You may or may not have noticed that the list of libraries that circulate THE TENNEY QUILT has steadily grown over the past several months. I know of 40 libraries, but I’m sure there are others that I just haven’t heard of. I usually do not know when libraries order the book, as they do not order them directly from me. But I do know that just this last month we added several more public libraries, as well as a few more colleges. The most recent public libraries are Montevideo, Kerkhoven, Arden Hills, North St. Paul, Roseville, and Shoreview, all in Minnesota. Minnesota State University at Mankato added it to its Minnesota History section just recently. To see the list of libraries, please scroll down to the bottom of this page to the blue section, where there is an alphabetical list. If your local library does not carry the book, please request it. Libraries do listen to their patrons!
Friday, September 19, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
The Famous Photo
I saw something today that I have been wanting to see for quite awhile. I had occasion to be at the Mall of America in Bloomington, MN, and was excited to find the Lake Wobegon Store. As many of you know, Lake Wobegon is Garrison Keillor's fictional Minnesota locale "where the women are strong, the men are good looking, and all of the children are above average." I went to the Lake Wobegon Store to view the photo of Tenney's pint-sized population as it existed in May, 1989.
I wrote about Tenney's "Moment of Fame" earlier this year in this blog. In short, residents of Tenney, because they lived in Minnesota's smallest town, were honored in 1989 by KSTP-TV in Minneapolis. The residents, who easily fit into a limousine, were delivered to the Twin Cities, where they were wined and dined, then appeared on the “Good Company” television show which aired from the Valley Fair Amusement Park in Shakopee. First, the group ate in their own private dining room at the Radisson St. Paul Hotel. They were then given a tour of the Summit Avenue mansions in St. Paul, they stood on the steps of the state capitol, they wandered through the sculpture garden at the Walker Art Center, and then had a ride on the “Josiah Snelling” river boat on the Mississippi River, traveling from Harriet Island to Fort Snelling and back. The Tenney folks saw the Metrodome and toured the Minneapolis lakes area in their limousine.
Governor Perpich declared that day “Tenney Day” in Minnesota, and the group was presented with a plaque to commemorate this declaration. Al and Lou Manthie, Opal Hardie, Al Hungerford, Lorraine Church, Willie Rossow, Marian Harrington and Leo Berg were given quite a bit of air time on the TV show.
This group is memorialized in a photo of the group taken on the steps of the Tenney Church, which now hangs in the Lake Wobegon Store in the Mall of America. I have to admit that I had a bit of a lump in my throat when I saw the photo hanging there on that wall to
day, pondering, as I have so many times over the last year, the reach of this little town of Tenney where--of course--the women were strong, the men good looking, and the children above average.
day, pondering, as I have so many times over the last year, the reach of this little town of Tenney where--of course--the women were strong, the men good looking, and the children above average. Friday, September 12, 2008
Myrtle
I was notified of the death of a person many of you know through your connection to Tenney. I had the good fortune of meeting and greeting Myrtle Kegley Thompson at our wonderful little “Tenney Day” celebration in May of this year, where this photo was taken. In the photo is Myrtle, Doris Janke Wawers, [and my mother's back]. Anyone now living who grew up in or lived in Tenney would know Myrtle. Even though she moved away in the 1950s, she stayed in the general area and apparently didn’t miss too many Tenney get-togethers. While in Tenney, her family lived in a house just across the street from the Tenney School. Thanks, Sherry, for forwarding this obituary to me, which was found in the online version of the FERGUS FALLS DAILY JOURNAL:
“Myrtle Thompson, 73, of Breckenridge, died Tuesday, September 2, 2008, at her home in Breckenridge.
Myrtle was born on April 22, 1935 on a farm north of Nashua, the youngest of nine children born to Newton and Avis (Nendick) Kegley. At the age of five Myrtle moved with her family to Tenney. She attended school in Tenney and later in Campbell. Myrtle loved growing up in Tenney and often spoke of roller skating, dancing and carrying water from the town pump to home while living there.
She did a lot of babysitting during her school years and also worked for other families in the Tenney area. In 1953, she moved to Breckenridge and worked at St. Francis Hospital in the X-ray Department, a job she had fond memories of.
She also worked at the Rex Café in Wahpeton, North Dakota. Myrtle later moved to Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, where she worked at various places as a waitress, and also as a clerk at dime stores and grocery stores.
In 1954, Myrtle married John Sorum in Grand Forks. To this union six children were born, of which two died in infancy. They lived in Grand Forks and later moved to Santiago.
