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Ramsey County History – Winter 2017: “William T. Francis, at Home and Abroad”

Paul D. Nelson

William T. Francis, at Home and Abroad Author: Paul D. Nelson William T. (Billy) and Nellie Francis were a “Golden Couple” in Ramsey County in the 1920s. They were good-looking, intelligent, talented, ambitious, and successful. Then they went to Africa, and things went terribly wrong. This article presents the…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2016: “John Anderson’s Fall from the High Bridge”

John T. Sielaff

John Anderson’s Fall from the High Bridge Author: John T. Sielaff On May 2, 1902, John Anderson, a painter working as part of a crew repainting the St. Paul High Bridge, fell 125 feet into the Mississippi River and survived. Although injured when he hit the footing of the…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2016: “‘Abide with Me:’ Grace Craig Stork, 1916”

Rebecca A. Ebnet-Mavencamp

‘Abide with Me:’ Grace Craig Stork, 1916 Author: Rebecca A. Ebnet-Mavencamp Beginning in 1903, the family of William and Grace Stork lived on St. Paul’s Cleveland Avenue. Grace began to experience eye pain in 1914, and two years later she underwent surgery for “orbital cancer,” which removed a tumor…

Ramsey County History – Summer 2016: “Helen Marks, Dressmaker, the 1903 Summer Carnival, and the Unions”

David Riehle

Helen Marks, Dressmaker, the 1903 Summer Carnival, and the Unions Author: David Riehle In late July and early August of 1903, St. Paul held its only Summer Carnival. One of the principal events in this festival that lasted nearly two weeks was the popular election of a queen. Men…

Ramsey County History – Spring 2016: “Building the New Salvation Army Rescue Home of St. Paul, 1913”

Kim Heikkla

Building the New Salvation Army Rescue Home of St. Paul, 1913 Author: Kim Heikkla The first Salvation Army Rescue Home to assist women who were either homeless, prostitutes, addicted, or unmarried mothers, opened in St. Paul in 1898, but it and its successor were soon outgrown. Adjutant True Earle,…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2015: “ALLY People Solutions: 50 Years of Service to Individuals and the Community”

Eileen R. McCormack

ALLY People Solutions: 50 Years of Service to Individuals and the Community Author: Eileen R. McCormack ALLY People Solutions, a St. Paul nonprofit corporation that serves people in the community with disabilities, traces its roots to a small group of parents who opened a Day Activity Center…

Ramsey County History – Summer 2015: “When Ramsey County Politics had an Edge: Maas vs. Williams”

Paul D. Nelson

When Ramsey County Politics had an Edge: Maas vs. Williams Author: Paul D. Nelson From 1927 to early 1945, Melvin J. Maas (1898–1964), a Republican, represented Minnesota’s Fourth Congressional District, which included St. Paul and Ramsey County. Today, few remember his long service in Washington or his career. This…

Ramsey County History – Summer 2015: “Carnies and Calamities: A Carnival Midway on the Island at Phalen Park, 1903–1908”

Janice R. Quick

Carnies and Calamities: A Carnival Midway on the Island at Phalen Park, 1903–1908 Author: Janice R. Quick A young entrepreneur, Jacob Barnet, built a carnival midway and amusement park on the island at Phalen Park in 1903. Under contract with the Board of Park Commissioners, Barnett’s midway was successful…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2014: “Citizens versus the Freeway: RIP-35E and the Pleasant Avenue Route through St. Paul”

John Watson Milton

Citizens versus the Freeway: RIP-35E and the Pleasant Avenue Route through St. Paul Author: John Watson Milton In September 1955, the National System of Interstate Highways identified the Pleasant Avenue corridor as the route for north-south Interstate 35E through the City of St. Paul, connecting with…