110 YEARS AGO

From Jan. 29, 1915

Mrs. Bertha Haugen, widow of one of the old and respected pioneer residents of Pope county, Ole J. Haugen, who passed away a couple of years ago, died last Saturday after a long illness. Nine children were born to them, of whom nine are living: Mrs. Aleck Overson, Mrs. E.P. Byhre, Mrs. J.P. Olson and Mrs. M.P. Eidberg, all of Starbuck and vicinity; Mrs. Charley Olson, Litchville, N.D.; Olaf, Blue Mounds, and Julius, Glenwood. Mrs. J.O. Lund and Sophie have passed away.

Immediately upon returning to Virginia after the holidays, Miss Nora Anderson was taken ill and was unable to attend to her duties for two weeks. She has recovered entirely and is now back at her work. Miss Anderson was teaching night school until her holidays.

Invitations to the wedding of Mrs. Sarah Skare and Anton Berg have been sent out. It will take place Wednesday evening, February 3, at the town hall.

George. W. Hughes has blank applications for automobile licenses and can fix out those in need of them.

Friday evening the A.B.C.’s entertained the Bachelor Girls at a party at the town hall. A fine supper was served at the Minnewaska hotel, after which the evening was spent in a most enjoyable way.

100 YEARS AGO

From Jan. 30, 1925

The members of Indherred congregation held a special meeting last Friday and decided to build a basement under the church. The estimated cost is about $7,000.00. O.E. Larson is busy preparing plans and specifications. The building committee is as follows: Casper Gorder, Hans Gorder, M.B. Stoen, Ole Lorvig and John Dyrstad. A soliciting committee was appointed as follows: Andrew Ranum, Tom Lee and Conrad Bros.

There has been a serious drop in the butter market the last 10 days, amounting to as much as 10 cents a pound. With butter selling for 38 and 39 cents a pound the farmer is losing money, considering the high cost of feed.

Minnesota boasts 10,000 lady farmers, according to data from a creamery institute. Of this number, over 6,000 operate farms-5,000 on their own. Dairying, poultry and hog raising are some of the branches of agriculture in which women farmers specialize, the analysis reveals.

90 YEARS AGO

From Jan. 31, 1935

Sub-zero weather prevailed last week until Sunday. Since then it has become gradually warmer. Wednesday was foggy.

Amount of money expended by the Federal government in Pope County in 1934 is as follows: Human relief, cash $105,683.27; direct $56,027.92; corn and hog contracts: $58,904.00; wheat contracts $63,250.00; livestock relief $123,926.00; drought relief $311,884.51; seed relief $10,298.95; non-relief labor $6,836.64; non-relief truck and team $4,885.37. A total of $741,696.66. 

Frank Hill, game warden, and Eugene Sather of Glenwood were here Monday making arrangements for feeding pheasants. With the large amount of snow and scarcity of feed the birds have been starving by the hundreds this winter.

Mr. and Mrs. Lester Smedstad are the proud parents of a baby girl born Jan. 30. The little lady has the same birthday as President Roosevelt.

Reuben and Melvin Olmeim left last Sunday for Decorah, Iowa where they will enter Luther College for the second semester. In last Sunday’s Journal there appeared picture of three sets of twins attending Luther, but now with the addition of the Olmeim boys, there will be four sets of twins at the school.

The Starbuck Construction Co. and the Starbuck Cement Products Co. are now nicely located in their new office building in east Starbuck. The new building has two office rooms, a general office, engineers room, and a vault on the main floor. The basement is used for blueprint room as well as storage.

At the CCC Camp at Big Falls in Northern Minnesota, where Raymond Pederson, Walter Nelson and Henry Rud are located, the boys reported that it was 59 degrees below zero one day last week. Forty degrees below is quite common up there, but 59 gets a little chilly.

80 YEARS AGO

From Feb. 1, 1945

Sgt. Orville H. Jergenson was killed in action at Letye Gulf December 13, according to a telegram received Friday from the War Department by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Ole Jergenson.

Funeral services for Mrs. Anna Ragnhild Kyvig, 66, were held from the Minnewaska Lutheran Church Jan. 27. She is survived by three children, (Helen) Mrs. Casper Anderson, Oliver and Raymond Kyvig of Starbuck.

Helen Lunch entertained a number of girls on her 11th birthday Wednesday.

Mrs. Arnold Opdahl entertained about 20 relatives, neighbors and friends for Sylvia’s 2nd birthday Tuesday.

