Sherburne History Center Blog

  In reviewing the history of Sherburne County, significant attention is given to the agriculture industry, or to transportation, specifically the railroads. An area of the economy in Sherburne County that receives very little attention, an area that warrants greater attention, is the hospitality industry. From the beginning of the county to today, hotels and hospitality played a significant role in the county.   Starting with Brown’s Hotel in Big Lake and continuing with the Riverside House and the Blanchett Hotel in Elk River.   Also, we need to note the inn at Bailey Station in the 1870s.   All of these establishments played a significant role in the economic history of Sherburne County.               Brown’s Hotel in Big Lake marks the beginning of hospitality industry.   Before the county was created, Joseph Brown advertised in the Sauk Rapids newspaper, promoting Big Lake as a stopping off point...

  While researching a general topic of education in Sherburne County, a greater understanding of the architecture of schoolhouses emerged.   By this I suggest that searching for details of the large, brick, near-monumental schools in Sherburne County reveals an interesting pattern.   The best known of the large schools in Sherburne County resides in Elk River.   In 1883, fire destroyed the Elk River school.   A fire resistant, brick building replaced the destroyed structure.   A two-story edifice, a school for all grades opened its doors.   This building is the first of the large, semi-permanent edifices that pre-dates education reform and expands the possibilities for education in Sherburne County.   First brick schoolhouse in Elk River pre-1900 The first graduating class of this new Elk River school matriculated in 1888.   Eleven years later, in 1899 the state of Minnesota advanced education in Sherburne County.   That year, the Sc...

  During Women’s History Month we recognized several women impacting community and culture in Sherburne County.   We also need to note at least one of the many community organizations, led by women, that worked to impact and improve life in Sherburne County.   The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (the WCTU) remains one of the more important of these groups. 1911 Star News headline reporting vote results on alcohol sales.  Nationally the WCTU organized in 1874 urging abstinence from alcohol.   Beginning in 1878, under the leadership of Francis Willard, the group also advocated for prison reform, labor laws, and suffrage.   Many regarded the group as one of the largest and most influential of reform societies in the United States during the 1800s. In Sherburne County, the WCTU organized late.   In 1895, the Elk River Star News reported meetings at the Elk River Methodist Church.   Not until 1910 did the WCTU formally organize in Becker.  ...

  A new exhibit on the Sherburne History Center web page explores postcards and their popularity as a means of communication.   An equally interesting development in Sherburne County history is the adoption and use of the telephone.   Beginning in the early 1890s and continuing through the 1920s several small telephone companies organized in Sherburne County to offer this unique method of communication.   Delving into the early history of companies such as the Meadowvale Rural Telephone Company and the Haven Telephone Company, and the efforts of anonymous companies in Elk River provide an interesting appreciation of a rising telephone technology in the county.   Drawing of candlestick style telephone common in 1900 As early as 1893, the opportunity to reach out to friends in distant communities arrived in Elk River.   The Elk River Star News reported a telephone company installed a “hello line” at the Merchant Hotel.   A telephone at the hotel allowe...

  The anniversary of the atomic bombing of Japan arrived this week. It seems an appropriate time to recognize the impact of the war on Sherburne County. Unfortunately, and tragically, World War Two impacted everyone. Whether through rationing or military service, or a multitude of other means, every individual in Sherburne County, between 1940 and 1945, felt the war.    An oral history collected from Edmund Babcock makes an interesting point of this: “When my high school class had its fiftieth reunion, we invited every class member to get up and take the microphone and tell a little bit about what had happened in their life since graduation from high school. We invited a dear lady who was one of those teachers that everybody in the class knew and liked. She was getting to be an elderly person at that point. Her daughter, who happened to be a medical docto r, drove her out from Minneapolis and stayed with her through the whole evening. We had a reception the ne...

Fire became a greater concern for Sherburne county, as the residents entered the 1900s.   As more and more fires destroyed more and more property, the communities responded to this growing challenge.   In the west part of the county, Clear Lake and Becker both acquired equipment and trained volunteers to move beyond the basic bucket brigade of earlier times.   Clear lake seemed to lead the way in organizing a fire department and acquiring equipment.   Becker learned from the example set in Clear Lake and used the lessons to improve its own system of firefighting. The flaming destruction of the depot of the Great Northern Railway inspired Clear Lake to move into action and acquire firefighting equipment.   In March 1898, one year before the village of Clear Lake was incorporated, a call for volunteers resulted in the creation of a significant firefighting force.   Shortly afterwards, the community purchased a two-man fire cart.   Using soda and ac...

