1850 - 1896
"Bill" Nye, journalist, lecturer, author, and humorist, grew to manhood in this quiet valley of the Kinnickinnic, which flows southwesterly through River Falls. The tall-tales of frontier humor were popular regionally before 1860. Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) and Bill Nye widely popularized similar exaggerations until they were considered typically American. In the country church, three-fourths mile eastward, Bill Nye practiced public speaking to empty pews. He was then a student at River Falls Academy, now State University. The family homestead is three-fourths mile south of the church. He delighted his audiences by referring to it as "a hundred and sixty acres of beautiful ferns and bright young rattlesnakes." Ferns are few, and the snakes are gone if they were ever there.| HM Number | HM6CJ |
|---|---|
| Series | This marker is part of the Wisconsin: Wisconsin Historical Society series |
| Tags | |
| Marker Number | 165 |
| Year Placed | 1968 |
| Placed By | The Wisconsin Historical Society |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Sunday, October 5th, 2014 at 5:09am PDT -07:00 |
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 15T E 534858 N 4973236 |
|---|---|
| Decimal Degrees | 44.91170000, -92.55840000 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 44° 54.702', W 92° 33.504' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 44° 54' 42.12" N, 92° 33' 30.24" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 715 |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 324-354 WI-65, River Falls WI 54022, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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