Phyllis Lorvig celebrated her 13th birthday Saturday.

A group of people helped little Sherman Thompson celebrate his third birthday Monday evening at the Grant Thompson home.

At a special meeting of the Board of Education on Monday, the matter of purchasing approximately nine acres of land west of the school building from Mr. C.M. Naseth was discussed. Mr. Naseth was present at the meeting and talked over the matter of a price with the board members present. The financial consideration arrived at was $1200. A motion was made, subject to approval of the voters of School District No. 61 at a special election to be held Tuesday, Feb. 20.

70 YEARS AGO

From Feb. 3, 1955

Seven rural school districts have within the past month voted to dissolve and become a part of Independent Consolidated School District No. 61. These are Districts 3, 41, 74, 83, 94, 37 and 92. Six others have already dissolved and become a part of the original District No. 61.

The Shell Service station at the junction of Highways 28 and 29 has been sold by Lester and Oliver Felt to Allan Berg, who has already taken possession. The Felt brothers have operated the station for nearly four years, taking it over from Norman Hagen.

Funeral services for Nels Julius Stenson, age 66, were held Friday at the Fron Church, Rev. N.O. Dversdall officiating.

Twelve Starbuck high school students motored to Morris to participate in a rehearsal of the Southwest District band. These students were selected after special recommendation of each band director, and will become a part of a 120-member band. The 12 Starbuck students were Noreen Ophaug, Janice Johnson, Gail Billehus, Sharon Pederson, Ann Knutson, Gail Smedstad, Dale Johnson, David Engh, Aileen Kyvig, Mary Byhre, Lee Walters and Richard Hammero.

60 YEARS AGO

From Feb. 4, 1965

Two Morris youths, 13 and 14 years of age, with a burning desire to see the West, took a car belonging to Rev. R. William Ingvaldstad, Kensington, from it’s parking place on a Morris street Friday morning and headed for California. They were apprehended, several hours later at Selby, South Dakota, and returned to Morris.

The “Misty Crystals,” a group of entertainers from the Starbuck High School, will compete in the talent contest at Fergus Falls on February 10. This contest is sponsored by the Fergus Falls Lions Club during their ninth annual Winter Wonderland seven day celebration. Members of the “Misty Crystals” are Linda Sumption, Kathy Teigen, Julie Gorder, Mary Boyd, Elaine Opdahl, Mike Smedstad, Bob Stevens, Bruce Smedstad, Wayne Olson and Mike Forde.

M/Sgt. Casper M. Johnshoy, son of Mrs. Olava Johnshoy of Starbuck, has been assigned to a special assignment at Supreme Headquarters Allied Power Europe (SHAPE), located at Paris, France, where he will be stationed for three years. Prior to his present assignment with a B-52 Bomb Wing in Michigan, Sgt. Johnshoy was assigned for three years to the Military Assistance Advisory Group, American Embassy, Oslo, Norway, assisting the Norwegian Air Force.

Directors of the University of Minnesota, Morris, Alumni Assn. will hold their first meeting Saturday, February 6, in the faculty dining room on the UMM Campus. The President of the group is Chris Kamrud, native of Starbuck; now teaching in Appleton.

The Starbuck Shipping, Assn. sent 5,649 head of livestock to the South St. Paul market during 1964, according to the report read at the annual meeting Saturday afternoon. Ralph Bardal is president and I.E. Aal secretary of the organization.

The Bucks defeated Elbow Lake in the basketball game last Friday night, 51 to 49.

50 YEARS AGO

From Jan. 30, 1975

Burlington Northern Railroad finally cleared the tracks after the big storm two weeks ago. Drifts as high as 15 ft. could be found on the road bed from Morris to Glenwood. Two caterpillars with dozers preceded the plow in many instances to open the drifts and knock off the hard top shells on them.

O’Fallon, NSP trouble shooter promoted to district manager.

New Lowry Lions Club having “Charter Night” this coming Sunday.

Approximately 200 persons attended the annual meeting of the Starbuck Chamber of Commerce at the Minnewaska House last Monday evening.

Several events highlighted the evening. The Starbuck girls basketball team received special honors. Dr. W.W. Larson was honored for over 60 years service to the community; Virgil Amundson was elected president of the Chamber for the coming year.