The development of Sherburne County and the political divisions are common questions.  When were specific townships created?  How was the county originally divided?  The Minnesota Territorial Legislature created Sherburne County from the southern lands of Benton County in 1856.  This legislation designated Humboldt (later renamed Big Lake) as the county seat.  Special elections chose Elijah Cutter, John Stevenson, and Ephraim Nickerson the first County Commissioners.  The newly created county was divided into three assessment districts.  The county Commissioner, two years later, created the original five townships of Sherburne County.  On September 13, 1858, Baldwin, Big Lake, Clear Lake, Elk River, and Briggs Townships came into being.  Briggs Township was later renamed Palmer.  Although this map is dated 1874, a significant error on this township map is the omission of Blue Hill, created in 1868 yet not designated on this she...

With the fast approaching Veteran’s Day, we wanted to take a moment and thank all veterans for their service.  We also wanted to recognize some of the men who made the ultimate sacrifice for all of us. Men who died in the service of their country from Sherburne County, Minnesota include: Leo A. McBride Arthur Bernard Embretson Oscar Engbloom James L Brown Funeral service of Charles Brown, Becker, MN circa 1944 Lyle Illif Howard Palmer Robert Darrow Harold Gohman Charles Brown George Meyers Lawrence E. Lindorf Reginald “Mike” Smith Robert Brown Orvile Anderson Donald Borst Orville Hartman Robert Bell Carl Trovall Carl N. Nielson This is not intended as a comprehensive list of men from Sherburne County who have died in service.  We would welcome any information about others who have served. Thank you and have a safe Veteran’s Day 2017

Elk River Base Ball Club, circa 1900 April is fast approaching, that mean spring training ends and Major League Baseball begins.  Although Sherburne County has never fielded a professional or semi-professional ball club, baseball was taken very seriously in the county.  Just a sampling of news reports in 1895 reveals several of the baseball clubs in Sherburne County and the serious nature of the sport.  In June of 1895, with the start of the local season, the Sherburne County Star News presented a brief history of the rivalries in the area.  Elk River and Monticello ball clubs long remained top of the list of serious rivals.  “In olden times there used to be some battles royal between the base ballists of these two towns,” the newspaper reported.  “”Monday reminded us a little of those old times, the chief difference being that Elk River was defeated this time which didn’t used to be the case.”  In this particular “battle royal” Elk River fel...

Every student of Sherburne County History knows the namesake of the county lies with Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Moses Sherburne.  George Loomis Becker, the youngest Mayor of St. Paul, lawyer and politician, also warrants attention in Sherburne County history.  George Loomis Becker 1829-1904 The namesake of the City of Becker, George was born in Locke, New York in 1829.  He arrived In St Paul in 1849.  Elected Mayor of St. Paul in 1856 for a one year term.  Still later, he twice ran unsuccessfully for Governor.  Important for the Sherburne County story, he worked for the Saint Paul and Pacific Railroad.  From 1885 to 1901 he served as a member of the state railroad and warehouse commission.  His primary interest in those years, he promoted railroad interests and development throughout the state.  Although never a major stop on the railroad lines, Becker and area farmers utilized the rail service to ship produce and goods....

Becker, Minnesota once claimed the title of “Strawberry Capital” of the Midwest.  All thanks to the work of Becker farmer Carroll “Strawberry” Johnson.  Born in December 1918, Carroll Johnson’s work in agriculture led to significant developments in farming, particularly for strawberry farms.  His work in marketing and promotion helped make Becker famous for its strawberries. Starting in 1936, the summer after his High School graduation Carroll Johnson planted a few strawberry plants and sold the produce door-to-door.  In the fall he attended the University of Minnesota, majoring in horticulture.  Each summer he would return to his family farm and increase acreage devoted to strawberry plants.    Overtime, Johnson continued selling to the local markets, eventually expanding as far as Fargo, North Dakota.  He also increased the size of his farm.  At its peak in the 1970s, the Johnson Berry Farm extended to over 150 acres.  Agr...

