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Ramsey County History – Summer 2006: “‘He Was Mechanic Arts’ Mechanic Arts High School: The Dietrich Lange Years, 1916–1939”

John W. Larson

“He Was Mechanic Arts” Mechanic Arts High School: The Dietrich Lange Years, 1916–1939 Author: John W. Larson Although this article features Dietrich Lange (1863–1940)—educator, naturalist, and writer—it gives biographical information on several other teachers as well as several Mechanic Arts High School students who became prominent. Roy Wilkins, for…

Ramsey County History – Summer 2006: “‘Dreams of the Immensity of the Future:’ Crex Carpet Company Revisited

Paul D. Nelson

“Dreams of the Immensity of the Future:” Crex Carpet Company Revisited Author: Paul D. Nelson A short article that follows up on an earlier piece by the author, published in the Winter 2006 issue. It was prompted by the discovery of an unpublished manuscript written by Michael O’Shaughnessy, the…

Ramsey County History – Summer 2006: “Fighting Billy Miske: The Heart of a Champion”

Paul Picard

Fighting Billy Miske: The Heart of a Champion Author: Paul Picard St. Paul was known for its champion boxers even before the sport became legal in the city, and bouts had to be fought outside the state. Miske, the “St. Paul Thunderbolt,” was the son of German immigrants. He…

Ramsey County History – Spring 2006: “Growing Up in St. Paul: Stranger in a Strange Land: A Culture That for a Child Was Foreign and Alien”

Bernice M. Fisher

Growing Up in St. Paul: Stranger in a Strange Land: A Culture That for a Child Was Foreign and Alien  Author: Bernice M. Fisher Bernice Fisher started kindergarten at Scheffer School in 1933. A later move to St. Adelbert’s School changed her in ways her parents had not anticipated.

Ramsey County History – Winter 2006: “‘The Greatest Single Industry?’ Crex: Created Out of Nothing” 

Paul D. Nelson

“The Greatest Single Industry?” Crex: Created Out of Nothing  Author: Paul D. Nelson The American Grass Twine Company was the fifth largest employer in St. Paul in 1903 and its largest manufacturing industry, with 900 employees. The company was based on taking wire grass, which grew in peat bogs…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2006: “My Years at the Andahazy School of Ballet”

Sandra Snell Weinberg

My Years at the Andahazy School of Ballet Author: Sandra Snell Weinberg At the age of eleven, the author took her first lessons at the Andahazy School of Classical Ballet at 1680 Grand Avenue. She was thrilled and read all the books she could find on dance. The Andahazy…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2005: “Ramsey County’s Distinguished Agriculturist: Willet M. Hayes, the Scientist Who Saw ‘Shakespeares’ among His Plants”

Harlan Stoehr and Forrest Troyer

Ramsey County’s Distinguished Agriculturist: Willet M. Hayes, the Scientist Who Saw ‘Shakespeares’ among His Plants Authors: Harlan Stoehr and Forrest Troyer Willet M. Hays (1859–1928), the first head of agronomic research at the University of Minnesota, is arguably the greatest all-time contributor to the advancement of agriculture in Minnesota.

Ramsey County History – Summer 2005: “Rendezvous at the Riverbend: Pike’s Seven Days in the Band of Little Crow—the Wilderness That Later Became St. Paul”

Gary Brueggemann

Rendezvous at the Riverbend: Pike’s Seven Days in the Band of Little Crow—the Wilderness That Later Became St. Paul Author: Gary Brueggemann In 1805, Zebulon Pike, a twenty-six year old lieutenant, led the first American expedition to explore Minnesota. A group of twenty-two men came up the Mississippi River…

Ramsey County History – Summer 2005: “Lots of St. Paul: A Photo Essay on Downtown Parking and What Urban History Can Tell Us about a City”

Steve Trimble

Lots of St. Paul: A Photo Essay on Downtown Parking and What Urban History Can Tell Us about a City Author: Steve Trimble This photo essay is a response to a letter to the editor wondering why the magazine bothered to publish an article on “nothing more than a…