In 1971, they moved to Breckenridge, where Myrtle worked at the Rock Garden Bar and Earl’s Bar for more than eight years.
Myrtle married Richard “Dick” Thompson on September 10, 1975 at Milbank, South Dakota. Myrtle and Dick and their blended family made their home in Breckenridge. Dick preceded her in death on September 17, 1994. Myrtle continued to live in Breckenridge.
Myrtle, always an upbeat person, was willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it. She enjoyed planning family reunions and staying connected with her nieces and nephews. Myrtle wasn’t above pulling a joke on someone but was also big enough to take a joke pulled on her.
She enjoyed playing cards, reading, crocheting, doing picture puzzles and making small quilts for her grandchildren. She always had time for her grandchildren and loved playing board games with them. Myrtle always had the coffee pot on and she truly enjoyed when people would drop in for a cup and conversation.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Newton and Avis Kegley; her husband Richard “Dick” Thompson; her two daughters Kathryn Ann and Carol Rae; her brothers Carl, Earol, Lyle and Kenneth; and her sisters Prudence, Bernice, Harriet and Lois.
Myrtle is survived by her children, Nancy and Rick Froemke, Wahpeton, ND; Paul and Lori Sorum, Breckenridge; Bruce and Robyn Sorum, Horace, ND; Lunda “Punky” Meyer and her special friend, Dean Overby, Wahpeton, ND; her stepchildren, Gene and Gayle Thompson, Breckenridge; Richard and Candice Thompson, Moorhead; Jane and Rex Kulla, Maple Grove; Wanda and Larry Hutchinson, Eagan; 16 grandchildren, Emily, Jason, Amy, Erica, Becky, Kayla, Justin, Christina, Jacob, Jessi, Brittney, Todd, James, Travis, Robby and Jenna; three great-grandchildren, Mady, Payton and Carson; and many nieces and nephews.
Service: United Methodist Church, Breckenridge. Clergy: Rev. Terry Tilton. Burial: Riverside Cemetery, Breckenridge. Funeral Home: Joseph Vertin & Sons, Breckenridge. Condolences may be sent online at www.josephvertinandsons.com."
“Myrtle Thompson, 73, of Breckenridge, died Tuesday, September 2, 2008, at her home in Breckenridge.
Myrtle was born on April 22, 1935 on a farm north of Nashua, the youngest of nine children born to Newton and Avis (Nendick) Kegley. At the age of five Myrtle moved with her family to Tenney. She attended school in Tenney and later in Campbell. Myrtle loved growing up in Tenney and often spoke of roller skating, dancing and carrying water from the town pump to home while living there.
She did a lot of babysitting during her school years and also worked for other families in the Tenney area. In 1953, she moved to Breckenridge and worked at St. Francis Hospital in the X-ray Department, a job she had fond memories of.
She also worked at the Rex Café in Wahpeton, North Dakota. Myrtle later moved to Fargo and Grand Forks, North Dakota, where she worked at various places as a waitress, and also as a clerk at dime stores and grocery stores.
In 1954, Myrtle married John Sorum in Grand Forks. To this union six children were born, of which two died in infancy. They lived in Grand Forks and later moved to Santiago.
In 1971, they moved to Breckenridge, where Myrtle worked at the Rock Garden Bar and Earl’s Bar for more than eight years.
Myrtle married Richard “Dick” Thompson on September 10, 1975 at Milbank, South Dakota. Myrtle and Dick and their blended family made their home in Breckenridge. Dick preceded her in death on September 17, 1994. Myrtle continued to live in Breckenridge.
Myrtle, always an upbeat person, was willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who needed it. She enjoyed planning family reunions and staying connected with her nieces and nephews. Myrtle wasn’t above pulling a joke on someone but was also big enough to take a joke pulled on her.
She enjoyed playing cards, reading, crocheting, doing picture puzzles and making small quilts for her grandchildren. She always had time for her grandchildren and loved playing board games with them. Myrtle always had the coffee pot on and she truly enjoyed when people would drop in for a cup and conversation.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Newton and Avis Kegley; her husband Richard “Dick” Thompson; her two daughters Kathryn Ann and Carol Rae; her brothers Carl, Earol, Lyle and Kenneth; and her sisters Prudence, Bernice, Harriet and Lois.
