The Wednesday Club

     Every town must have a "ladies" group whose sole purpose is to meet and strengthen the bonds of sisterhood.  We have many in my small town of South St Paul (including the Mid-Week Study group, not to be confused with the Monday Study group) and they have been in existance for 70 or more years.  So I found it amusing when I came across this article written in the  Warren sheaf, February 20, 1902.

 

   THE WEDNESDAY CLUB.

     The Members of the Warren Club Royally Entertained by the Argyle Ladies.

     EDITOR SHEAF:—Wednesday morning, January 12th, when the bells chimed the hour often in Warren, women could be seen coming

 

     from every direction, some came with their arms full of books, some with satchels and some with bags full of something, which I found

 

     out later was literature, and others with rolls after the manner of the Egyptians.  All were apparently in great haste and going in the same

 

     direction, toward the Great Northern Depot. By breaking my former record of speed I managed to reach the depot platform just as the

 

     Secretary of Wednesday Club arrived. The thought came to me that they must be having a meeting up the line somewhere and the secretary

 

     being young and inexperienced would be glad to give me the job of reporting the meeting.  When she had sufficiently recovered from her

 

     race with the train to be able to speak, she told me there was to be a meeting in Argyle and I was installed as reporter at once, was to pay

 

     my own car fare up and back, and they would board me.

 

     During the day many people in Warren remarked the unusual quiet the city was enjoying which led to the inquiry, why? Why, thirteen

     women had gone to Argyle that morning. The Wednesday Club were invited to meet with Mrs. Hunter, (who has been a member for years),

     And thirteen of these literary lights had accepted the invitation: it was these women that tried their speed down the street and through the

     alleys en-route to the depot.  The train came in due time and all were soon as comfortable as could be in a-crowded  coach. Some of the

 

     ladies were so very pleasantly situated, they seemed quite reluctant to leave the car, but when the precious burden was deposited in Argyle,

 

     all responded to roll call.

 

     Mr. Hunter met the delegation and piloted us through the city to his home, satchels, bags, bundles, rolls, and papers, all safe.  We received

 

     such a hearty welcome from our old friends and neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Hunter, it made us feel doubly glad to be there.  After the hand

 

     shaking was through with the book, bundles, rolls, were safely put away for future reference, and each had been informed that the others

 

     were either well or not very well, or somewhat better, and the weather had been sufficiently discussed, we were invited to lay aside our

 

     work and repair to the dining room, where the table was laid for the crowd. It would be easier for me to say what was not on the table

 

     than what was there. The menu covered all the delicacies of the season which we enjoyed to the fullest extent. (It was at this time I

 

     began to realize what a bargain I had struck getting my office as reporter.)

 

     The dining room was very handsome and appropriately decorated.  Mrs. Erikson produced a most elegant card, an appropriate drawing

     on the front and name of guest on the back, with national colors, forming in all a very unique and attractive souvenir of the occasion.

     After the dinner was over this constellation of eloquence, beauty and adornment was placed under the the guiding hand of Mrs. Hunter,

     who had charge of program.

 

     When our tasks for the day were ended and the clock struck the hour of four, (several ladies of Argyle were present to hear the program),

 

     all were invited with us, to Mrs. Melgaard for lunch. There was no time to lose before train.  Mrs. Melgaard has a lovely home

     and her table was laden with more good things than I can tell you about, everything au fait.  While we feasted we were cheered

     by piano music and all went merry until time for us to leave. Every minute of that day was thoroughly enjoyed. Women, books, bags

 

     and bundles were all safe in Warren Wednesday evening. The only regret was that the day didn't contain more hours.

     REPORTER

Although the little touches of elegance or protocal may have changed, not much else has. 

25th Anniversary of the Jensen's

While perusing through old newspapers the other day I came upon this notice of my great grandparents anniversary party.  It was in the Warren Sheaf., December 02, 1914, page 6.

"Last Sunday afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Martin Jensen were made the victims of a pleasant surprise by a best of their neighbors and friends.  The occasion for this event, was the 25th, or silver wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. Jensen. From about two o'clock in the afternoon until almost dark people were arriving at the Jensen home, each bringing vessel well filled with the very choicest of viands the land affords, which were placed on a long table stretching the full length of the spacious dining room, presenting a sight calculated to tempt the appetite of the most fastidious. And it would be but mildly stated, to say that all present did ample justice toward relieving that table of its great burden, and at the same time filling an empty void.

