Sherburne History Center Blog

Although not the site of the 1929 bank robbery, the lobby of the Bank of Elk River gives a sense of the security and business atmosphere in the bank. In the heyday of bank robberies and crime, the 1920s; in the time of Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde, and a slew of other criminals; Elk River experienced what the Sherburne County Star News called “one of the most sensational crimes committed in Sherburne county.”  In the morning of August 9, 1929, three bank robbers kidnapped Dr. George Page, his wife, Zella, and bank cashier, T. E. Olson.  While one bank robber held Mrs. Page hostage, the other two escorted Dr. Page and Mr. Olsen into the First National Bank of Elk River.  After entering the bank, Mr. Olsen announced the robbery.  Cashiers turned over $7200 to the robbers.  After leaving the bank, the robbers retrieved their third member at the home of Dr. Page.  Surprisingly, the bandits did not confine their three hostages.  After the robber...

The 1920s proved a challenging decade for Sherburne County.   The period seemed particularly tough in the community of Clear Lake.   Coupling crime and economic challenges presented significant difficulties.   The tenacity of business owners and residents kept the village moving forward.   Examples, such as the history of Frank Hankemeyer and his general merchandise store reveal the resolve of character in the local residents.   Despite the challenges of the decade, the persistence of men and women like Frank Hankemeyer reinforce the character of the community.   T he county newspaper, the Sherburne County Star News, suggest the 1920s a crime riddled era for Clear Lake. The news regularly reported businesses burglarized and hold-ups in the small town.   Thieves burglarized the local creamery.   In broad daylight, bandits robbed Joseph LeBlanc’s general store at gun point.   The newspaper regularly reported thefts of livestock and burg...

Paddy wagon in front of St. Cloud Reformatory, circa 1920 Improved roads and new automobiles delivered an unwanted result to Sherburne County in the 1920s.  Crime flourished in the area.  Perhaps the high point of the 1920s county crime spree occurred in 1927.  That year, a bandit gang of five men terrorized communities on the outskirts of Minneapolis.  Led by Frank “Slim” Gibson, the crew included Jack and Lester Northrup, and Ralph and Lester Barge.  In a crime spree expanding beyond Sherburne County, all the way to North Dakota, the men robbed banks and burglarized businesses.  The intrepid police work of Sherburne County officers led to their capture and prison sentences.  Beginning in 1926, the outlaw crew robbed merchants and banks throughout central Minnesota and North Dakota.  In November 1926 the gang robbed the bank in Wheelock, North Dakota.  Frank Gibson murdered bank cashier H. H. Peterson.  Continuing into 1927...

“Somebody,” the Sherburne County Star News in November 1919 reported, “has discovered a new way of reducing the high cost of living.”  Thieves victimized farmers in Sherburne County for several years by stealing anything they might be able to eat or sell.  A thieving crime wave first appeared in 1919, Jim Brown a Livonia Township farmer reported a two-year-old steer butchered in his field.  The thieves took “everything along except the head the entrails,” the paper reported.  According to the reporter, Brown’s steer was the second Sherburne County theft by butcher that year.  The paper also recalled several sheep had been similarly stolen.  “It may be that an organized band of thieves are operating in this section,” the Star News suggested.  Later in the 1920s, organized gangs of thieves again operated in the county.  For more than three years, 1921 to 1924, butter thieves targeted creameries owned by the Twin Cities Milk Producers Associ...

Sheriff Chester J. Goenner served in office from 1952 to 1981 Photo from the SHC collections 1990.201.220              Every so often we write of an individual significant to the history of Sherburne County.  Another name to add to the list of movers and shakers in Sherburne Ccounty is Sheriff Chet Goenner--ed. note.   “History will record that Sheriff Goenner solved all of the murders and bank robberies during his years in office.” The quote from the Sherburne County Star News, summarized the career of Sherburne County’s long serving sheriff. Chester Goenner served as County Sheriff from 1952 until 1981.  In the time, he earned a reputation of commanding respect and using all of his resources to get the job done. Goenner was first appointed to the position of County Sheriff in 1952, after the death of Nial Nuemann.  Before that appointment, he served as the county deputy sheriff for 18 years.  Prior to that ...

The drama of crime reveals itself in the pages of the Sherburne County Star News .  Reporters tell the stories of victims and perpetrators.  They also reveal the patterns of crime and use language to generate greater interest in the events.  As an example, in 1903 the newspaper noted crime is seasonal in Sherburne County, “parallel with the influx of the tramp a hobo fraternity.”    The crime reporting also generates creative writing from newspaper correspondents.  In a burglary in Haven Township in August of 1903, “two men, on a tall and ugly looking genius, and a shorter companion with a dark mustache” burglarized a home.  They ransacked a home, “to show how thorough and accomplished there in the work they cut open and ripped every mattress in every bed in the house.”   Less than two weeks later, “bold burglars” used explosives to rob the Clear Lake bank.  “Sheriff Ward has gone up to do some sleuth work.”  The string ...