Editing Racine, Wisconsin (section)

== History ==
[[File:BishopMainSt1 copy.jpg|thumb|left|Looking north down Main Street in Racine {{circa|1905}}]]
Human prehistory in Racine began with Paleoindians after the last Ice Age. After the arrival of Europeans, the Historic period saw the [[Miami people|Miami]] and later the [[Potawatomi]] expand into the area under the pressures of the French fur trade.

In November 1674, while traveling from [[Green Bay (Lake Michigan)|Green Bay]] to the territory of the [[Illinois Confederation]], Father [[Jacques Marquette]] and his assistants, Jacques Largillier, Pierre Porteret, and Nathan Kowitt camped at the mouth of the Root River.<ref>[Racine: Growth and Change in a Wisconsin County]</ref> These were the first Europeans known to visit what is now Racine County. Further expeditions were made in the area by [[René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle]] in 1679 and by François Jolliet De Montigny and [[Jean Baptiste Bissot, Sieur de Vincennes]] in 1698. Nearly a century later, in 1791, a trading post would be established along [[Lake Michigan]] near where the [[Root River (Wisconsin)|Root River]] empties into it.

Following the [[Black Hawk War]], the area surrounding Racine, which had previously been off-limits, was settled by [[Yankee]]s from upstate [[New York (state)|New York]] and [[New England]]. In 1834 Captain [[Gilbert Knapp]] [[United States Revenue Cutter Service|USRM]], who was from [[Chatham, Massachusetts]], founded the settlement of "Port Gilbert" at the place where the [[Root River (Wisconsin)|Root River]] empties into [[Lake Michigan]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Tablet to Honor Racine's Founder at Knapp School |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/857397/gilbert_knapp_founder_of_racine/|newspaper=The Racine Journal-Times|date=February 13, 1936|page=4|via = [[Newspapers.com]]|access-date = August 14, 2014 }} {{Open access}}</ref> Knapp had first explored the area of the Root River valley in 1818, and returned with financial backing when the war ended. Within a year of Knapp's settlement hundreds of other settlers from [[New England]] and western [[New York (state)|New York]] had arrived and built log cabins in the area surrounding his own.  Some of the settlers were from the town of [[Derby, Connecticut]], and others came from the [[New England]] states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.<ref>Rosenberry, Lois Kimball Mathews. [https://books.google.com/books?id=B8YMAAAAYAAJ&pg=PR9 ''The Expansion of New England: The Spread of New England Settlement and Institutions to the Mississippi River, 1620-1865''],</ref>  The area was previously called "Kipi Kawi" and "Chippecotton" by the indigenous peoples, both names for the Root River. The name "Port Gilbert" was never really accepted, and in 1841 the community was incorporated as the village of Racine, after the [[French language|French]] word for "root". After Wisconsin was admitted to the Union in 1848, the new legislature voted in August to incorporate Racine as a city.

In 1852, [[Racine College]], an [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopal]] college, was founded; it closed in 1933.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/archives/search.aspx?area=browse&volume=35&articleID=19098|title=Wisconsinhistory.org|accessdate=March 14, 2023}}</ref> Its location and many of its buildings are preserved today by the [[Community of St. Mary]] as part of the DeKoven Center.

Also in 1852, [[Racine High School]], the first public high school in Wisconsin, opened. The high school operated until 1926, when it was torn down to make way for the new [[Racine County Courthouse]], an Art Deco highrise. [[Washington Park High School]] was built to replace the original high school.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.vindustries.com/racinehistory/features/racine-high-school/|title=Racine High School &#124; Racine History|website=www.vindustries.com|accessdate=March 14, 2023}}</ref>

Before the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], Racine was well known for its strong opposition to [[slavery]], with many slaves escaping to freedom via the [[Underground Railroad]] passing through the city. In 1854 [[Joshua Glover]], an escaped slave who had made a home in Racine, was arrested by [[United States Marshals Service|federal marshals]] and jailed in [[Milwaukee]]. One hundred men from Racine, and ultimately 5,000 Wisconsinites, rallied and broke into the jail to free him. He was helped to escape to [[Canada]]. Glover's rescue gave rise to many legal complications and a great deal of litigation. This eventually led to the [[Wisconsin Supreme Court]] declaring the [[Fugitive Slave Law of 1850]] unconstitutional, and later, the [[Wisconsin State Legislature]] refusing to recognize the authority of the [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rogan |first1=Adam |title=The story of Joshua Glover and how Racine freed him from slavery in 1854 |url=https://journaltimes.com/news/local/the-story-of-joshua-glover-and-how-racine-freed-him-from-slavery-in-1854/article_06007066-31af-5a66-a693-26f16554088d.html |access-date=19 April 2024 |publisher=[[Racine Journal Times]] |date=July 3, 2020}}</ref> This saga played a significant role in the [[Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War|building up of tensions that preceded the Civil War]].