"After all had partaken to their hearts as well as stomach's delight, many basketsful of fragments remained. Supper being over, and everything cleared away the young folks engaged in music and various games and thus spent the time in a pleasant manner, while the men discussed all the topics pertaining to farming from the raising of alfalfa, clover, hogs and corn, and wound up on the outcome of the great European war, while the topics discussed by better halves, as overheard in part, was mostly concerning hats, frocks and pretty babies, and the price of poultry.  Well, maybe they did converse about other matters that we failed to catch.

"The bride and groom of a quarter of a-century, were the recipients of many beautiful presents appropriate to the occasion. At a late hour of the evening, after the self-invited guests had expressed their wishes for many years more of connevial bliss, they took their departure, realizing that it was good to have been there. Following is a list of the families represented at this gathering: S. J. Grandstrand and family; J. W. Swanson and family; C. E. Johnson and family; C. Poison and family; L. C. Jorgenson and family; J. W. Field and family; A. Lundin and family; S, Lundin and family; S. P. Jensen and family; Nels Jensen and family: Jens Jensen and family; Hans and Mrs. Christofferson, Mrs. Christofferson and daughters, of Stephen; Joseph Thorkildson and sister; Miss Magda, John Jensen and Jens Hanson."

Martin Jensen's 2nd wife

For many years I have tried to find information on the second wife of my great grandfather, Martin Jensen.  I have a photo of 2 women in a picture that my grandmother claims is Minnie and her daughter, but I have yet to confirm or find notice of a daughter born to Wilhelmina Louise Mott. 

But today, while going through some old newspapers on-line, I came across 2 articles about Mrs Martin Jensen. 

Mott-Jensen Nuptials
Married three weeks ago at Thief River Falls, Martin Jensen, veteran rural carrier out of the Stephen office, kept his matrimonial alliance a secret from his friends at this point until the forepart of the present week, when a box of fragrant "perfectos" made their appearance simultaneously with an announcement of the event.  The bride was Mrs. Wilhelmina Louise Mott, a former Thief River Falls resident, and the wedding ceremony was performed by the Rev. Chas. Geflinger at his home in that city, on Tuesday, September 26. The bride and groom were unattended, and came to Stephen immediately after the ceremony, to make their home in Mr. Jensen's home just south of town. Stephen people will extend a hearty welcome to the bride, together with every good wish for the happiness and prosperity of the newlyweds.

Warren Sheaf, October 25, 1922, page 2

Coroner Clarence Hiaasen was called to Stephen Monday to ascertain the cause of the sudden death of Mrs. Martin Jensen. Mrs. Jensen was doing her household duties as usual Monday morning when she suddenly fell dead. At the coroner's examination the cause of death was attributed to acute dilation of the heart. Mr. and Mrs. Jensen had been married for only two months, and the sympathy of
many friends in this vicinity goes out to Mr. Jensen for his sad bereavement.
—Argyle Banner.


Warren Sheaf, November 29, 1922, page 5

My next move is to research Thief River Falls for more information on the Motts.

1950 Election special!

The "S" Club of South St Paul

 

 

     "Members of the South St. Paul High School "S" Club are initiating a program to raise funds in order to assist with expenses due to unusual athletic injuries incurred by local athletes.  The first project by the "S" Club members will be a "Rollin Glewwe Night" slated for Thursday, November 30, at the High school gymnasium.

          Rollin, 17, an outstanding member of the football team was hospitalized due to an              unusual injury and will be the first athlete aided under the new "S" club program.  He is

the son of Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Glewwe of 147 Fifteenth Avenue South."

     A gala evening is in prospect with teams composed of local High school football players and "S" club members battling it out on the basketball court.  Following the cage conflict the Jimmy Gerald orchestra will take over the festivities to furnish music for a dance.

     The game will start at 7:30 p.m. with tickets for the worthy "S" club project to be made available in the near future.  Other organizations in this city have signified their intentions of co-operating in making the initial effort a success."  SSP Daily Reporter, November 18, 1950, pg 4.

