From the Mascot Files

100 Years Ago
May 5, 1922

Bjornson heads to
Winnipeg for meeting
G.B. Bjornson left Minneota last Sunday night and will travel to Winnipeg, Canada where he will attend a meeting of members of the Executive Board of the Icelandic Lutheran Synod, held in that city on Tuesday.

Berg elected to
office at U of M
S. Peter Berg, the son of Mr. and Mrs. P.M. Berg of Minneota, has been elected treasurer of the Association of Engineering at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. The Minneapolis Journal published a list of students who had been elected to hold various office at the University of Minnesota and Berg's name was listed among them.

75 Years Ago
May 9, 1947

Work to begin on
Legion building here
Members of the Minneota Legion Post's building committee completed arrangements last week with Hasslen and Sons, Ortonville contractors, for the erection of a community building during the coming summer months. The building, which is estimated to cost about $35,000, will be erected against the north wall of the Big Store and will be 60 by 100 feet, facing Jefferson Street. To cut the cost of erecting the building, Legion members will dig the basement during May and they have already moved the Big Store's storage house off the lot.

Dice boxes must go,
says village council
No longer will people here use dice boxes to "shake horses" for coffee as the Village Council this week banned them from public places. The council also put a stop to card playing by youths. Orders handed to proprietors of various eating places in town Thursday read as follows: "Notice is hereby given that effective immediately all dice boxes are to be removed from public places and there is to be no card playing by person under 18 years of age." By order of Minneota Village Council.

Boogaard buys out
local cement firm
Albert Boogaard became owner of the Minneota Cement Products in a transaction completed Friday of last week. Boogaard bought the firm from A.B. Tracy, Norman Olafson and Wm. Anderson who purchased equipment and started the business a year ago. Boogaard will retain the same name for his business and expects to start turning out cement blocks this week. Boogaard resigned his position with Dr. Kerr's Hatcheries last week after being employed there the past 11 years.

Six file for school
board offices here
Six men, Hans Grong, Sherlock White, Carl A. Christianson Jr., Carl Christianson, L.W. Allen and Bernard Tillemans, have filed for two offices on the local board of education. Terms of Grong and White expire this year. The two board members elected this month will serve for three years.

50 Years Ago
May 4, 1972

Taunton girl gets
merit scholarship
Cathryn Pridal of rural Taunton and a student at Canby High School is one of 800 high school seniors who have been named winners of college-sponsored Merit Scholarships by Eward C. Smith, president of the scholarship foundation. Pridal is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Pridal. The college sponsoring Miss Pridal's scholarship is Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter.

Minneota school band
received an 'A' rating
The District 9 large group music contest was held last Thursday in Tracy and the Minneota High School received an "A" rating in the contest. In order to receive an "A" rating, two of the three judges must give the group a number one rating. The Minneota band received a number one rating from all three judges.

Locals smiling after
weeklong rain ends
Most people living in this area were wearing smiles on their faces Wednesday morning because rains which had fallen for a week had finally ended, but they were keeping their fingers crossed at the same time, hoping that the cloudy skies wouldn't bring more rain. It was reported that 1.42 inches of rain had fallen in Minneota on six of the seven days this past week. It rained 13 days in April and totaled 3.15 inches.

25 Years Ago
May 7, 1997

GMT women raise
funds by walking
Five members of the Ghemt-Minneota-Taunton (GMT) Women of Today raised money for the March of Dimes WalkAmerica held in Marshall on Saturday, May 3. Kathy Jirele, Michelle Steele, Lynne Miller, Missy Hennen and Barb Okrina raised $393 toward this cause. The WalkAmerica started at Independence Park in Marshall and you could walk either the three-mile course or the nine-mile course. The GMT Women of Today also had a bake sale which raised over $100 with all proceeds going to SPIN (Safer Playground is Neeed) in Minneota.

Manor responds to
call for flood relief
The Minneota Manor Health Care Facility has responded to the call for financial help during the recent flooding in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. The local nursing home staff and residents raised over $250, and this was matched by the Minneota Manor itself. A check for $525 was sent to the American Red Cross to be used for flood relief.

Activity 'humming' in
Industrial Park here
Five lots have been sold in Minneota's Industrial Park, located east of town on Highway 68. Two lots were acquired by Lynn Buysse, two by Chad VanDrunen and one by Superior Truss. The two lots acquired by Buysse, which are planned to be used for a veterinary clinic, are located just west of the Otter Tail Power Company sub-station. The two acquired by VanDrunen on which he plans to construct a commercial storage facility are just north of the sub-station. The sales of the lots were approved last Monday evening's City Council meeting.

Gossen, Blegen 1st in
grandparents contest
Leah Gossen and Josh Blegen, sixth graders at Minneota, each won first prize in the Grandparents essay contest this year at the Senior Citizens Banquet at the Senior Center. Sixth graders at both the public and St. Edward schools are encouraged to write an essay about their favorite grandparent and then read them aloud at the banquet. One boy and one girl are chosen a winner and receive a certificate.