BEAUTIFUL CITY OF THE PARK REGION
Litchfield, in Meeker County, Has No Superior in the State for Wide-Awake Activity and Progress – First Settled in 1869, Its Growth Since Has Been Substantial and as All Times Steady – Some of the Business Firms Who Have Aided in Building Up the City.
Meeker county is not one of the largest counties in Minnesota, but it is one of the best. It is one of the famous Park Region counties, a region noted for the fertility of its soil, its beautiful lakes and streams, its rolling prairies, interspersed with natural groves of timber, and its excellent climate.
The first settlers came in 1855, to what is now Forest City township, and the village that grew up as the result of the coming of John Hay and associates was for twelve years the county seat. Dr. F. N. Ripley, who came the same year, was the first white settler to die, having been frozen to death one cold morning in the spring of 1856 on the shores of Litchfield’s pretty lake, which now bears his name, the waters of which this year teem with black bass.
Named After B. B. Meeker.
The county has its name from Hon. B. B. Meeker, of St. Anthony, and was created by the territorial legislature in 1856. When the census of 1860 was taken there were 928 inhabitants, which number had increased in 1900 to 17,753.
The county was the scene of the first blood shed in the great Sioux Indian war of 1862, and the five victims lie in one grave in the Norwegian Lutheran church cemetery, a few miles west of Litchfield, under a monument erected in 1878 by the state.
Like the other counties of the Park Region, Meeker has a varied landscaped, rolling prairies alternating with forests of hard and soft woods, and pretty lakes and streams of running water. The soil is peculiarly adapted to the growth of all the staple cereals and grasses of this latitude. The waters of the lakes and rivers abound with fish and during the spring and fall flights of wild aquatic fowls, thousands of them, stop to rest and feed along shore, to become victims of hunters. The surface of the country is undulating and therefore well drained. The lakes and streams add much to the beauty of the landscape, not to speak of the greater advantage of a fine water supply for stock purposes. And it is needless to more than say that with the abundant forest growth there is “wood to burn” and plenty of building material.
Money in Wheat.
The raising of small grains, notably wheat, has been a profitable industry, and the evidence of that is seen in eight elevators at Litchfield and similar structures at other railway stations in the county. While grain farming has not been abandoned, yet during the last few years it has been discovered that there is money to be made in the live stock industry and dairying. With a favoring climate, rich soil, fine pasturage and abundant water supply, Meeker county stands high for diversified farming, and in no part of the state is there greater diversity. We have already said that it enjoys high rank for its field crops, but it may not be generally known that it is a top-notcher in the production of butter, only one other county exceeding it in the number of creameries, while in the total output of butter it has led the entire state. It was butter made at the Litchfield creamery that took the first prize at the world’s fair in Chicago and gave Minnesota its first boost as the “bread and butter state,” by which it is now becoming well known.
County Well Settled.
Meeker county is pretty well settled, there being an average of about a thousand people to each township, but nevertheless there is room for more people. There is still homes to be made for hundreds of families, with no fear of overcrowding or overtaxing the productiveness of the soil. Cheap land with some is the first and only thought. As land is the foundation of the home, this is important, but let it be remembered that price is usually regulated by distance and location. The cheaper the land the greater the distance from civilization and its comforts, and the longer the wait and the greater the cost for improvements. Sometimes the wait is so long and the expense is so great that the homemaker becomes weary and the family disheartened.
Mothers and little ones are not invited here to enter a wilderness. A greater combination of advantages cannot be found than good soil, pure water, trees, rural mail delivery, schools, churches and markets all at hand. Coming to Meeker county no longer means hardship and adventure. It means the improvement of an opportunity. The first settlers tell of their deprivations, dangers and long separation from the old home, but that has passed, for steam and electricity have well nigh overcome distance and long separation. There are openings in Litchfield, in the other towns of the county, and on the farms, for all classes of intelligent, self-reliant, self-sustaining men. Land titles are unclouded, taxation is normal, educational and social advantages are of a high order, and new comers are greeted by as cordial and hospitable a people as ever crossed the Mississippi.
Has Two Railroads.
There are two railroads in the county. The Great Northern, the principal line, crosses the central part, east and west, while the Soo line has two stations in the northern part of the county, Watkins and Maine. The Great Northern has four stations, Dassel, Darwin, Litchfield and Grove City. Elsewhere we print a picture of the Great Northern depot at Litchfield, a substantial structure of brick and stone. The view does not include the eight grain elevators and the flouring mill and creamery which stand along the track on either side. Three passenger trains run each way daily to St. Paul, seventy-six miles distant, and one train each day to and from the Pacific coast.
