Wisconsin
Wisconsin’s first public library continues its legacy
BLACK RIVER FALLS, Wis. (WEAU) – Here’s something you may not know: Jackson County is home to Wisconsin’s first established public library. Now, more than 150 years later, the library continues its mission to serve its community.
The library was established in 1872 through Assembly Bill 87, which allowed cities and villages to create free libraries in their community. Black River Falls applied and was the first to be confirmed. Now, more than a century later, it’s still supporting its community.
Works from Stephen King, Agatha Christie and Nicholas Sparks fill the shelves of the Black River Falls Public Library.
“We have over 25,000 items including cake pans and senior connection kits,” Cara Hart, the Black River Falls Public Library Director, said.
It’s a collection bound to grow, with such a long history. The library has been running for 152 years, providing a variety of books for enjoyment and information to learn from.
“We try very hard to meet our community needs, whatever they may be,” Hart said.
One way to do that is through a glimpse into the past.
“People still come and want to look at old newspapers,” Mary Woods, the Black River Falls Public Library Historian, said. “They want to look at those family histories that aren’t available anywhere else.”
Family history is what Jeffrey Jones came looking for.
“I know that my family, my great grandparents moved here in 1868,” Jones said. “I’m here to try to find out more about what happened then where they lived, if their houses are still in existence.”
Jones lives in Sarasota, Florida, and came to Wisconsin to speak in Milwaukee. So, while he’s in the Badger state, he said he had to come to Black River Falls. The public library is no longer in the same building it started, but the impact of its presence and resources persist.
“This connection with my family roots, there’s an emotion involved that I don’t get anywhere else,” Jones said. “I just feel much more connected and that also gives me a greater sense of me.”
Hart said the library provides a variety of other resources to support the community from resume workshops to English language classes and information on the proper ways to clean gravestones. She said feel free to stop in, they’re never overbooked.
Copyright 2024 WEAU. All rights reserved.
What was different for Wisconsin in second half vs Minnesota
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard explained what was different for the Badgers in the second half of their comeback win over border-state rival Minnesota.
MADISON – Minnesota’s Niko Medved called it.
“We know [John] Blackwell and [Nick] Boyd – they’re going to really force the action here in the second half,” Medved recalled telling his team at halftime.
Blackwell and Boyd did exactly that as Wisconsin’s talented backcourt duo helped the Badgers overcome an 18-point halftime deficit en route to an improbable 67-63 win over Minnesota on Jan. 28 at the Kohl Center.
It was tied for the largest second-half comeback in program history, matching wins against Indiana in 2021, Ohio State in 1976 and Marquette in 1948.
The Badgers outscored Minnesota in the second half, 50-28, en route to the historic comeback. Blackwell and Boyd combined to score 37 of those 50 second-half points, including 15 of Wisconsin’s last 18 points of the game.
Box score | UW schedule
“We couldn’t put our heads down,” Blackwell said, “or we were going to lose that game. … Coach just challenged our leaders to be better. I think we did that in the second half. I think guys stepped up like BC [Braeden Carrington] and Jack [Janicki], and then we strung a great second half together.”
John Blackwell comes up big again in final minute
The double-digit comeback win – Wisconsin’s third in the month of January and second this season against Minnesota – was anything but a sure thing in the final stretch of a game that had a total of eight lead changes and three ties.
With 90 seconds remaining, Minnesota had a one-point lead and possession. Then Janicki came up with a crucial steal, and Blackwell gave the Badgers everything they could ask for from their star player in the last minute.
He drew a foul and hit a pair of free throws with one minute remaining to take the lead, came up with the rebound after Janicki got his fingertips on a potential go-ahead 3-pointer and hit a 3-pointer on the other end to give the Badgers a two-possession lead with 19 seconds remaining.
It’s nothing new for Blackwell, who had 27 points and a game-winning buzzer-beater against Minnesota 15 days earlier. The standout guard finished with a team-high 23 points and seven rebounds, marking his seventh consecutive game with a double-digit point total.
Blackwell and Boyd, Medved said, are “relentlessly aggressive.”
“You got to be able to take them on, and you got to be able to take them on without fouling,” Medved said. “We weren’t able to do that.”
Wisconsin’s improved shooting stood out, but comeback was due to much more than that
Wisconsin’s improved shooting was an obvious factor in the Badgers’ big comeback. After all, Wisconsin hit 70% of its shots in the second half after hitting only 17.9% of its shots in the first half.
But for as much as those numbers stand out, Wisconsin’s ability to do everything else – from defense to drawing contact – was a difference-maker as well in the comeback.
Wisconsin made more free throws in the second half (13) than it even attempted in the first half (four). Blackwell alone drew four fouls in the second half, and Boyd drew another four after halftime. That helped put the Badgers in the bonus for most of the second half.
