Saturday, October 14, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 14

October 14, 1907 – Pinned under the wreck of his engine, George F. Birch, met his death early this morning as a result of a wreck on the Duluth Missabe ore dock. His fireman, Frank Gospeter, barely escaped with his life, and is suffering from the most painful burns and bruises at St. Mary’s Hospital.

Birch was backing down the hill with a heavily loaded train, and running at quite a high rate of speed when he struck the curve. As he was rounding the curve he ran into a string of empties standing on track No. 2. Neither of the men had time to jump.

Ten of the cars were piled up in a heap, and the engine was overturned, pinning both Birch and Gospeter beneath it, where they were horribly burned by the escaping steam and boiling water. The fireman was extricated in time to save his life, but Birch was too far under the engine to be reached, and it was nearly three hours before his body was taken out. He was probably killed by a blow on the head.



The fireman, a young man about 23 years of age, whose home is in Eau Claire, Wis., will probably recover.

The fire department was summoned as soon as the accident occurred, and the firemen made a quick run to the scene, and worked with the employees of the dock to extricate the two men.

Five of the cars were hurled over the embankment, and the others were piled up in a heap on the track. The engine was also a complete wreck.

The blame for the wreck has not yet been fixed. It is said to have been due to the action of a switchman in turning the switch the wrong way, allowing the loaded train to run into the empties. Coroner McCuen will start an investigation tomorrow and take the statements of witnesses. If necessary an inquest will be ordered.

The Duluth Evening Herald; “Engineer Loses His Life in Bad Smash-Up on the Missabe Road”; Oct. 15, 1907; p. 5.
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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

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Friday, October 13, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 13

October 13, 1990 – The Target Center, home to the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Lynx, opened on this date in downtown Minneapolis.

http://www.mnopedia.org/thisday



Photo taken by Pamela J. Erickson. Released into the public domain Oct. 13, 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:
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Thursday, October 12, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 12

October 12, 1905 – In the room from which his pardon was issued, John Hebard of Redwood Falls was reunited today to his faithful wife. Hebard was technically, but not morally, guilty of bigamy, as he supposed a divorce had been granted to his Indian wife he had married in his boyhood, at the time he wedded his Redwood Falls sweetheart.

The young woman’s father was intensely opposed to their marriage, and on investigation found that the divorce decree had not been entered until after their wedding, so he had Hebard arrested for bigamy. He pleaded guilty and was given a year in prison, but the county attorney appeared to urge pardon, and only six months of the time were served.

The pardon was granted on condition that Hebard and his second wife should be remarried, and that condition was fulfilled this afternoon. The father of Mrs. Hebard, it is claimed, tried to persuade her not to remarry her husband. The couple met by appointment this afternoon in the governor’s office, and received the good wishes of Governor Johnson as they started for the courthouse to cement their union again.

The Minneapolis Journal; “Bigamist Pardoned Remarries Wife No. 2”; Oct. 13, 1905; p. 4.


http://foter.com/f/photo/3508184508/140b2ca1e1/
Photo credit: Doug Wallick / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SAWinona

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Makes me wonder how the Holidays went for this family! 

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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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Wednesday, October 11, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 11

October 11, 1905 – “He’s dead all right,” said a trainman in the Minneapolis & St. Louis railroad yards today at noon after three freight cars had passed over the prostrate body of Louis Larbetski, a section hand.

So instead of stopping the train, four more loaded cars were backed over the mangled form.

The sickening accident occurred directly under the Bryn Mawr bridge, in full view of several workmen and friends of the man who was killed. A car was being transferred from the Great Northern road to the Minneapolis & St. Louis, and Larbestski, busy at his work, did not notice the approaching train. The cars backed down on him and as he fell beneath the wheels he called piteously to his friends for help.

*


 Other section men called frantically for the trainmen to stop, but not until the third car had passed over the man was the order obeyed.

Then the train slowed down for a moment, while some of the men looked under the cars and saw the crushed body.

Seeing no signs of life, another signal was given and the remaining four cars were pushed back over the body and the switching went on as usual. The other section men guarded the tracks and deputy Coroner Irvine was summoned. He made a thorough inquiry into the manner of the man’s death, but has not yet decided whether to hold an inquest.

The body has been taken to the county morgue, and the relatives of the man notified. Recently he had troubles with his wife and for several weeks had been living in a boarding house on Washington Ave. N.

The Minneapolis Journal; “Backed Four Cars Over the Corpse. Fatal Accident Not Allowed to Delay Traffic at Bryn Mawr.”; Oct. 11, 1905; p. 1.




There are still many bridges over railroad tracks in the Bryn Mawr
neighborhood of Minneapolis.**


*https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Minneapolis_%26_St._Louis_Peoria_Gateway_logo.jpg

**
Photo taken by Pamela J. Erickson. Released into the public domain Oct. 11, 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:
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Tuesday, October 10, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 10

October 10, 1905 – The St. Raphael’s Hospital in St. Cloud, the best equipped general hospital between Minneapolis and the Pacific Coast, was destroyed this noon by fire that started near the elevator shaft on the fourth floor.

