Welcome to the Archives of the Burnsville Current

Many journalists give former Washington Post President and Publisher Philip L. Graham credit for being the first to describe journalism as "the first rough draft of history."

When the Burnhaven Library asked us if we would like to take charge of the Burnsville Current, you can bet we wasted no time. For nine years the BVC served this community; this is how it started...

Sitting at her Birnamwood kitchen table on a muggy August day in 1975, Mary Ziegenhagen was telling her neighbor about the frustration she felt trying to find out the facts surrounding the firing of the school district's superintendent.

"I read in the Twin Cities daily papers what went on yesterday in Afghanistan or New York, but there was nowhere to look for an explanation of the commotion at the intersection of Cliff Road and Highway 13," said the suburban housewife and mother of two sons.

When she tried to find answers to what was going on around town, she was met with mostly misinformation. And, she then decided it was time to do something about it.

Her answer was to publish for Burnsville residents the first edition of The Current, a free weekly newspaper dedicated to the news of Burnsville and its school districts. Reports on the school board and city council meetings, stories about local nature trails and library offerings, and school and community sports news were all part of that first edition.

The BVHS was proud to honor Mary and David Ziegenhagen in May of 2013!