Myrtle is survived by her children, Nancy and Rick Froemke, Wahpeton, ND; Paul and Lori Sorum, Breckenridge; Bruce and Robyn Sorum, Horace, ND; Lunda “Punky” Meyer and her special friend, Dean Overby, Wahpeton, ND; her stepchildren, Gene and Gayle Thompson, Breckenridge; Richard and Candice Thompson, Moorhead; Jane and Rex Kulla, Maple Grove; Wanda and Larry Hutchinson, Eagan; 16 grandchildren, Emily, Jason, Amy, Erica, Becky, Kayla, Justin, Christina, Jacob, Jessi, Brittney, Todd, James, Travis, Robby and Jenna; three great-grandchildren, Mady, Payton and Carson; and many nieces and nephews.
Service: United Methodist Church, Breckenridge. Clergy: Rev. Terry Tilton. Burial: Riverside Cemetery, Breckenridge. Funeral Home: Joseph Vertin & Sons, Breckenridge. Condolences may be sent online at www.josephvertinandsons.com."
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Tenney's Dray Service
In response to my blog entry about the old Tenney Hotel, I received this photo from Sherry Swan (Al Manthie’s granddaughter). It is an invoice to the Village of Tenney for dray services to various points in town. The invoice is on letterhead from “The Hotel Tenney,” George Vitalis, Proprietor. (To see it more clearly, double click right on the image, and it will enlarge).
Now, for you young ‘uns that may not have heard the term “dray,” let me explain. In this time period in Tenney, a dray was a heavy, four-wheeled wagon pulled by a horse. The wagon would haul goods, often to or from the railway platform, to wherever they needed to be delivered. The dray was generally stored in or worked out of the Livery Stable which was, in most small towns, located somewhere near the railway depot and the hotel. This way, travelers fresh off the train could hire out a horse or later, sometimes an automobile, and goods that arrived on the train could be delivered to their appropriate destination.
In much of the 19th century, it was an unwritten “rule” that all inns and hotels would offer a dray and livery service. Based on this invoice, apparently this was the case with “The Hotel Tenney.” Across the hotel logo on the paper are written the words “Buffet and Livery in Connection.” So the hotel either owned the livery and dray service, or at least had some sort of business arrangement with them.
Now, for you young ‘uns that may not have heard the term “dray,” let me explain. In this time period in Tenney, a dray was a heavy, four-wheeled wagon pulled by a horse. The wagon would haul goods, often to or from the railway platform, to wherever they needed to be delivered. The dray was generally stored in or worked out of the Livery Stable which was, in most small towns, located somewhere near the railway depot and the hotel. This way, travelers fresh off the train could hire out a horse or later, sometimes an automobile, and goods that arrived on the train could be delivered to their appropriate destination.
In much of the 19th century, it was an unwritten “rule” that all inns and hotels would offer a dray and livery service. Based on this invoice, apparently this was the case with “The Hotel Tenney.” Across the hotel logo on the paper are written the words “Buffet and Livery in Connection.” So the hotel either owned the livery and dray service, or at least had some sort of business arrangement with them.
On this invoice, we see that the dray service was delivering goods primarily to the Town Hall which, in Tenney, is approximately 1 block—or less—from the depot. It cost the Village of Tenney 25 cents to deliver coal, 50 cents to deliver “fixtures” and 75 cents to deliver chairs, all to the Town Hall, as well as one dollar to deliver coal to the school and 25 cents to return a plank to the lumber yard. The total bill for this dray service came to $2.75.
There is no date on this invoice, but I am thinking that it must be in the 1912 or 1913 time frame. Given the nature of the items being delivered to the Town Hall from the railway—chairs and fixtures—I am surmising that this could very well have occurred at the time the Town Hall was being built, which was 1913. How exciting!
The advertising slogan on the letterhead is hilarious and fits in well with the many Tenney stories I have heard through the years: “Nothing First Class But the Price.” Now where, but Tenney, would one see such an advertising slogan!??! Now, I’m being facetious, since it obviously had a different meaning at the Turn of the Century. But if I would use today’s logic to interpret this slogan, the slogan could be translated as, “EVERYTHING HERE IS LOW QUALITY BUT THE PRICE IS REALLY HIGH.” Oh what fun to see these old treasures. Thank you, so much, Sherry, for sharing this!
There is no date on this invoice, but I am thinking that it must be in the 1912 or 1913 time frame. Given the nature of the items being delivered to the Town Hall from the railway—chairs and fixtures—I am surmising that this could very well have occurred at the time the Town Hall was being built, which was 1913. How exciting!
