[Mpls] Re: Wellstone's Memorial.

[NESIMONS]

In:

Mpls digest, Vol 1 #1384 - 19 msgs
Date: 3/10/2003 10:54:07 PM Central Standard Time

Jim McGuire wrote in part:

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I'm curious, however, as to the origin of the current name of Marcy Open
School.  Perhaps its a non-issue since the neighborhood will continue to
carry that name, but is there a historian online that can answer this?

Jim McGuire
Como

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I'm not a "historian", even though I didn't see the
above message until today because of my
involvement with a neighborhood (Prospect Park)
history project.

I did not attend Marcy School myself, but one of
my sons attended Marcy during the days of
"Southeast Alternatives".  I'm also acquainted
with a number of Marcy alumni through my
Marshall High School days.

I am not concerned about the removal of the
Marcy name for the following three reasons:

The involved building is not the original structure. 

The original Marcy School was named in 1908
during an era in which many Minneapolis Schools
were named after national government officials
and literary figures who are rather obscure today.

Although William Learned Marcy (1786-1857)
did have a very impressive public career at both
the New York State and Federal levels, he was
involved, as Polk's Secretary of War and in other
official capacities, in the United States' illegitimate
acquisition of Mexican land on a scale that some
of history's most despotic vanquishers might have
envied. 

One reference source (biography and portrait) is:

http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/books/sw-sa/Marcy.htm

Incidentally, Marcy School shares the distinction
of having another namesake, William Marcy
("Boss") Tweed, who was born in 1823 and died
in 1878 in jail.

http://www.polaris.edu/iltli/Tchrpgs/Tweed.htm

I consider the renaming of the school for Paul
Wellstone to be an extremely easy choice.


Neal E. Simons
Prospect Park