Saturday, August 5, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: August 5

August 5, 1914 – Mysterious “Fisherman John” Jeremy and his son Jack, two half-breeds from Stillwater, Minn., again did strange things in Lake Geneva, Wis. They arrived in Lake Geneva city at 1 p.m. to assist in the search for the body of Andrew Jank, who was drowned last week when he jumped from a burning motor boat. At 4 p.m. the two men had found the body.

No one but John and his son know where or how the work was done. That is their secret and their living.

Last year three girls were drowned in the lake and their bodies were not recovered for three months. They were found by John Jeremy and his son after a two week search.

Republican-Northwestern; “Half- Breeds Find Body. John Jeremy and Son succeeded in Finding Andrew Jank.”; Belvidere, Ill.; Aug. 11, 1914; p. 6.



The St. Charles Herald.; Hahnville, La.; Nov. 16, 1918; p. 6.

“Fisherman John” recovers drowned body in Lake Calhoun after park police could not; see Aug. 9, 2016 blog.  (Aug. 9, 1913)
http://pjefamilyresearch.blogspot.com/2016/08/on-this-date-in-minnesota-history_9.html

“Fisherman John” and his son made good on their promise to recover the body of Elmer Carlson, who drowned in Lake Harriet one week ago this evening when his canoe upset; see Aug. 24, 2016 blog. (Aug. 24, 1912)
http://pjefamilyresearch.blogspot.com/2016/08/on-this-date-in-minnesota-history_24.html

               __________________________________________________________

If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         


Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
pjefamilyresearch@gmail.com



Friday, August 4, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: August 4

August 4, 1912 – Julius M. Hanson, son of Mr. and Mrs. Michael Hanson of Lake Park, Minn., and traveling representative of the Duluth Brewing Company, was shot down and killed by an unknown highwayman who lay in wait to rob him in the Lincoln School in Fargo early this morning. Hanson failed to comply with the highwayman’s request that he hold up his hands but instead called for help. One of the robbers presses a revolver to Hanson’s stomach and fired.

The bullet pierced a main artery near the stomach and Hanson died before he could be operated on at the hospital. Neighbors who found him dying on the sidewalk heard him tell a garbled story of what happened.

He said two masked white men, both short and of stocky build, came at him from around the corner of the Lincoln School building and after one had shot him, neglecting to rob him of the $35 and a watch he had, they fled east.

With no description, or clue upon which to work, the authorities are at a loss to know what to do. The murder is the second highwaymen have committed on the same street and under the same circumstances within a year. Police believe local men committed the crime and it is said the arrest of well-known person is imminent. This evening, Mayor W. D. Sweet offered $200 reward for the arrest of the murderers and the county is expected to offer a much larger reward tomorrow. Excitement over the crime is at fever heat. Hanson was 25 years old and well known throughout the area.

The Minneapolis Morning Tribune; “Minnesota Man Killed By Two Robbers in Fargo. Instead of Holding Up His Hands, Young Man Calls for Help. Townspeople Find Him Dying on Sidewalk—Tells How It Happened.”; Aug. 5, 1912; p. 1.



http://www.bestplaces.net/images/city/2734784_mn_lake_park.png

               __________________________________________________________

If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         

Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
pjefamilyresearch@gmail.com





Thursday, August 3, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: August 3

August 3, 1903 – Minneapolis Police Superintendent Conroy is not superstitious, but he has almost decided to abolish cell No. 13 at the central police station or to forbid its use; so many unpleasant incidents have occurred in connection with the cell. Three men have died there, half a dozen a dozen have committed suicide and as many more have been taken violently ill and sent to the city hospital.

Today Daniel Austin, a laborer, attempted to commit suicide in the cell. He tied a handkerchief about his neck, fastened it to the ceiling of the cell and then jumped from the upper bunk. When he was cut down, a few minutes later, he was unconscious and remained in that condition for several minutes. He was locked up again after being put in a strait jacket, but he beat his head against the iron bars with such violence that he cut open his scalp and had to be sent to the city hospital.

The Minneapolis Journal; “Cell Number 13. Its Already Bad Record Made Worse Yesterday.”; Aug. 4, 1903; p. 7.



http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/ravallirepublic.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/c4/8c46cea8-d1a1-546b-a675-cec4acc6a59a/5436ee2b8303f.image.jpg

               __________________________________________________________

If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         


Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
pjefamilyresearch@gmail.com



Wednesday, August 2, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: August 2

August 2, 1905 – The Infant Incubator Institute at Twin City Wonderland Park boasts that it has the smallest living baby—weight, one pound five ounces.

The child, a little girl, was born yesterday afternoon and was brought to the institute this morning. She measures but ten inches in height and is but nine inches about the body at the chest. The circumference of its head is eight and one-fourth inches. The circumference of one of her little wrists is but two inches.

The chances are very much against the tiny mite of humanity, for a baby to live that weighs less than two pounds when born is almost a miracle. There have been such instances, but they are rare. This little one, however, shows evidence of possessing unusual vitality. She has taken nourishment, and the indications for the time seem favorable.

