WisPolitics Budget Blog

In this schoolhouse, on March 20, 1854, the first mass meeting in the country was held that definitely and positively cut loose from old parties and advocated a new party under the name "Republican.

This simple frame schoolhouse, built in 1850, holds a powerful history. In the Little White Schoolhouse a decision was made by a small group of Ripon citizens that changed the future of our nation forever.

On a cold and windy night, March 20, 1854, these Ripon citizens voted to form and become members of a new political party called "Republican." The birth of the Republican Party brought a dedicated following of individuals who pledged to organize together and fight against the spread of slavery.