Catalog
Ramsey County History – Summer 2004: “The Rondo Oral History Project Beulah Mae Baines Swan Remembers Piano Lessons and a ‘Nice Vegetable Garden’ Out Back”
Kate CavettThe Rondo Oral History Project Beulah Mae Baines Swan Remembers Piano Lessons and a ‘Nice Vegetable Garden’ Out Back An Interview by Kate Cavett This article is from an oral history interview with Beulah Mae Baines Swan, who was raised near Como and Dale in a very small…
Ramsey County History – Spring 2004: “‘High and Dry on a Sandstone Cliff:’ St. Paul and the Year of the Chicago and Rock Island’s Great Railroad Excursion”
Steve Trimble‘High and Dry on a Sandstone Cliff:’ St. Paul and the Year of the Chicago and Rock Island’s Great Railroad Excursion Author: Steve Trimble This article examines what St. Paul looked like in 1854 when the Great Railroad Excursion came to the city. St. Paul was part of the…
Ramsey County History – Spring 2003: “The Volunteer Hook and Ladder Company”
Virginia Brainard KunzThe Volunteer Hook and Ladder Company Author: Virginia Brainard Kunz This is a short article on Wilson Farrell’s Pioneer Hook and Ladder Company, which was established in 1854. Like other groups of this type, its members were elected and had to buy their own ladders, buckets, and rope. Arson,…
Ramsey County History – Summer 2003: “The Story of Minnie Dassel: Was She a Mysterious ‘Countess’ Who Settled in St. Paul?”
Paul JohnsonThe Story of Minnie Dassel: Was She a Mysterious ‘Countess’ Who Settled in St. Paul? Author: Paul Johnson This is the story of a woman who worked in St. Paul for fifty-five years in the late nineteenth century. Some people thought that Minnie Dassel was secretly a German countess…
Ramsey County History – Winter 2003: “Growing Up In St Paul: Diamonds, Gravel Roads, and a Little Chevrolet—The Life and Times of a Venture Capitalist”
Alan R. (Buddy) RuvelsonGrowing Up In St Paul: Diamonds, Gravel Roads, and a Little Chevrolet—The Life and Times of a Venture Capitalist Author: Alan R. (Buddy) Ruvelson This article begins with the author’s family background and the arrival of his great grandfather in St. Paul in the 1870s, where he lived at…
Ramsey County History – Winter 2003: “A Flourishing Fur Trade Industry and the US Army Corps of Engineers Centre Building”
Matt PearcyA Flourishing Fur Trade Industry and the US Army Corps of Engineers Centre Building Author: Matt Pearcy This is the story of a building at 333 Sibley, designed by the famous architect Clarence Johnston. It was initially constructed for Gordon and Ferguson, an important fur trading company. They had…
Ramsey County History – Winter 2003: “I Remember the Teachers’ Strike of 1946: ‘We Rolled Down Our Windows in the Cold Air’”
Maxine DicksonI Remember the Teachers’ Strike of 1946: “We Rolled Down Our Windows in the Cold Air’” Author: Maxine Dickson The author attended and remembered having talked with her teachers about schools and unions. Her family lived at 1718 Ross Avenue, and she attended Ames Elementary and Junior High. When St.
Ramsey County History – Fall 2002: “Those Squealing Red River Ox Carts: Norman Kittson and the Fur Trade”
Clarence Rife and Holly WaltersThose Squealing Red River Ox Carts: Norman Kittson and the Fur Trade Authors: Clarence Rife and Holly Walters In 1830 at the age of sixteen, Canadian-born Norman Kittson joined the American Fur Company and headed west. He eventually arrived in Minnesota, where he joined Henry Sibley in the fur…
Ramsey County History – Spring 2002: “Donations and Their Own Pockets—An Orphanage’s Roots in 1869 St. Paul”
Paul D. NelsonDonations and Their Own Pockets—An Orphanage’s Roots in 1869 St. Paul Author: Paul D. Nelson This article examines the St. Joseph’s Orphanage by looking at the experiences of the Postlewaite family. In the early days, it was a German institution which bought a forty-seven acre plot of land at…