Lois A. Glewwe - South St. Paul

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2015 by Lois A. Glewwe

All rights reserved

Front cover, bottom: Exchange Building. Kelly Rae Vo, photographer.

First published 2015

e-book edition 2015

ISBN 978.1.62585.413.1

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015951453

print edition ISBN 978.1.62619.881.4

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Dedicated to Fred Crosby Grant, South St. Paul artist, photographer, historian and really great guy.

Contents

Acknowledgements and Contributing Authors

Nick Ferraro, a reporter with the Saint Paul Pioneer Press, received an e-mail from The History Press in 2013, asking him if hed be interested in writing a book about Pill Hill in South St. Paul, Minnesota. Nick was bemused because he isnt a historian and had simply written a story about Pill Hill based on information that Id sent him in a press release about a history tour of the area that was being hosted by South St. Paul Restorative Justice. He forwarded the e-mail to me, and I quickly replied. The History Press responded that, although our little Pill Hill was not what they had in mind, they were very interested in our surprisingly unique community and asked me to consider producing this new history.

I jumped at the chance. South St. Paul has changed a great deal since a 528-page history with over one thousand photographs was published for the citys centennial in March 1987. As this current project progressed, I relied on a variety of new sources. One of the most significant is the Facebook page called Conversations of History in South St. Paul, started by Adrian Aguirre and Heather Lomax in July 2014. Hundreds of contributors have posted photographs, memories and opinions about South St. Paul from all over the world and provided me with insight into not only history of long-gone days but also that of more recent years.

I could never have completed this book without the cooperation and support of the Dakota County Historical Society. Its vast photography collection was opened to me, and librarian Rebecca Snyder was always helpful and creative in finding source material and providing me with digital photographs for the publication.

I continue to owe a huge debt of gratitude to the South St. Paul Chapter of the Dakota County Historical Society which hired me as the editor and designer of the 1987 centennial history of South St. Paul. Those faithful volunteers, many of whom are no longer with us, worked for years in the 1980s to collect interesting, colorful and informative articles and photographs in anticipation of publishing a city history. The book went into five printings of one thousand copies each and, although now out of print, copies occasionally become available online for several times the initial price of twenty-five dollars.

I also thank David Mather, National Registrar archaeologist at the Minnesota Historical Society, for his advice concerning the burial mound discussion. Michele Decker, with the State Historic Preservation Office, generously provided me with copies of the applications for South St. Pauls three structures that are on the National Register of Historic Places. I also appreciate the time that Branna Lindell and Edie Kleinbohl spent with me at the South St. Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority offices and for their many answers to my questions over the past few months. South St. Paul city clerk Christy Wilcox provided me with information on elections and mayor/council terms, and Community Affairs liaison Deb Griffith obtained the mayor photographs and responded quickly to all of my questions. City engineer John Sachi was extremely helpful in providing dates for road changes and major city projects, and Parks and Recreation director Chris Esser was always helpful. Kelton Glewwe assisted with some tricky scanning situations, and Lisa Brandecker and Samantha Chin provided historical photographs of several of South St. Pauls schools. Photographers Linda Dietsch, Fred Grant and Kelly Rae Vo gave me excellent images for this history, and I am filled with gratitude for Renee Werner Ponto and her brother, Richard Werner, for allowing me to use the amazing images that their father, Reinhold O. Werner, both restored and created over the years. I am also appreciative of Tim Spitzack, editor and publisher of the South St. Paul Voice newspaper. He has given me the privilege of writing a monthly history column for the past eleven years and approved my use of the articles Ive submitted as the basis for some of the information in this new history of the city.

Oh, and Nick, thanks for forwarding that e-mail.

CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS

Sharon Nechville Olson (): I have lived in Eagan for almost fifty years, but I still have wonderful memories of growing up in South St. Paul. I moved around a little after leaving hometo Washington, D.C., and Chicagobut Minnesota has always owned my heart. Eventually, I came back. Ive been retired from the political and law office work I did for some time now and am enjoying life with my husband, Dean, and our dogs and cat. We still go back to South St. Paul to pick up chicken at the Coop!

Sue Oestreich Grove (): I have lived in Austin, Minnesota, since 1975. I am an emeritus faculty member, retired from teaching French, English, ESL and speech at Riverland Community College in Austin. My husband, Vern, and I have one son, Chris; one daughter-in-law, Alicia; and two grandchildren, Jacob and Madi. I am on several boards: Friends of the Austin Public Library, Austin Symphony, Episcopal Church Council, Mower County Historical Society and Minnesota Association of Library Friends. I have wonderful memories of growing up in South St. Paul. My brother still lives in the house we grew up in.

Jim Servatius (): I was raised on South Concord Street in my early years, but our family moved up on the hill to Ninth Avenue North in 1954. I worked in the auto repair business in South St. Paul before going to 3M Company in 1966. I retired from 3M in 2001 after thirty-five years and havent slowed down since, as I stay very busy with my many hobbies. My most cherished moments are spent with our two children and four grandchildren, who, fortunately, live close by.

Kevin K. Holtorf (): I still live in South St. Paul, going on fifty plus years now. I am retired from Northwest Airlines, after being injured there, but still work a part-time job. My life, my pride and joy, are my two children, Joshua and Jenna, whom I love dearly. I have always referred to South St. Paul from the lyrics of one the Eagles songs. South St. Paul is like the Hotel California: You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave. I dont see myself leaving; this was a great place to raise my children. My future will be somehow giving back to this great community with the small town feel.