=== Industry ===
Racine was a factory town almost from the beginning. The first industry in Racine County included the manufacture of fanning mills, machines that separate [[wheat]] grain from [[chaff]]. Racine also had its share of captains of industry, including [[Case Corporation|J. I. Case]] (heavy equipment), [[S. C. Johnson & Son]] (cleaning and chemical products), and Arthur B. Modine (Heat Exchangers). Racine's harbor was central to the shipping industry in Wisconsin in the late 19th century. Racine was also an early [[car manufacturing]] center. One of the world's first [[automobile]]s was built there in 1871 or 1872 by J. W. Cathcart,<ref>Clymer, Floyd. ''Treasury of Early American Automobiles, 1877–1925'' (New York: Bonanza Books, 1950), p.2 & 153.</ref> as was the [[E. J. Pennington|Pennington]] Victoria [[tricycle]],<ref>It had no less than two 4.75 hp (3.5 kW) engines. Clymer, p.6.</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Pennington |website=Grace's Guide to British Industrial History |title=Pennington |access-date=April 4, 2016 }}</ref> the [[Mitchell Motor Car Company|Mitchell]],<ref>Before 1926. Clymer, p.36.</ref> and the Case.<ref>Also before 1926. Clymer, p.153.</ref>

In 1887, [[malted milk]] was invented in Racine by English immigrant [[William Horlick]], and [[Horlicks]] remains a global brand. The [[garbage disposal]] was invented in 1927 by [[architect]] John Hammes of Racine, who founded the company [[InSinkErator]], which still produces millions of garbage disposers every year in Racine.<ref>James R. Hagerty, ''Disposal Maker Gives China a Whirl'', The Wall Street Journal, March 27, 2014, p. B6.</ref> Racine is also the home of [[S.C. Johnson & Son]], whose [[Johnson Wax Headquarters|headquarters]] were designed in 1936 by [[Frank Lloyd Wright]]. Wright also designed the [[Wingspread]] Conference Center and several homes and other buildings in Racine. The city is also home to the [[Dremel]] Corporation, Reliance Controls Corporation and  [[Twin Disc]].  [[Case New Holland]]’s Racine manufacturing facility, which builds two types of tractors (the New Holland T8 and the Case IH Magnum), offers public tours throughout the year.<ref>Lee Roberts, [http://journaltimes.com/lifestyles/leisure/be-a-tourist-in-racine-county/article_61c57fc2-6b1f-11e2-ac6e-0019bb2963f4.html ‘’Be a tourist in Racine County’’], Racine Journal Times, January 31, 2013.</ref>

=== Historic districts and buildings ===
[[File:MainStreetRacine.jpg|thumb|[[Old Main Street Historic District (Racine, Wisconsin)|Old Main Street Historic District]], looking north]]

Racine includes the [[Old Main Street Historic District (Racine, Wisconsin)|Old Main Street Historic District]]. Historic buildings in Racine include the [[Badger Building]], [[Racine Elks Club, Lodge No. 252]], [[St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church (Racine, Wisconsin)|St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church]], [[YMCA Building (Racine, Wisconsin)|YMCA Building]], [[Chauncey Hall House]], [[Eli R. Cooley House]], [[George Murray House (Racine, Wisconsin)|George Murray House]], [[Hansen House (Racine, Wisconsin)|Hansen House]], [[Racine College]], [[McClurg Building (Racine, Wisconsin)|McClurg Building]], [[First Presbyterian Church (Racine, Wisconsin)|First Presbyterian Church]], [[Memorial Hall (Racine, Wisconsin)|Memorial Hall]], [[Racine Depot]], [[United Laymen Bible Student Tabernacle]], [[Chauncey Hall Building]], [[Thomas P. Hardy House]], and [[Horlick Field]]. The area is home to several National Register of Historic Places listed structures: [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Racine County, Wisconsin]]. The city is also home to [[Regency Mall (Racine)|Regency Mall]].

[[Frank Lloyd Wright]] designed and built the [[Johnson Wax Headquarters]] building in Racine. The building was and still is considered a marvel of design innovation, despite its many practical annoyances such as rainwater leaks. Wright urged then-president Hib Johnson to build the structure outside of Racine, a city that Wright, a Wisconsin native, thought of as "backwater." Johnson refused to have the Johnson Wax Headquarters sited anywhere other than Racine.{{Citation needed|date=December 2015}}