The Infant Incubator Institute or Infantorium, was a key attraction at Wonderland, “where, for a small fee, the public could see premature babies in incubators. At the time, incubators were a new technology and most premature babies died within a few days of birth. The exhibit worked both to promote incubator technology and save lives. The price of admission paid for the staff, and parents owed the park nothing for the care of their baby. The incubators kept the babies warm, and nurses made sure that the newborns received regular feedings from wet-nurses. The babies remained anonymous during their time at Wonderland, though local newspapers covered their progress at the unit by giving them nicknames. Nearly all of the babies sent to the Incubator Institute survived. While such displays would seem strange today, at the time, incubator displays had been a part of the recent World's Fair in Paris in 1900 and at Coney Island.”
1



Two babies at the Infantorium c. 1905. The one on the left has been in an incubator for some time, while the one on the right is a more recent arrival.2


The Minneapolis Journal
; “Has Smallest Baby. Tiny Mite of Humanity Being Nursed in Incubator.”; Aug. 3, 1905; p. 4.

1http://www.mnopedia.org/place/wonderland-amusement-park

2https://localwiki.org/twincities/Infantorium
               __________________________________________________________

If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         


Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
pjefamilyresearch@gmail.com






Tuesday, August 1, 2017

On This date in Minnesota History: August 1

August 1, 2012 – The Harry Merrill House, the oldest building in Hutchinson, Minn., was listed on the National Register of Historical Places on this date.

It was built in 1858 after Lewis Harrington chose a beautiful grove in the northern part of the village of Hutchinson for his building site. This large tract of land consisted of rolling hills and was bordered on the north by the Crow River. When completed, the Greek Revival-style home was the finest of the dozen or more houses built in the fledgling community. Its architectural significance lives in the fact that the house is one of the earliest examples of Greek Revival architecture in McLeod County. Today, the Harrington-Merrill house stands as a symbol to Hutchinson of one of its pioneer founders, who with his wife, so loved the community that they chose to stay and defend it against undefined odds during the Dakota War of 1862. It is currently being restored by Historic Hutchinson and the City of Hutchinson.”

http://www.explorehutchinson.com/downloads/Historic_Tour.pdf




Photo taken by Pamela J. Erickson. Released into the public domain Aug. 1, 2017,
as long as acknowledgement included.
                __________________________________________________________


If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         


Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
pjefamilyresearch@gmail.com







Monday, July 31, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: July 31

July 31, 1907 – Teofilo Petriella, the active leader of the current Mesabi strike, was placed under arrest in Hibbing shortly after 9 a.m. today on the charge of carrying concealed weapons and was confined in the Hibbing jail.


Teofilo Petriella1 

Petriella was released on $1,000 bail after being bound over for the action of the grand jury in September.

Petriella and Mahoney, the acting president of the Western Federation of Miners, were driving in the federation carriage toward Chisholm. They were crossing the bridge that leads to the Sellers Mine when the guard ordered them to stop. Instead of pulling in his horse, Petriella whipped up and tried to pass. The guard fired several shots into the air and Petriella was instantly surrounded by several deputies. He was arrested and when searched was found to have a revolver and $900 in money on his person. He was held on the charge of carrying concealed weapons. Maloney offered to allow himself to be searched, but he carried no weapons.

The men made no attempt to gather about the jail where Petriella was confined. Mahoney returned to Hibbing after his companion had been arrested.

Aside from Petriella’s arrest everything is quiet on the range. About the same mines are working as were being operated Monday with slightly larger crews. The men are gradually dropping into their old jobs. The Clark Mine has 60 men in its day shift and the Chisholm Mine 40.

“Tired of ethnic discrimination as well as dangerous working conditions, low wages, and long work days, immigrant iron miners on the Mesabi Range in northeastern Minnesota went on strike on July 20, 1907. Their strike lasted only two months before it was suppressed with strikebreakers, but it was notable for being the first organized strike on the state's Iron Range.”2

The Bemidji Daily Pioneer; “Held to Grand Jury. Strike Leader on Iron Range Arrested at Hibbing, Minn. Charge Not a Serious One. Taken Into Custody While Attempting to Enter Mining Property and, When Searched, Found to Be Carrying a Concealed Weapon.”; July 31, 1907; p. 4.

1http://archivio.camera.it/resources/ad07/low/imageP/petriella_t.jpg
2http://www.mnopedia.org/event/mesabi-iron-range-strike-1907
               __________________________________________________________

If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         


Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
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Sunday, July 30, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: July 30

July 30, 1904 – What is believed to be a meteorite, freshly fallen, was found today in a pasture on Spring Brook Farm, about 2-1/2 miles south of Northfield, Minn. It weighs 130 pounds and is 18 inches long and three feet in circumference. A fragment heated in a smith’s forge became red hot and was pliable under the hammer.

No one was found who saw the meteorite fall, but it is believed to be genuine.

The meteorite was placed on exhibition in the window of The Northfield News, attracting throngs of citizens.

The Minneapolis Journal; “Northfield’s Meteorite. Thought to Be the Real thing, Tho No One Saw It Fall.”; July 30, 1904; p. 2.

The Northfield News; “Found Last Saturday. The Meteorite Found on Spring Brook Farm Attracts Many Visitors.”; Aug. 6, 1904; p. 7.




http://www.co.rice.mn.us/sites/default/files/images/northfield1_0.jpg

               __________________________________________________________

If you are interested in finding out more about your family history in Minnesota, I specialize in researching  genealogical and historical records in Minn. and western Wis., including:
census records,  birth records,  death certificates, obits, grave site photos, ship passenger lists, marriage records and declarations of intent/naturalization records.  I will visit locations to research local history and county records, as well as take photos. Quick turnaround on MNHS records. Both short searches and family history reports available.

                                                         


Discover your roots, and watch the branches of your family tree begin to grow.


Website:  TheMemoryQuilt.com > click on Family History

Contact me at:
pjefamilyresearch@gmail.com