Column - 1961: 15th annual State Elks Bowling tournament planned

Talk about it

The following is a collection of stories and other items that were included in Alexandria newspapers over the years.

100 YEARS AGO

January 1911

Recommended readings are David Copperfield and Les Miserables. Ode to the Water Fowl by William Cullens Bryant leads the poetry list… Instead of adding books to the library, the Nelson Industrial School Board installed a Babcock milk tester and Carl Miller, the butter maker, will give lessons. An Industrial Club will be formed and girls will present programs for a fee with proceeds used to pay for the manual training desk at the school… Ten ears of corn exhibited by George McMahan in a northern Minnesota show earned him the first prize, that of a short-horned bull… The northeast “local” from Garfield and a freight heading west came dangerously close. Both engineers jumped after setting the brakes. The trains stopped two feet from one another.

50 YEARS AGO

January 1961

LeRoy Meyers expects no less than 750 entrants in the 15th annual State Elk’s Bowling Tournament, which starts this week… Thieves got away with $70 and an undisclosed amount of narcotics from Peterson Drug Store, which had been untouched  by burglars for more than half a century… L.H. Oswald of rural Alexandria picked up a dandy northern on Lake Carlos that measured 36 inches long with an estimated weight of 13-15 pounds… The Red Owl Store has made available the King James Version or the new Catholic edition of the Holy Bible  in 15-weekly sections for purchase at 99 cents per section. Grocery specials this week are Miracle Whip, 49 cents a quart; Pillsbury cake mix, 25 cents; Wilson’s bacon, 63 cents a pound.

25 YEARS AGO

January 1986

A failing rural economy has forced the closing of Johnson Grocery in Garfield. Since 1886, when Andrew Bergsten first opened it, the store has been a bustling landmark on Main Street. In 1928, fire destroyed the building and it was quickly rebuilt on the same site. In the 1950s, Garfield had four filling stations, three hardware stores, a creamery, a livestock association, Greyhound bus station, train station, blacksmith shop and three grocery stores… The Soo Line and Milwaukee Road Railroads will consolidate into a new, larger Soo Line Railway Company that will cover 7,600 miles in 12 states… Recent surveys conducted by the City Planner indicated that the biggest concern of residents was the need for additional left-turn lanes on Broadway. This far-outdistanced all other community wants.

10 YEARS AGO

January 2001

The management of the St. Cloud River Rats has asked readers to step up to the plate and enter the contest to name the new Alexandria baseball team. Winner will get a pair of lifetime tickets to the games… Mary Lou Smith earned a Sweepstakes ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair for her Norwegian flat bread recipe… Private First Class Matthew Hanson, who serves in the “S and I” of the Marine Corps – the “cream of the crop” – will participate in the inauguration parade when George W. Bush becomes the 43rd president of the United States… Joan Reiter is currently exhibiting acrylic paintings of natural subjects at the West Central Minnesota Community Action office in Elbow Lake. She creates her works from her own photos or sketches.

Marge Van Gorp of Alexandria is a regular contributing columnist to the Echo Press Opinion page.

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