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Ramsey County History Podcast #1 – Spring 2014: The Saga of I-35; East Side Freedom Library

Paul Nelson, John Milton, and Peter Rachleff

The Saga of I-35; East Side Freedom Library Part 1: John Milton tells the story of how citizen opposition delayed for many years the completion of Interstate Highway 35 through St. Paul. Part 2: Labor historian Peter Rachleff describes how he and his partner Beth Cleary plan…

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…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2014: “Fighting to Keep Seeger Running: Ralph M. Scalze and His Leadership of Local No. 20459, AFL-CIO, 1949–1955”

Gerald E. Scalze

Fighting to Keep Seeger Running: Ralph M. Scalze and His Leadership of Local No. 20459, AFL-CIO, 1949–1955 Author: Gerald E. Scalze A World War II veteran, Ralph Scalze was the leader of Local No. 20459 of the Refrigerator Workers’ Union of the AFL-CIO from 1949 to 1955, the largest…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2013: “Present at the Creation: The Turbulent Sixties and Seventies in St. Paul Politics”

Ruby M. Hunt

Present at the Creation: The Turbulent Sixties and Seventies in St. Paul Politics Author: Ruby M. Hunt Ruby Hunt, who served on the Saint Paul City Council between 1972 and 1982 and on the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners between 1983 and 1995, recalls several key personalities, primarily Mayor…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2012: “Growing Up in St. Paul: University Avenue: Then and Now”

Joanne A. Englund

Growing Up in St. Paul: University Avenue: Then and Now Author: Joanne A. Englund Looking back on memories of University Avenue mixed with current observations: traffic accidents; the beat of the author’s father, a St. Paul police officer; patronizing local movie theaters, drugstores, and ice cream shops; passing by…

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2012

Ramsey County History – Spring 2012: “‘As if in a Law Office in Illinois:’ An Interview with President Lincoln”

John B. Sanborn

“As if in a Law Office in Illinois:” An Interview with President Lincoln Author: John B. Sanborn This short article is an excerpt from John B. Sanborn’s 1887 autobiographical address titled, “Reminiscences of the Campaigns Against Vicksburg.” Sanborn served as a colonel in the Union Army in the Civil…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2011: “A Different Sesquicentennial: Remembering Fredrick McGhee”

Paul D. Nelson

A Different Sesquicentennial: Remembering Fredrick McGhee Author: Paul D. Nelson On October 28, 2011, Author Paul Nelson paused to reflect that Fredrick McGhee (1861–1912) was born on that date 150 years ago. Nelson remembered him that day because he admired the man so much, and because, as his biographer,…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2008: “‘Mr. Livingston … Had the Tenth:’ An Episode in Minnesota Railroad Building”

John M. Lindley

“Mr. Livingston … Had the Tenth:” An Episode in Minnesota Railroad Building  Author: John M. Lindley On October 3, 1883, the Minnesota Supreme Court rendered its decision in the case of James H. Weed et al. vs. Little Falls & Dakota Railroad et al. One of many railroad cases…

Ramsey County History – Spring 2008: “Growing Up In Saint Paul: When Selby and Snelling Had a Life of Its Own, 1943–1954”

Bernard P. Friel

Growing Up In Saint Paul: When Selby and Snelling Had a Life of Its Own, 1943–195 Author: Bernard P. Friel The author, who was born in 1930, lived in a three-generation home at 1237 Selby. His first real job was at Park Drug Store at Selby and Snelling, and that…