Catalog
Ramsey County History – Winter 1991: “St. Paul’s First Shot Veterans: The Crew of the U.S.S. Ward and the Attack on Pearl Harbor”
Jane McClureSt. Paul’s First Shot Veterans: The Crew of the U.S.S. Ward and the Attack on Pearl Harbor Author: Jane McClure The U.S.S. Ward, a destroyer, served in combat for precisely three years, December 7, 1941 to December 6, 1944. Manned by naval reservists from St. Paul, the Ward saw combat…
Ramsey County History – Winter 1991: “Help, Housing ‘Almost Impossible to Find’: A Single Mother and World War II”
Hilda RacheyHelp, Housing ‘Almost Impossible to Find’: A Single Mother and World War II Author: Hilda Rachey The trials of a young, single, working mother of two in St. Paul during World War II. She had to scramble time and again to find housing and child care (both often inadequate), deal…
Ramsey County History – Spring 1990: “The Wacouta in Two World Wars”
Thomas C. BuckleyThe Wacouta in Two World Wars Author: Thomas C. Buckley After James Hill died the family sold the Wacouta. Under three different names, Harvard, Athinai, and Palermo, it served as a World War I patrol boat, a Greek passenger ship, an Italian naval vessel, and a Mediterranean commercial craft. It…
Ramsey County History – Fall 1989: “A Pioneer Writes Home: Alexander Wilkin and 1850s St. Paul”
Ronald M. HubbsA Pioneer Writes Home: Alexander Wilkin and 1850s St. Paul Author: Ronald M. Hubbs Alexander Wilkin was an important early resident of St. Paul. Lawyer, speculator, politician, adventurer, he sought fortune and glory on the frontier. He got both, plus an early death in battle. Letters he wrote to…
Ramsey County History – Fall 1989: “Boom, Boom, Bust! The ’29 Crash”
Woodrow KeljikBoom, Boom, Bust! The ’29 Crash Author: Woodrow Keljik “Were the 1920s really prosperous?” Woodrow Keljik asks. In retrospect, signs of problems abounded, such as trouble on the farm, the situation in Europe, and reckless speculation. Words of caution were ignored. Another Republican victory in the 1928 elections encouraged…
Ramsey County History – Fall 1988: “The Fire and Marine: Facts, Fancies, Legends—The First 100 Years of Minnesota’s Oldest Business Corporation”
Ronald M. HubbsThe Fire and Marine: Facts, Fancies, Legends—The First 100 Years of Minnesota’s Oldest Business Corporation Author: Ronald M. Hubbs Businessmen generally prefer stability, but frontier towns are often shaky. The St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, born in 1853, helped create local stability. Its organizers were some of…
Ramsey County History – Fall/Winter 1976: “Persecution in St Paul: The Germans in World War I”
Sister John Christine WolkerstorferPersecution in St Paul: The Germans in World War I Author: Sister John Christine Wolkerstorfer “Between 1855 and 1915, Germans in America lived not in an American culture, but rather in a German-America.” All that changed with the sinking of the Lusitania in 1915. Minnesota participated enthusiastically in the…
Ramsey County History – Fall 1972: “Brave Men in Their Motor Machines–And the 1918 Forest Fire”
Arnold L. LuukkonenBrave Men in Their Motor Machines–And the 1918 Forest Fire Author: Arnold L. Luukkonen The Minnesota Home Guard was created in 1917 to replace the Minnesota National Guard, which had been federalized for World War I. One of its components was the Motor Corps, made up of volunteers who…
Ramsey County History – Spring 1971: “The Building of Old Fort Ripley and Its Links with St. Paul”
Robert Orr BakerThe Building of Old Fort Ripley and Its Links with St. Paul Author: Robert Orr Baker Fort Ripley was built at the confluence of the Crow Wing and Mississippi Rivers, primarily “to protect the Winnebago Indians who had been placed in the area as a buffer between the warring…