 

    

 

 

And what a great night it was.  It made the paper all week leading up to the big event.  Rollin, who was recovering at home was told by two of his teammates "not to worry about Joan, they would escort her to the dance."  And what a dance they had. 

 

The "S" Club handed Rollin's parents $500 to be used to help defray the costs of his injuries and stays in the hospital.  In a letter written by his folks to the "S" club they wrote,     "Dear Bernie:  We are very grateful to your splendid organization for the noble service they have rendered in collecting funds to help defray the expenses incurred during the time our son Rollin was hospitalized because of an unusual injury received while playing football with the local high school team.  Rollin's recovery thus far has been a miracle and he joins us in expressing his gratitude toward every member of the club for their unselfish and untiring efforts to accomplish what has been done.  We wish continued success to the S Club in promoting such worthy projects, but hope that never again become necessary to solicit funds for a similar cause.  Here's wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  Sincerely yours, Mr & Mrs Reuben Glewwe

 

 

 

 

Hall of Fame (part 2)

     Rollin Glewwe, high school football standout and down for the count......

     The other day, Rol in talking with his fellow teammate, Allan Stalmasik Elder , and mentioned that Allan had told him about what had happened during that Stillwater game back on Friday, October 13, 1950.  Allan remembers Rol playing the first half of the game and going back to the locker room during halftime.  While returning to the field, Rol had mentioned to Al that he was feeling woozy and was going to ask to sit out for the opening kickoff.  Al then told Rol that the next time he looked up, Rol was be taken off the field in an ambulance.
 

     Rol was taken to Riverview Memorial Hospital that night and for the next 10 days he would be a patient.  And while he was awake and resting, the problems persisted.  He would get weaker and his nosebleeds were increasing as the week wore on.  By the end of his ten day stay, he was losing all feeling in his body and was partially paralyzed.  The decision was made to transfer him to the Charles T Miller Hospital, also in St. Paul, MN. 

     It was here that Dr Robert L Merrick would make the discovery that had been keeping Rollin from recovering from his concussion.  Dr Merrick, who went on to become the chief neurosurgeon with the University of Minnesota, came in early Saturday morning and asked Rol if he was left-handed.  Up till now, the doctors had been looking for blood clots on the right hand side of the brain and would come up empty.  As Rol's condition was worsening, the doctors were stumped.  With Rol's answer in the affirmative, surgery was set up immediately with the doctors now looking on the left hand side of the brain.  It seems that left handed people's brains affect the function of the left hand side of the body.  The surgery took from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. in the afternoon.  Rollin was given many transfusions and what followed was many days of continual bleeding and convulsions.  His father, Reuben, wrote in his journal on November 2nd, that "Rol's speech was improving" and they were "very much encouraged."

    Rollin was released from the hospital on November 11, 1950, one month from when he took that first hit.

    But there is more to this story.  One about his great grandmother, Ursula Marxer, and one about the "S" Club and how this injury changed their mission.

Hall of Fame (part 1)

     Five years ago, the South St Paul High School Athletic Department started a Hall of Fame for past graduates who went on and made a name for themselves either in athletics/coaching or other endeavors and how participation in activities contributed to their career.  For such a small school district (3500 students total), but large in years of existence, (since 1853 when it was a mission school for the Kaposia Indian village), we have had a good number of students go forth and become famed athletes.  Such football notables like Jim Carter with the Green Bay Packers, Jim LeClair with the Cincinnati Bengals, and Stan Kostka with the Brooklyn Dodgers.  Or take the hockey standouts such as Warren Miller who played for Canada and the NY Rangers. Or Phil Housley, leading all-time scorer until recently, who played for the Buffalo Sabres as well as the Toronto Maple Leafs.  We've had our share of good coaches too, Doug Woog, who went on to coach for the U of MN and was the assistant coach for the US Olympics in 1984 to "Lefty" Smith, who went on to coach for Notre Dame.

     Not all high school stars continued on with their athletic careers though.  One case in point is my dad, Rollin Glewwe.  He was considered a high school stand out.  His position on the team was center and also captain.  The football team won the MN State Football Championship in 1949 and Rol was up for the All-Suburban Center for that year.  They had a strong team and 1950 was looking to be another banner year. 

