Ray Clement, Ella Kringland and Sand Dunes State Forest
A conservationist described the Sand Dunes State Forest as “A green dream come true.” An area recovered from desolate, sandy soil to “a nature lover’s dream.” An area in Orrock Township, at one time regarded as decent farmland. With the coming drought in the 1930s the land became a farmer’s nightmare. By 1940, farmers and Sherburne County residents described the land in Orrock Township as a wasteland, the epicenter of the poison ivy capital of the world, and the home of Zimmerman sand. The land was so bad “the jack rabbits carried lunch bags as they hopped over the area.” Beginning in 1943, a transformation took hold and the resurrection of tillable land came about. In no small part, this dramatic change resulted from efforts by Ray Clement, the Minnesota Forest Service and County conservationist Ella Kringland. Farmers abandoned land or surrendered to tax forfeiture. Clement petitioned the state legislature to set a...