Denmark Historical Society aims to put Point Douglas back on map

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Where is Point Douglas? People often ask this question when they learn that the Denmark Township Historical Society is saving one of the only remaining buildings in the village: Valley School, built in 1852 when the lumbering village was a major supply center. Lcoated across from Prescott, Wisconsin, at the confluence of the Saint Croix and Mississippi rivers, the town had about 20 homes, two stores, a post office, a sawmill, two hotels, a boarding house and the Valley School. By the beginning of the 1900's, it was a ghost town. Now the Denmark Township Historical Society aims to put Point Douglas back on the map.

To help people learn more about Point Douglas and the Valley School, Bob and Mavis Voigt, board members of the Denmark Township Historical Society and Mayme Johnson, program director and assistant interim director at Carpenter Nature Center, will present a free program 2-3 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 17 at the Great River Road Visitor and Learning Center, 200 Monroe Street, south of Prescott. The Voigts will discuss the Society's efforts to buy and restore the one-room school, and Johnson will present a power-point program on the area's history. The program is open to the public.

Valley School District No. 34 is still on its original site at 13728 St. Croix Trail. In January 2012, the Historical Society purchased the site and members began a campaign for funds. They made the first payment of $40,000 on May 1, and become official owners of the school. Since then, they have paid three more payments of $5,000 each, with the remaining $25,000 due May 1, 2013. They have hired two historians to research and write a historic architecture report and a nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, steps that are necessary in order to apply for major restoration grants.

For more information, check the Great River Road Visitor Center website at www.freedomparkwi.org, or Denmark Township Historical Society website at www.dthsmn.org, or Carpenter Nature Center website at www.carpenternaturecenter.org.

Tags: communities, prescott, wisconsin