Becker’s claim to fame includes strawberries.  Big Lake gained fame for the purity of the ice.  Another truth handed down through time: Elk River’s claim to fame is the potato.  The Sherburne County Star News reported on March 28, 1912 “that Elk River has been famous as a great potato market.”  As proof a front page news article reported two men in an unnamed, yet famous, Minneapolis restaurant heard the demand for Elk River potatoes.  “The Elk River potato is known and called for as an especial relish of big Minneapolis restaurants,” the paper reported.  The paper went on to suggest that although some believed the men “had taken a wee bit too much of some sparkling fluid from bottles,” it was common knowledge around the Sherburne county town, “Elk River potatoes are famous and will be more so in a few years."        The Star News felt this claim to fame warranted some action by the county to adopt a specific type of spud to m...

The cliché tells us that “truth is often stranger than fiction.”  In the case of the Becker Post Office robbery of 1931, the truth reads like fiction.  Here is a story of a woman betrayed and a group of cold hearted men plotting for the promise of easy money.   The story begins with Mr. Berga Glisson.  A resident of St. Cloud, in 1931 he had been spending time with the post mistress of Becker, Miss Gertrude Dyson.  For two years the couple had been together.  In December 1931, according to the Sherburne County Star News Glisson and three cohorts schemed to rob the safe of the Becker Post Office.  Glisson’s part in the crime was to duplicate a house key to the residential portion of the Post Office and deliver it to another of his co-conspirators.   The evening of December 6, 1931, using the key provided by Glisson, three men burst into the home of Miss Dyson.  They took Dyson and Glisson hostage and forced the postmistress to o...

I received this challenging question several times while discussing post World War Two Sherburne County.  Answering the question is important because Highway 10 provides perspective on events around the county.  The Highway also remains an emotional scar on the psyche of Sherburne County. The direct answer about construction of Highway 10:  the project began in 1929 and expanded in 1952.  At first glance the road seemed a great gift, connecting two major cities with small Sherburne County towns.  Yet, expansion in 1950 caused major upset.  Charles Babcock promoted Highway 10 during his tenure as Highway Commissioner.  The two lane highway through Sherburne County opened in 1929.  Some of the road was paved, other sections were dirt or gravel.  It stretched from Anoka through Sherburne County to North Dakota.   The greatest impact to Sherburne County and the road came in 1950.  The Highway Department announced the wideni...

June 25 and June 26 were not good days in the history of Becker, Minnesota.  In only 12 hours, disaster stacked up on disaster for the small community.  Near catastrophe set the entire town on edge like an over caffeinated speed freak.  In midafternoon, June 25, 3 pm to be exact, fire alarms rang out throughout the town.  The landmark potato warehouse, the storage facility of the Knutson and Gongoll store, began to burn. Becker did not have any type of firefighting equipment at the time.  Men fought the conflagration as a bucket brigade until responders from Big Lake and Clear Lake arrived.  While the neighboring firefighters fought the flames on the warehouse, the bucket brigade turned their attention to nearby homes and other buildings.  The gas pumps at the Hy-Way Inn were drenched with water to prevent explosion.  The shingles of the A. G. Stevens building smoldered and extinguished four separate times.  And, the flames reached the M...

The following two announcements reinforce the idea of “trust but verify” in family history. They also suggest why family history research can be so much fun yet so challenging. The two announcements were published in the Sherburne County Star News on 6 February and 13 February 1896 in the “Becker News” column on page 5.  Even the most intrepid of news reporters and correspondents can get the facts wrong.  So, in family history we have the responsibility to “trust but verify.” 6 February 1896   13 February 1896 And special thanks to my colleague, Phyllis Scroggins, who found these two announcements and brought them to my attention.  While reading the microfilm newspapers, Phyllis manages to find the most interesting information.

In a trial in Becker in 1895, an interesting bit of local law proceedings were reported in the Sherburne County Star News: Thomas Parento accused Fred Specovious of stealing hay valued at eight dollars.  After two hours of testimony and five hours of jury deliberation, no conclusion was reached.  We had a “hung jury.”  The local magistrate, Judge Shephardson suggested that if the two parties could settle on the matter, jury costs would be reduced.  At this point, the court costs amounted to $20.  A cost of more than twice the value of the missing hay.  Parento and Specovious agreed to drop the case and split a $7 fee for court costs. I am not sure if this reveals the wisdom of the court, or the two farmers saw the economic advantages to a settlement.   Regardless of the underlying “moral of the story,” the report does highlight the pragmatic approach often displayed in the court room in small towns in the Midwest.