The advertising slogan on the letterhead is hilarious and fits in well with the many Tenney stories I have heard through the years: “Nothing First Class But the Price.” Now where, but Tenney, would one see such an advertising slogan!??! Now, I’m being facetious, since it obviously had a different meaning at the Turn of the Century. But if I would use today’s logic to interpret this slogan, the slogan could be translated as, “EVERYTHING HERE IS LOW QUALITY BUT THE PRICE IS REALLY HIGH.” Oh what fun to see these old treasures. Thank you, so much, Sherry, for sharing this!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
THE TENNEY HOTEL PIE MAKER
One of the faithful readers of this blog, Jeri Nowak, is the daughter of Fritz and Leona (Kath) Novak. Her mother Leona was the daughter of William and Anna Kath, who lived just a mile outside of Tenney. There were 12 children in the William Kath family. That’s a lot of Kaths (or….as they were known in that time….the KATES)!
Jeri mentioned that her mother’s sister, Esther Kath, one of those 12 children, worked at the old hotel in Tenney at the Turn of the Century, making pies for its patrons. The hotel, which burned to the ground in 1924, served as a matchmaker for Miss Esther and her husband-to-be. At the time Esther was working at the hotel a young gentleman, George Weiss, who had grown up in another community, came to Tenney to visit his parents. His parents were the proprietors of the hotel at the time. That visit provided a spark that lasted a lifetime for Esther and George. Allan Weiss, son of Esther and George, do you have any more to add to this story?
I seem to recall in my research that a man named Vitalis once owned the old Tenney Hotel. The building not only housed the hotel, but also a saloon, barber shop and pool hall. It stood on a street which was, in the very earliest years, the actual “Main Street” of Tenney. That street ran PARALLEL to the railroad tracks and was also the location of the livery stable, an ice house and two grain elevators. It was named "Main Street" because it was the first street in town. As one pictures a street scene from the late 1800s and early 1900s, it makes sense that a hotel would be located just across the street from the train depot, along with a livery stable and ice house. Somewhere I have a photo of my great grandfather, John P. Polifka, standing in front of the livery. When I find it, I will post it to this blog.
In the early 1910s, buildings were built on the street we all now think of as "Main Street" (actually, it is "Concord Avenue"!), which runs perpendictular to the railroad tracks. The businesses on the old Main Street eventually all burned down or disappeared in some fashion, and the new Main Street became the town's main drag. This street eventually boasted the presence of the Town Hall, Fire Hall, Tenney Church and parsonage, Post Office, Larson Store, Wittman Garage, and other Tenney landmarks such as the town pump.
Given that the hotel burned to the ground in 1924, I am doubtful that any readers of this blog would recall the hotel itself, but do you have any Tenney Hotel stories?
Jeri mentioned that her mother’s sister, Esther Kath, one of those 12 children, worked at the old hotel in Tenney at the Turn of the Century, making pies for its patrons. The hotel, which burned to the ground in 1924, served as a matchmaker for Miss Esther and her husband-to-be. At the time Esther was working at the hotel a young gentleman, George Weiss, who had grown up in another community, came to Tenney to visit his parents. His parents were the proprietors of the hotel at the time. That visit provided a spark that lasted a lifetime for Esther and George. Allan Weiss, son of Esther and George, do you have any more to add to this story?
I seem to recall in my research that a man named Vitalis once owned the old Tenney Hotel. The building not only housed the hotel, but also a saloon, barber shop and pool hall. It stood on a street which was, in the very earliest years, the actual “Main Street” of Tenney. That street ran PARALLEL to the railroad tracks and was also the location of the livery stable, an ice house and two grain elevators. It was named "Main Street" because it was the first street in town. As one pictures a street scene from the late 1800s and early 1900s, it makes sense that a hotel would be located just across the street from the train depot, along with a livery stable and ice house. Somewhere I have a photo of my great grandfather, John P. Polifka, standing in front of the livery. When I find it, I will post it to this blog.
In the early 1910s, buildings were built on the street we all now think of as "Main Street" (actually, it is "Concord Avenue"!), which runs perpendictular to the railroad tracks. The businesses on the old Main Street eventually all burned down or disappeared in some fashion, and the new Main Street became the town's main drag. This street eventually boasted the presence of the Town Hall, Fire Hall, Tenney Church and parsonage, Post Office, Larson Store, Wittman Garage, and other Tenney landmarks such as the town pump.
Given that the hotel burned to the ground in 1924, I am doubtful that any readers of this blog would recall the hotel itself, but do you have any Tenney Hotel stories?
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