“We initiated things better,” Gard said. “We were on attack mode better. We got to the free-throw line. … We were just tougher in all aspects of the game.”
Perhaps even more importantly, the Badgers showed improvement on the defensive end in the second half.
Yes, Minnesota technically shot a higher percentage in the second half (50%) than in the first (43%). But the Gophers turned the ball over on 29.6% of possessions in the second half rather than 9.7% in the first half and averaged fewer points per possession after intermission.
“Defensively, I thought we had more bite to us than what we did in the first half,” Gard said.
Wisconsin also made some defensive plays at critical moments that had an impact bigger than a glance at the box score might suggest. Janicki’s steal while UW trailed by one point is near the top of that list, as is the redshirt sophomore’s block with 45 seconds remaining.
“It was good for us to respond specifically from the defensive end,” Gard said. “Shots are going to come and go. They’ll fall eventually. But that other end is what got us back on track.”
That improved physicality was against a short-handed Minnesota team that was without leading scorer Cade Tyson, among others. The Gophers used only seven players, and three of their starters were on the floor for at least 38 minutes.
“Could you say that that’s a factor? Yeah,” Medved said. “But that’s not – everyone’s tired. I think we lose our focus sometimes in the second half. … If we’re going to say we’re tired, we’re just making excuses.”
Wisconsin’s rough first half starts with lack of shooting success, but also lack of physicality
Wisconsin’s rough first half was a continuation of the shooting woes that saddled the Badgers in the 73-71 loss to USC three days earlier.
After shooting 34.3% from the field and 24.3% from 3-point range against the Trojans, Wisconsin made only 17.9% of shots from the field and 25% from 3-point range in the first half against Minnesota.
It’s been quite the harbinger of the Badgers’ 2025-26 success, as they went into the Jan. 28 rivalry game with a 12-0 record when shooting at least 45% from the field versus a 2-6 record when falling short of that mark.
Of all the issues that Wisconsin experienced in the first half, though, the quality of shot attempts might be the last thing that comes to mind for Gard.
“It was how hard we were playing, how physical we were,” Gard said. “And then when you don’t play hard and you don’t play physical, you end up getting crappy looks. It’s amazing how that works when the ball doesn’t go in. You play hard, you play physical – man, it makes the ball go in. It’s magic.”
Wisconsin
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President Donald Trump has endorsed U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Minocqua, in his bid to be the next governor of Wisconsin.
Trump announced the endorsement Tuesday night, writing on his social media platform Truth Social that Tiffany had his “Complete and Total Endorsement.”
“He will fight to advance Common Sense Values, and put WISCONSIN, AND AMERICA, FIRST,” Trump wrote.
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The endorsement puts to bed the questions of whether — and when — Trump would weigh in on the GOP primary for governor.
Tiffany, who has represented northern Wisconsin’s 7th District in Congress since 2020, was considered an early favorite to clinch the Republican nomination against Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann, but recent fundraising numbers suggested Schoemann could put up a fight.
The backing from Trump has proven critical in Republican primaries across the country, and it’s almost certain to give Tiffany a boost. Four years ago, Trump’s endorsement helped propel businessman Tim Michels over former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch in the 2022 GOP primary for governor.
But whether the president’s nod is a help or a hindrance in the general election is an open question, especially in a cycle that polling suggests could favor Democrats. Four years ago, Michels lost to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in the general election. And almost immediately after Trump’s endorsement Tuesday, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin looked to seize on the president’s support of Tiffany as a condemnation.
“We agree with Donald Trump—Tom Tiffany has been by his side for all of it: ICE murdering Americans in the streets, the Big Ugly Bill, ending funding for the Affordable Care Act, invading Greenland, and raising every day costs,” read a statement from state Democratic Party Chair Devin Remiker. “Donald Trump just made Tom Tiffany the general election nominee, and we will stop him from bringing his chaotic and dangerous agenda in November.”
At least seven candidates are running in the Democratic primary for governor, where many of them have made attacking Trump central to their campaigns. The winner of the general election will replace Evers, who is not seeking a third term.
Trump’s announcement came as part of a slate of endorsements posted to his Truth Social platform late Tuesday evening. He also endorsed Michael Alfonso, who is running for Tiffany’s soon-to-be-vacant seat in Congress.
Alfonso is the 25-year-old son-in-law of U.S. Treasury Secretary Sean Duffy, who represented the 7th District before Tiffany. He’s one of four Republicans running to replace Tiffany.
Trump called Alfonso “a young ‘STAR’.”
In a post on X, Alfonso wrote that it is his “greatest honor to accept this endorsement from President Donald J. Trump,” and pledged “to be a steadfast MAGA warrior.”
Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2026, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board.
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