Jane Wesen and Linda Halvorson graduated on January 17, 1975 from the Hospital Station Secretary program at the Anoka Area Voc. Tech Institute, also known as Anoka TEC, the school is located in Anoka. The girls were instructed by Sharon Frank, RN and Sheila Gahr, RN.

Duane Tollefson, son of the Olaf Tollefsons was recently promoted from operating assistant manager to assistant manager in charge of merchandising at the Sears Roebuck Store in Rapid City, SD.

Linda Schultz, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Milo Schultz, graduated the fall quarter from the U of M Tech College, Waseca, with a major in animal health. She has accepted employment at Jamestown, ND with a veterinarian there.

40 YEARS AGO

From Jan. 30, 1985

Births: A son, Cory Mikkel to Rob and Pam Anderson of Benson Jan. 21; a son, Craig Jonathan, to Curt and Carol Bardal of Chanhassen Jan. 26.

Kris Tollefson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. David Tollefson has been named a 1984 United States National Award winner in band. Kris was nominated for this award by the band director at the Starbuck school, Mr. Kip Johnson.

Patrick J. Morris, son of John and Doris Morris of Glenwood was one of two Minnesota students named as a 1985 Century III leader and was awarded a $1500 college scholarship.

Funeral services for Carl Halvorson, 90, were held from the West Zion Lutheran Church Jan. 21. He is survived by two brothers, Oliver of Hopkins and Marvin of Dumont and two sisters, Hilma Thompson of Starbuck and Kath Newmann of Minneapolis.

30 YEARS AGO

From Feb. 1, 1995

After 17 years of mortgage payments, following the construction of the 19-bed Minnewaska District Hospital facility, the final payment was made on Jan. 23, 1995. The facility is now debt-free. Pictured in the Times are  MDH Administrator Roxann Wellman, Board member LeRoy ‘Bud’ Molander, who is the only continuous serving Board member since the new hospital was built, and current MDH Board Chairman Jeff Kuhn.

An enthusiastic crowd of about one hundred Starbuck Area Chamber of Commerce members attended the annual meeting last Monday night at the Minnewaska House. The highlight of the evening was the announcement that Gudrun and Tom Olson will be honored as the Grand Marshals of the 1995 Heritage Days Parade. The Chamber President would be Curt Bredeson; vice-president, Matt Pederson.

Duane Shelden, a Glenwood native, has received the honor of being named Conservation Office of the Year. Shelden has been Alexandria’s Conservation Officer since 1968.

Dennis V. O’Neill has the distinction of being a member of a select group of individuals to receive Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) status in Minnesota. O’Neill is employed at the Farmers Union in Starbuck.

20 YEARS AGO

From Feb. 2, 2005 

Kaylyn MacIver’s brush with stardom came early. Not yet four months old, MacIver was caught in the arms of actor Burt Reynolds by the TV cameras as the two waited for rides in a St. Paul, Minn., airport on Sept. 25, 2004. Kaylyn is the daughter of Kara MacIver and the great-granddaughter of Myrtle MacIver of Starbuck.

Taylor Hill and Emma Hustad were the Minnewaska representatives of the AAA award. The award recognizes high school seniors who are active in arts, academics and athletics within the school. Hill is in the musical, choir, jazz choir, soccer, basketball and track. Hustad is active in tennis, softball, basketball, jazz choir, choir, women’s choir, drama and the musical. She will be competing at the next level of the statewide competition at a dinner in St. Cloud on Wednesday. From there she could advance to the state banquet held on March 19, where two boys and two girls will receive a four-year $1,000 scholarship.

Lowry Lions Club celebrated its 30th birthday on Dec. 12, 2004. Charter members include John Dahlseng, Glenn Hoplin, Allen Dahlseng, Cal Smith and Glenn Lundblad. Members not pictured include: Paul Ekstrand, Chuck Thompson, Gerald Olson, Leo Dahl and Bud Molander.

10 YEARS AGO

From Jan. 28, 2015 

The Minnewaska Area High School got a donation of a new scoreboard installed in the Auxiliary gym on December 29 over the holiday break. The scoreboard was courtesy of a donation from the Minnewaska Jaycees.

Former Minnesota Vikings football player Oscar Reed recently made a return trip to Starbuck. He traveled with his co-worker Jamie Williams and her brother Bart. Jamie and Bart are step-children of Arne Pederson. Their mother Dorie was active in the Starbuck Depot project and Oscar had previously attended Lefse Dagen on the Depot grounds.