1920, 100 years ago: The Herberger-Cruse Company of Osakis sold their interest in the Herberger-Forsgren Company general store at Nelson to Mr. Will Hanson, well known hardware salesman who has traveled in the Douglas County area for several years but claims Nelson as his home. Mr. Forsgren will retain his interest in the business and the new firm will be styled Forsgren & Hanson. The Nelson store is one of the complete general stores of the county and enjoys a splendid trade.
1970, 50 years ago: The Alexandria City Council voted to accept the bid of Alexandria Rubbish Service owned by the Kluver Bros. They came in with a bid of $89,378 and will take over city garbage collection Jan. 1, 1971. Earlier this year the city had budgeted $90,000 for the garbage collection changeover. The city had faced a dilemma of either updating its garbage collection system and facilities to comply with new state regulations or get out of the business entirely and let private enterprise take over.
Army Chief Warrant Officer Richard A. Dropik, son of the Anton Dropiks of Garfield, assumed command of the 687th Engineer Company near Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam. He entered the Army in 1955 and last served in Germany. He is a 1953 graduate of Central High School in Alexandria.
1995, 25 years ago: A new $5.25 million Alexandria clinic will be built in south Alexandria starting next spring and space at the Osakis branch will also be doubled. Construction plans were announced by Tim Hunt, Alexandria Clinic administrator. The new building will be completed by July 1997. The site chosen for the new clinic is the corner of 30th Avenue and Aga Drive, along South Broadway (Hwy 29 South), directly west of Viking Plaza.
The public is invited to an open house for the new Alexandria City Hall, located at 704 Broadway. It was built on the site of the old police station and fire hall. The old city hall, to the west of the new facility, was torn down last week and is now a city parking lot.
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2010, 10 years ago: A re-striping project will add a northbound lane to Highway 29 North in Alexandria. It should also end the problem of vehicles trying to merge into one lane after turning left onto Highway 29 (Nokomis Street) from 3rd Avenue East. The Alexandria City Council unanimously approved the new layout which is set to take place next summer. The MnDOT project will begin 300 feet north of Hwy 29’s intersection with Highway 27 – a busy corner that includes Burger King and Tiremaxx.
Just for fun 1995 – 25 years ago: The new Alexandria City Hall is a complex of offices containing over 10,000 square feet of floor space. It cost $1,139,000, money that came from the city’s capital improvement fund. That cost included everything, including architect fees. The actual construction cost was about $950,000.
Sports trivia 1970 – 50 years ago: A few changes in the rules for high school basketball teams worth noting: A fourth place has been added along the free-throw lane. Last year there were only three designated places on each side of the lane. This year, the offensive and defensive players cannot enter or leave those designated places after the ball has been given to the free-thrower. Dunking has been banned for years, including during pre-game warm-ups. This year, referees will be required to be on the floor during the entire warm-up to penalize any boy who does dunk the ball. It will mean a technical foul and the game would start with a free-throw instead of a jump ball.
Rachel Barduson of Alexandria is a regular contributing columnist to the Echo Press Opinion page.