Litchfield, the county seat and principal town of the county, began its existence in 1869, when the St. Paul & Pacific railroad, now the Great Northern, reached the site, which had been platted in July of that year by the railroad company and G. B. Waller, and named for E. D. Litchfield, one of the chief promoters of the road. The first house was built by Mr. Waller. In November of 1869, by a majority of 89 in a total vote of 927, it was made county seat instead of Forest City.
The first school in Litchfield was opened in 1870 and during that term forty-six pupils were enrolled and the total expenditure for school purposes was a trifle under $150. Now the city has four school buildings, an enrollment of over 900 pupils, under the care of eighteen progressive and efficient teachers supplied with modern apparatus in rooms affording every facility for health and convenience. Besides this the city has a very successfully managed business college now in its fourth year, of which Prof. S. C. Boom is president.
That the religious tone and character of the community is active and potent is shown by the support given to ten different church organizations, each of which has a substantial structure, to-wit: Methodist, Episcopal, Swedish Methodist, Presbyterian, Protestant Episcopal, Swedish Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Christian, Swedish Lutheran, German Lutheran and Adventist.
Proud of Their City.
The citizens of Litchfield may well be proud of their little city, not only for its beauty of location, but for the creditable manner in which that location as been beautified. No town of its size has a larger number of neat homes, surrounded by well-kept grounds. There are four handsome parks, wisely considered and planned, and attractively kept. There may be more pretentious places, but there are none more delightfully social and safely prosperous. There are three good newspapers, the News-Ledger, established in 1872; the Independent in 1876, and the Review in 1881, and they work earnestly and harmoniously together for Litchfield. The editors are on speaking terms, and help each other out in a pinch.
Litchfield has an excellent electric light plant and water works system, with pumps capable of handling 2,000,000 gallons per day, drawn from twenty-eight wells. A reservoir 125 feet high gives gravity pressure for all ordinary needs except fire. The streets are lighted by arc lights and the business houses and many of the residences with incandescent lamps. The fire department is a volunteer one of fifty members, stands high among the departments of the smaller cities of the state, and its efficiency has been instrumental in giving the city a low rate of insurance. The next annual meeting of the Minnesota State Fireman’s association is to meet in Litchfield.
About Litchfield.
The city owns the opera house, an up-to-date structure in furnishings and stage equipments, which seats 600 persons. A comfortable feature of the city is to be noted in the excellent sidewalks, over twenty miles in length, much of it cement blocks. Litchfield is one of the cities recognized by Mr. Carnegie in his library bequests, and a $10,000 building is now under way, another addition to the many substantial public and business blocks of the city. The financial condition of both city and county is healthy, due to excellent management by past and present officials.
J. M. Learn, mayor of Litchfield, is a native of New York, and has lived twelve years in the city of which he is the efficient chief magistrate. He began his Western life in South Dakota, where he lived for several years, and then came to Minnesota. He is the principal real estate dealer in the city, and makes a specialty of Meeker county lands, having on his list bargains for people who want to get right into the heart of God’s own country. The Globe takes pleasure in commending him not only as a gentleman, but worthy of consideration by those who may be looking for homes in a land of plenty. Mr. Learn is managing a street fair to be held Sept. 17, 18 and 19, which is to take the place of the exhibit heretofore given by the county agricultural society. The premium list is complete in awards to be given farm products, and the affair promises to be the most successful ever known in the county.
Solid Business Firms.
The city has solid financial institutions. The First National bank began its existence in 1878 as the Meeker county bank, but later took out a charter under the federal law. The president is Hon. Peter E. Hanson, at present secretary of state, and E. O. Hammer, cashier. It occupies its own building, handsomely finished throughout, and enjoys the reputation of having its stock quoted at a higher figure than any other bank in the state outside of the Twin Cities. The Bank of Litchfield, organized in 1890, under the state law, is also a prosperous concern, and has its own home in a handsome brick and stone structure. It has in its directory some of the leading citizens of the county. The president is Andrew Nelson, who is ably assisted by T. F. McClure as cashier, and A. J. Campbell, assistant cashier.
Its Banks.
