings, according to the historical society.

More settlers came to the area over the next few years, and by the time the Phalanx admitted the experiment wasn't working in 1849, Ripon was established to the east, and the two communities eventually merged.

Walleye Weekend: New activities for Walleye Weekend's 45th year includes Dino Encounters, Latin dancing and basketball challenges

Fateful meeting makes schoolhouse famous

A simple schoolhouse, Ripon's first public school, was built in 1853 and is now more popularly known as the Little White School House, the Birthplace of the Republican Party .

In 1854, a group of men came together in the schoolhouse in opposition of slavery extending into the western territories, and this meeting contributed to the naming a new political party, according to the Little White Schoolhouse Museum.

Its time as a schoolhouse came to an end in 1860, after which it physically moved from its original spot on Blackburn, Thorne and East Fond du Lac streets, and became the private residence of George W. Peck.

The schoolhouse was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1974. It has also been on the state register since 1989, but was re-listed in May in light of its most recent move to 1074 W. Fond du Lac St. in 2023.

In announcing the new listing, the Wisconsin Historical Society also recognized the conservation efforts, starting as early as 1908, when it was first restored as "one of the earliest known acts of historic preservation in Wisconsin to preserve history for the public and future generations."

Gilles turns 75: Gilles marks 75 years in Fond du Lac, built on its original values of quality food, friendly service and cleanliness

Ripon College is one of the city's most vital institutions

When Ripon was still a new community with just a few buildings, its leaders voted for a higher education system, and the state granted it a charter in 1851 to form Brockway College, named after its largest private donor, William Brockway.

It adopted its current name around 1863, and the first graduating class consisted of four women who finished their education in 1867, according to the college's Lane Library .

"Not every community has a college, and for ours to start in 1851 when Wisconsin was only like 2 years old is very, very remarkable and it really has been such an instrumental element to what makes Ripon, Ripon," Kimes said.

Local business owners make the community unique

Since its origins under pragmatic and entrepreneurial-minded founders, Ripon has experienced its ups and downs economically, and now stands tall on its roots as a small city, boasting businesses from Alliance Laundry Systems — which opened 1908 — to the flagship Patina Vie shop, Kimes said.

Both originated downtown and are among many other locally-owned businesses and establishments that contribute to Ripon becoming a destination with an atmosphere of small-town friendliness, she added.

"It's so special when you can have a mom-and-pop business that is thriving, and you can see these business owners give so much to our community," she said. "They're our neighbors or friends, and so supporting their local businesses feels a lot different when it's the people that you know and love."

The chamber of commerce's dinner celebrated the successes of Ripon, including a downtown vacancy rate of less than 3%, a significant rise in visitors in the past year and a stream on new developments and other projects. The city had a population of 7,863 at the 2020 census.

In looking forward to the future, some of the goals include addressing unaffordable housing, the continued workforce shortage and the rate of households living near or below the poverty line.

"If history tells us anything, we can tell that the future is bright," Kimes said. "I think it's going to be incredible to see what the next few years bring."

Daphne Lemke is the Streetwise reporter for the Fond du Lac Reporter. Contact her at dlemke@gannett.com .

This article originally appeared on Fond du Lac Reporter: City of Ripon looks back on 175 years, built from idealist dreamers and pragmatic 'go-getters.'