Fifty-three patients and sixteen sisters of the order of St. Benedict were all removed to safety, but those on the third floor crawled through dense smoke. A half dozen patients were operated on yesterday, and are in precarious condition. The fireman fought the flames from the roof, and after a fight lasting four hours, controlled it to the roof, garret and third floor. The loss, however, will be about $60,000, with insurance of $30,000.

St. Raphael’s was established in 1900 by the order of St. Benedict. It was a pressed brick building with four stories.

Among the sick were 19 typhoid patients. Many were taken to the St. Joseph’s home for the aged and to the St. Clotilda’s academy.

Heartrending cries followed the removal of the sick, relatives being unable to locate their dear ones and fearing they had perished.

The local fire department worked bravely, but was handicapped by the lack of apparatus.

The Benedictines assert the structure will be replaced. The exact origin of the fire is a mystery, but it is believed it was caused by an armature on a small motor in the garret used to operate the dummy elevator, burning and setting fire to the woodwork surrounding.

The Minneapolis Tribune; “Patients Rescued From Burning St. Raphael’s Hospital at St. Cloud. Loss to Building and its Contents Will Reach $60,000.”; Oct. 11, 1905; p. 1.



St. Raphael’s Hospital in 1890

https://sbm.osb.org/history_haehn_museum/our_history/saint_scholastica_convent/

               __________________________________________________________

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

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Monday, October 9, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 9

October 9, 1913 – Northern Minnesota lit bonfires this evening to celebrate the defeat of the New York Giants for two Minnesota boys had humbled the mighty John McGraw, the Giant’s manager. Charles Albert “Big Chief” Bender, who won the first game for the Philadelphia Athletics, and Leslie “Bullet Joe” Bush, who pitched today, were both born and reared in the northern part of the state.


*

“There was not a store in Brainerd that did a nickel’s worth of business after the returns began to come in,” said William R. McKenzie of the Northern Minnesota Development Association. “The interest in the game was so intense that everybody deserted business and flocked to the telegraph office to get the news hot of the wire.

“When they heard that ‘Little Les Bush’ had pitched his team into an 8 to 2 victory, the whole town went wild. It was absolutely impossible to buy a drink after 3 o’clock. Everything was ‘on the house.’ It was the second game in the World Series to be won by a favorite son who learned the elements of baseball on the Brainerd team.

“Bush is the son of William Bush, conductor on the Minnesota and International Railroad running out of Brainerd. Until two years ago [Bush] was the pitcher on the Brainerd team and he is known all over the country. He wrote home recently that he did not expect to get into the championship games, for he is a youngster, not yet 20, and when we heard that he had pitched and won—well, Brainerd jut naturally began to turn double somersaults and got out the village band to serenade the family.”



Leslie “Bullet Joe” Bush1

Out on the White Earth Indian Reservation there was much pow-wowing and joyous jabbering in the tepees. Bender belongs to the oldest aristocracy of the state, for his fathers were noble Chippewa chiefs before Columbus waved goodbye to Genoa. He was reared and educated on the White Earth Reservation where his relatives still live.



Chief Bender2

As a small boy he adopted the white man’s baseball and pitched for the Brainerd team in 1899. So the bonfires crackled merrily tonight and every idle dollar in all the North Country was wagered on the Phillies, that is to say, Bender and Bush.

The Minneapolis Morning Tribune; “Bonfires are Lighted in Honor of Two World’s Series Pitchers. Northern Minnesota Celebrates Feats of ‘Big Chief’ Bender and Leslie Bush in Defeating the new York Giants; Both Players Born in Brainerd, Minn.”; Oct. 10, 1913; p. 1.

*https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/55/1913WorldSeries.png/300px-1913WorldSeries.png

1https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0fwk25FcvvKJu4s_FdJ6DSMSLENQ35FJhuQLPUa5PSMZKQWXYr8fbOaY8RXmAbm3T52-wqxF8p2H3CZ30bmwD7-hmCPyC1YWdf5yWqokFDggzoZl_CsG4WwUkq0VcrJ6k-yMcDEM_-Vk/s1600/33993v.jpg     Bush

2https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/06/Chief_Bender%2C_Philadelphia_Athletics_pitcher%2C_by_Paul_Thompson%2C_1911.jpg/1200px-Chief_Bender%2C_Philadelphia_Athletics_pitcher%2C_by_Paul_Thompson%2C_1911.jpg


For more information on Leslie “Bullet Joe” Bush: https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/30a2a3bd

For more information on Chief Bender: https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/03e80f4d
               __________________________________________________________

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

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Sunday, October 8, 2017

On This Date in Minnesota History: October 8

October 8, 1908 – Foley, the county seat of Benton County, a village of 1,000 people, was practically destroyed by fire this evening. As the fire raged, a bucket brigade including men and women, worked hard to save what they could.

Foley has little fire protection, only a gasoline engine. Owing to strong wind, the fire spread rapidly. St. Cloud was appealed to for aid, but the city could do nothing. The fire started in Julius Hoffman’s shoe shop, where four fires have been started in the past three years.

The loss is estimated at $75,000.

The Post and Record; “Laid in Ashes. Village of Foley in Benton County Is Practically Wiped Out by Flames. Women in Bucket Brigade. Residents Put Up fierce Fight to Save Their Homes—Loss Estimated at $75,000.” Rochester, Minn.; Oct. 9, 1908; p. 10.


http://pouchtec.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/foley-tower.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