Saturday, August 23, 2014

On This Date in Minnesota History: August 23

August 23, 1862 – “During the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, [Breckenridge, Minn.], laid out in 1857 and named for John C. Breckenridge, was all but abandoned. Three men only remained behind in the hotel, and these on [this date] were killed by the Indians. The same day a mail stage was attacked near the town and its driver killed.”

“Guide to historic markers erected by the State Highway Department cooperating with the Minnesota Historical Society”

http://search.ancestry.com/Browse/BookView.aspx?dbid=25816&iid=dvm_LocHist010819-00006-0&sid=&gskw=




Marker reads:

Breckenridge

“Named for John C. Breckenridge, vice-president of the United States from 1857 to 1861, the town was laid out in 1857. On August 23, 1862, its citizens were warned that the Sioux Indians were planning a raid on the town, and most of them fled to Fort Abercrombie. Scoffing at the warning, three men - Edward Russell, Charles Battle, and Martin Fehrenbach - stayed behind and were killed by the Indians. After the Sioux Uprising, Breckenridge remained a virtual ghost town until 1871 when the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad reached here and ushered in a period of booming growth.”

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM92YD_Breckenridge




Friday, August 22, 2014

On this Date in Minnesota History: August 22

August 22, 1885 – “Just barely past the first anniversary of the fire [August 16, 1884], the [Jackson Hotel, now Billy’s Bar & Grill] became the scene of Anoka's first murder. A drunken disagreement between friends turned deadly as W.F. Mirick (or possibly Mieriet) opened fire on his pal Peter Gross (a German immigrant) with a revolver. Only one of the shots fired struck Gross. It hit him in the back as he attempted to flee from the gunman.

Mirick ran from the scene of his crime and the mortally wounded Gross managed to drag himself into the hotel. He was taken to a room upstairs and put under the care of a doctor, but died the following night. The killer was eventually caught and convicted for his crime.”

http://www.thecabinet.com/darkdestinations/location.php?sub_id=dark_destinations&letter=b&location_id=billys_bar_and_grill_anoka_mn




Jackson Hotel, now Billy’s Bar & Grill, in Anoka

Photo taken by Pamela J. Erickson. Released into the public domain Dec. 8, 2012,
as long as acknowledgement included.


Haunted Places in Minnesota:
The Jackson Hotel, now Billy’s Bar & Grill, Anoka, Minn.; see December 8, 2012 blog
http://pjefamilyresearch.blogspot.com/2012/12/on-this-date-in-minnesota-history_8.html

Thursday, August 21, 2014

On this Date in Minnesota History: August 21

August 21, 1965 - The Beatles played in front of 25,000 frenzied fans at Met Stadium in Bloomington, Minn., as part of their 1965 North American Tour. Susan Stocking, a Minneapolis Tribune reporter dressed as a waitress delivering food, infiltrated their room at the Leamington Motor Inn to get a story.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Stadium

Minneapolis Tribune; “I Was a Waitress for Three Beatles”; August 23, 1965; pp. 1A & 6A.




The Beatles
http://beatlephotoblog.com/




Wednesday, August 20, 2014

On This Date in Minnesota History: August 20

August 20, 1904 – A deadly tornado (some say cyclone) struck Waconia, Minn., on this date. Four people were killed in town and a fifth in the country nearby. Property loss was estimated to run up to $500,000, with one half of the village being totally wrecked and most of the farms within a radius of four miles experienced the loss of all buildings. A number of homes and businesses were a total loss, including city hall; while some buildings were only badly damaged, including Charles Maiser’s Waconia Roller Mill, a grain mill.

Maiser’s Italianate frame house built ca. 1875, however, survived the storm and was named to the National Register of Historic Places on January 4, 1980.

http://nrhp.mnhs.org/NRResults.cfm?Referer=bas

http://www.gendisasters.com/data1/mn/tornadoes/wauconia-tornado-aug1904.htm





Charles Maiser’s House





Photos taken by Pamela J. Erickson. Released into the public domain August 20, 2014,
as long as acknowledgement included.

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

On this Date in Minnesota History: August 19

August 19, 1982 – Winsted City Hall was listed on the National Register of Historical Places on this date.

Dedicated on Jan. 1, 1896, Winsted’s first city hall was located in the center of town with a view of beautiful Winsted Lake.

“The hall accommodated the following:


• The Winsted fire department was located on the main floor at the north end of the building.


• The facility’s upper floor assembly room was booked solid, hosting a never-ending procession of lectures, dances, banquets, and “entertainments” sponsored by such local groups as the Literary Society and the Twilight Club, even old time medicine man shows.

• A stage was constructed on the upper floor for theatrical productions in 1898.

• The lower level was equipped with prefabricated jail cells in 1905.

• When silent movies came to town, the upper floor assembly room was transformed into Winsted’s first motion picture theater. “

“The last official day of business in the original city hall was Nov. 4, 1997. A total of 102 years as Winsted’s city hall.”

http://www.herald-journal.com/archives/2006/stories/winhall.html






Winsted City Hall on 1913 Postcard
http://reflections.mndigital.org/cdm/ref/collection/mcc/id/69





Original Winsted City Hall 2013




Photos taken by Pamela J. Erickson. Released into the public domain August 19, 2014,
as long as acknowledgement included.
 



Monday, August 18, 2014

On this Date in Minnesota History: August 18

August 18, 1995 – Singer Tiny Tim was married for the third time on this date to Sue Gardner (Miss Sue) at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Minnetonka, Minn.

http://www.findadeath.com/Deceased/t/tiny_tim/tiny_tim.htm




Tiny Tim
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:TinyTim.jpg



Sunday, August 17, 2014

On this Date in Minnesota History: August 17

August 17, 1985 – “More than 1,400 meatpackers walked off the job at the Geo. A. Hormel and Co.'s main plant in Austin, Minn., in a bitter strike that lasted just over a year.”

http://timelines.ws/states/MINNESOTA.HTML





http://www.rtbot.net/hormel