Welcome to KickTime - News of the Kickapoo Valley, WI

A Driftless Regional web space for Kickapoo Valley news, events and local commerce (like recycling, ride sharing, eating from local sources, buying and supporting local entrepreneurs.)

Visit our Kickapedia site for links to local businesses, farms and services. This is a community wiki (like Wikipedia only smaller) that can be updated by anyone who logs in. The more you join in the better the information and quicker the updates. Don't be shy--if you make a mistake an old version can be restored.

Also try the link to the KickTime_Calendar. We try to keep it as complete, up-to-date and accurate as possible. Please forgive any errors and use the contact information provided for events to double check times and dates.

KickTime is a community project--you are encouraged to submit material. The first step is to create a login account. After logging in, submit your story and it will be reviewed and pushed to the front page within a day or two. See the FAQ for more details about posting material here. If you are totally flummoxed, email the story to admins[at]kicktime[dot]org.

So what do we look for? Events notices are common submissions, but a local view on issues would be a nice change of pace.

Please don't submit a reprint of a news story. Instead provide a new perspective or added insight;
Bring several views together to create a new way to imagine an issue;
Be clever, funny, original;
We encourage attitude and self-confidence, but base your writing on facts;
If you wish to pass literary or artistic judgment, or discuss the merits or demerits of someone or something, do it with subtlety and intelligence;
The more voices here the better!

Too much to ask? Well would you want to spend your precious time reading anything less?

Historical Perspectives (page 2)

Who were the Kickapoo?

By Edward Barlow, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Thu May 31, 2007 at 11:14:40 AM CST

Kickapoo is a popular name in this region. Not only is there the famous Kickapoo River, but there is a reserve, a valley, a school, sports teams, businesses, many commercial products, and events named after the Kickapoo.

So, what does Kickapoo mean? Who were the Kickapoo?

(655 words in story) Full Story

Smedley Butler

By borges, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Mon May 28, 2007 at 07:36:10 PM CST

I found a nice podcast about Smedley_Butler on the web. He wrote the book "War Is a Racket" (read it free here) and listen to the podcast here.

image from wikipedia link above

A small reality check on the Memorial holiday Monday.

Comments >>

Community History Project--sharing stories

By borges, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Thu Mar 22, 2007 at 09:21:17 PM CST

Wisconsin Public Television did Sesquicentenial_Minutes back when Viroqua turned 150 years old. The link provides an oral history minute about the lack of enforcement of prohibition in the city.

The old stories and accompanying video would at least provide interesting entertainment. Creating this kind of resource and making it available on the web would be a way to weave disparate_folks that live here into a common understanding. At a minimum we could share common stories.

I'm thinking a wiki format where everyone could jump in, and video and photos to make it interesting. Name...Kickipedia?

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Childhood Under Threat

By Edward Barlow, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Sun Sep 03, 2006 at 03:39:39 PM CST

When the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) released its State of the World's Children report for 2005 entitled Childhood Under Threat, then-Executive Director, Carol Bellamy, wrote that the world's children are not doing so well.

All the relevant statistics are in the full story...

(1305 words in story) Full Story

A Primal Love Story - Sort of

By Edward Barlow, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Fri Aug 04, 2006 at 05:22:00 AM CST

A "Love" story (sort of) for summer reading.

(790 words in story) Full Story

Lost Bird of the Sioux Nation

By Edward Barlow, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Mon May 08, 2006 at 06:23:27 AM CST

In Los Angeles, on Valentine's Day 1920, a 29 year old poverty-stricken, partially blind, syphilitic Sioux woman, Zintka Lanuni (Lost Bird), died from flu complications. Her story is heartbreaking.

image from this_website

This history in Full Story, and more pictures at this website.

(511 words in story) Full Story

May Day, Governor Rusk, and the Working Class

By Edward Barlow, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Sun Apr 30, 2006 at 07:11:14 AM CST

According to the Wisconsin Historical Marker at the north end of Viroqua, Governor Jeremiah Rusk, a local hero and resident, was widely acclaimed for suppressing the "Milwaukee Riots" and for his statement "I seen my duty and I done it." What Milwaukee riots? What duty? Duty to whom? Widely acclaimed by whom?

Picture: Wisconsin national guardsmen at the E.P. Allis steel works during the strikes (from: Website "A Labor History Sesquicentennial Project of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Labor Education and Training Center, Inc.")

Click full story for the whole history...

(2 comments, 563 words in story) Full Story

Harley May's Story

By borges, Section Historical Perspectives
Posted on Fri Mar 03, 2006 at 10:29:37 AM CST

I met Harley at the Driftless Cafe a week ago. He was there to read from his chapbook memoir, "Bare Mountain Tales: Country Boy in the Big City and Kickapoo Valley Tales". Naturally the Kickapoo Valley Tales were of primary interest and are excerpted here. If you want a copy of the book, they carry them at Art Vision, the store in the Fortney building and a couple of other downtown Viroqua businesses. Harley is in his late 80s and lives in Maplewood assisted living. He has some difficulty communicating now, but his memoir will be a lasting voice about life in the Kickapoo Valley post World War II.

Full story for the excerpt...His story starts in Chicago.

(520 words in story) Full Story

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