Litchfield is not only the home of Hon. Peter E. Hanson, secretary of state, but Hon. A. T. Koerner, recently state treasurer, is a citizen of the city. Charles H. Dart, state senator, also lives in the city, and when we say that Mr. Dart is a Democrat, and now in his second term in the state senate from a county Republican by a nominal majority of 800 to 900, it is evidence of his popularity. He was born in Meeker county in 1862, at Forest City, and came to Litchfield in 1878, and has been county treasurer and mayor of the city. In his first campaign for the senate he defeated Hon. P. E. Hanson, present secretary of state.
Among the strong legal firms is that of the March Brothers, Nelson D., formerly county attorney, and Charles H., formerly colonel of the Fourth regiment of Minnesota volunteers. The latter is also secretary of the Manitoba Land and Investment company, of which his brother, F. W. March, at Winnipeg, is president. Their firm was the first American one to engage in the sale of Canadian lands.
Mercantile Establishments.
Few towns in the country equal Litchfield in the substantial character of its mercantile establishments. The leading hardware stock is carried by the Litchfield Hardware company, of which F. W. Lucas is manager. In addition to regular builders’ supplies, the firm is prepared to contract for plumbing and heating work and has on hand a full stock of goods in that line. Mr. Lucas is one of the public spirited citizens, and is secretary of the Street Fair association, of which Mayor Learn is manager, and which next month, Sept. 17, 18 and 19, will give its first exhibition.
The drug interests of the city are well represented by E. T. Dillner, a practical and efficient pharmacist, who succeeded L. I. Lundemo a year and a half ago. His store, one of the handsomest in the city, is stocked with the best of everything in drugs, medicines and sundries common to drug houses.
The jewelry store of E. C. Cross, who came here three years ago, is one of the attractive institutions of the city. A large and carefully selected assortment of watches, clocks, jewelry and novelties will be found in stock. Mr. Cross is a practical optician and makes a specialty of the properly fitting of eye glasses.
The Litchfield Fruit store, managed by B. Berman, who came here two years ago from Minneapolis, is deservedly popular with lovers of confectionery, fruits, ice cream and smokers’ articles, in which category nearly every one must be included.
Olaf M. Olson for nine years has been a resident of Litchfield, and deals in flour, feed, wood and salt, and has a constantly increasing business, due to his faithful regard for the interest of customers.
Commercial travelers and fishermen who want rigs to drive to neighboring towns or visit the many resorts scattered over Meeker county, find them at the livery, feed and sale stable of Wheeler & Lasher, whose barns stand on First street, opposite the depot. Lovers of good horseflesh desirous of buying reliable animals are invited to correspond with this firm.
Jeff Schelde, who came here three years ago from St. Paul, has taken leadership as an architect and builder. His first important contract was the opera house, and now he has in hand the new creamery and Carnegie library, each of which will be decided additions to the city.
Manufacturing.
The manufacturing interests of the city give promise of becoming important. The glove factory, managed by G. A. Settergren, although only about a year old, gives employment to thirty people in the factory proper, while much work is sent out to be done by the piece in private families, after the style of factories in the East. W. S. Tooker, the foreman, has had forty years of experience in the business, and the catalogue shows that they make 175 varieties of gloves and mittens, all leather goods, and their orders to date exceed 5,000 dozen. For linings of certain gloves they use woolens made by the Litchfield Woolen mill, which is under the control of the same company.
Another concern that is making goods for which a demand comes from distant localities is the P. & K. Iron works, of which Parsons & Kellman are proprietors. They make a specialty of gasoline engines, on which they hold patents for important improvements. Their engines are of the upright variety, occupying much less space that the horizontal, and are not only far more durable, but they cost less to operate. Any of our readers in need of an engine should correspond with them.
Litchfield has its share of hotels, but the Lenhardt, opposite the depot, is the principal one. F. E. Viren, the landlord, understands his business. His house is a four-story brick, well furnished, steam heated and electric lighted, with bath and sample rooms, and a table that brings a crowd of traveling men to spend Sundays.
The Great Northern agent at Litchfield is A. J. Whittaker, who has been in the employ of the company for nearly twenty years, and deserves his popularity with both the company and the public. The Globe has many other friends and patrons in Litchfield, and hopes later to speak of them.
Source:
The Saint Paul Globe
Monday Morning, August 17, 1903
Volume XXVI, Number 229, Page 3