Fond du Lac milestones in 2026, from schools to storms

FOND DU LAC – As 2026 progresses, Fond du Lac has many things to look back on.

Milestone anniversaries this year include celebrated institutions and local tragedies, from Ripon College's founding to the 1996 Oakfield tornado.

Here are some Fond du Lac-area anniversaries observed in 2026.

Read more: Fond du Lac County Fair reveals Night Ranger as first 2026 headliner

Ripon College celebrated its 175th anniversary in January 

Ripon founder David Mapes settled in the area in 1949 and almost immediately sought the potential for a new college in the budding state of Wisconsin.

On Jan. 29, 1851, college founders staked out the first building, marking the start of Ripon College's history .

The college will celebrate its 175th anniversary all through 2026, honoring years of education from the leaders that rallied for funding to the students who learned in the halls.

For more information and upcoming events, visit ripon.edu .

Read more: Writing a local history book with Fond du Lac Public Library showed me the best of my hometown.

The Little Farmer will turn 160 this fall

While The Little Farmer opened to the public in 1972, the farm itself got its start 160 years ago. Louis Beyer purchased the land in 1866, which would first be used to support traditional crops and dairy cows, according to The Little Farmer's history .

Beyer's son took over the farm in 1886 and built the Farmhouse a few years later. In 1890, the farm planted its first acre of orchard.

The Little Farmer opens after the first apple harvest in August.

C.D. Smith began in the Great Depression 90 years ago

Despite the Great Depression, Charles D. Smith established his own construction company in 1936 with the Oshkosh Wastewater Treatment Facility as its first project.

C.D. Smith grew for many years and remained a family business constructing various buildings and high-profile projects in Fond du Lac and across the Midwest. The company still has headquarters in Fond du Lac, with additional offices in Milwaukee, Madison and La Crosse.

Marian College opened in 1936

Marian University opened as Marian College in 1936 , after the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction barred the Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes from wearing habits in public school classrooms, preventing them from completing the requirements for a teaching degree in state institutions.

At the time, the school was inside the St. Agnes Convent on Division Street, next to the original St. Agnes Hospital. It outgrew the space and moved to its current location in 1962.

2026 also marks 60 years since Dorcas Chapel was built, according to Marian University's history.

Fond du Lac Public Library marks a few milestone anniversaries

The Fond du Lac Public Library has a long history for the area, but 2026 brings a few milestone anniversaries, starting with the 60th anniversary of the 1904 building getting torn down to make way for a new, modern building. The new library opened in 1968.

More recently, this year marks the 15th anniversary of FDLPL Express, now known as the Allen J. Buechel Branch. It opened in December 2011 as the library's very first branch location.

In 2016, the library also introduced the Idea Studio , expanding resources to include hands-on creative and technological projects.

Fond du Lac School District celebrates opening history

This year is the 50th year of Lakeshore Elementary School, which opened in 1976 to accommodate students from several schools slated to close, including Bragg, Fourth Street, Tay-Cal-Mar and Liberty schools, among others.

Another school with an anniversary is Fond du Lac High School, celebrating 25 years. It opened in 2001 after students moved out of Goodrich High School .

A devastating tornado struck Oakfield in 1996

On July 18, 1996, an F5 tornado devastated the Oakfield area , destroying 66 buildings and damaging 130 others.

Buildings lost included the church and Oakfield Middle School, and while 19 people were treated for injuries, no one died.

Volunteers rallied immediately for the clean-up and recovery, and businesses in the surrounding communities did what they could to support those who lost their homes.

Fond du Lac still remembers fallen officers after five and 15 years

Fond du Lac Police Officer Craig A. Birkholz is memorialized in Fond du Lac in the 15 years since he was killed on duty.

On March 20, 2011, a suspect on an assault call opened gunfire on officers, and as Birkholz rushed to assist, he was shot and died at the scene. Another officer and a police dog were critically injured.

Birkholz had been with the department for two years after five years in the army. He'd wanted to become a hostage negotiator with the SWAT team, according to The Reporter archives.

This year is also five years since Officer Joe Kurer died from complications of COVID-19 he contracted in the line of duty after just more than three years with the department.

Kurer was a member of the Tactical Field Force Team, Honor Guard Unit and Domestic Violence Intervention Team, and he was certified as a field training officer.

These businesses are celebrating five years

Several businesses opened in 2021 and are going strong this year.

Argentum et Aurum , 111 S. Main St., soft opened at the end of 2020, with its grand opening in February 2021.

Bob's on the Avenue , 689 Fond du Lac Ave., opened in September 2021 as a second Bob's Pizza location with a bigger menu and a Just Love Coffee Cafe.

CC's Chocolates Cafe , 57 N. Macy St., opened at the beginning of October 2021 after time in Annie's Fountain City Cafe.

The Cellar District , 40 E. Division St., opened in October 2021 in the old Immanuel Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church.

The Great Escape , 21 N. Portland St., also opened in October as the city's first escape room.

Daphne Lemke is the Streetwise reporter for the Fond du Lac Reporter. Contact her at dlemke@usatodayco.com .

This article originally appeared on Fond du Lac Reporter: Fond du Lac 2026 anniversaries include Ripon College, Oakfield tornado