    The first big loss was handed to the team at the Friday night game on September 22, 1950.  Anoka Tornadoes won the game 20-0, handing the South St Paul Packers their first defeat in twelve games, something that had not happened since 1948.  The following week, the Packers crushed White Bear Lake by the same score, 20-0.  Facing the Hastings gridders the next week, the Packers blasted through, winning 19-6. 

     But it was during the next week that things began to change.  Practice had began as usual for the Packers.  Rol took his place as center and the scrimmage began.  When I questioned him about this practice and did he remember getting hit, he responded that he had been hit and thought he had pulled a muscle in his back.  He also mentioned that during practice, the players did not always wear helmets.  By Thursday, Coach John Kulbitski, in an article in the local paper, reported that "Rollin Glewwe, starting center and outstanding linebacker, had strained his back and may not start tomorrow night.  In case the star performer is benched, he will be replaced by Keith Wells." (South St Paul Daily Reporter, vol. 58, no. 92, Oct 12, 1950, p4).

     It was October, Friday the 13th, 1950, when the South St Paul Packers trampled the Stillwater Ponies 35-0 and gained the first place lead in the suburban conference.  The following week they would play St Thomas Academy.  Homecoming was slated for Friday, October 27, and one of the girls up for Homecoming Queen was my mother, Joan Brossoit.

     Rol, wanting to play and still benched by a nagging back problem, went to the doctor.  While there, it was determined that Rol had suffered a concussion as by now his arms were tingling and were becoming numb.    Rol started in the Stillwater game but did not see it through to its finish.........

    Wednesday, October 16th, the headline on page 4 of the local paper read "Rollin Glewwe Out For Season.  A pall of gloom hung over SSP High school today when it was announced that Rollin Glewwe, first string football center and All-Suburban candidate for 1949 at that berth, was not expected to play for the rest of the season.  Coach John Kulbitski said this morning that a temporary  injury was forcing the benching of the top-notch athlete and that he would be badly missed."

      Homecoming night pitted the SSP Packers against Columbia Heights Heighters, with the ending score South St Paul winning 25-6.  It was the last game for the team's fullback Harold "Pinky" Pawlik, as he would be ineligible to play any remaining games due to his age.  But he made it a great game, with SSP rushing for 396 yards to Heights, 75. 

    Four members of the SSP football team were named to the All-Suburban Football team that last week in October, tackle Allan Stelmasik, backs Eddie Helseth and Harold Pawlik and center, Rollin Glewwe.  In the news article it said that "Rollin Glewwe, now hospitalized and seeing only limited action in the Stillwater game and none in the Columbia Heights encounter, impressed all with his prowess in both offensive and defensive  capacities during three earlier league contests to gain a berth on the All-Suburban team."

The SSP "Packers Crush Robbinsdale 33-0 in Season's Finale" was the headline for the last game of the season.  In three years, the football team had only lost one game, and for one player his last game.


    
    
    
 

A Pantry Full of Canned Goods

     It starts with going to the farmer's market.  When I was a child I would go along with my father, who was the produce manager for the local grocery store.  We would go during the week and it would still be dark out.  I loved the smells of fresh and not-so-fresh vegetables, of cigar smoke and exhaust, the overhead lights swinging from single bulbs and the sounds of bushel baskets thumping on the ground, greetings being exchanged and prices being haggled over.  It was magical to a little girl.  It still is magical to me, and my hubby and kids and my grandkids.

     We still to go to market, but now its Saturday mornings and we can't seem to get out of the house before 8 am.  By then the sun is up, the parking lots are full, the strollers and baby carriers are in abundance as you step your way around the sea of people who are out for a few items.  The selections have changed also.  Now it is about presentation and unique items.  The truck farmers have given way to immigrant farmers who have stepped up their game. What used to be farmers with potatoes, beets, corn, tomatoes and few other items has given way to specialty items of syrups, breads, soaps, sorbets, mushrooms and herbs and greens that I have no idea how to use.  It has become a place to have breakfast and lunch.  Dessert to follow. 

     In the early spring there are bedding plants, lots and lots of bedding plants and hanging baskets.  The lettuce and peas and spinach growers show up as do the egg farmers.  These give way to the strawberries, then the raspberries.  Then the early tomatoes and first corn crop come in and the stream of people increase to a sea of people.  Finally by late August, the first of the cucumbers arrive.  And by September, the apple growers have taken up residence next to the potato and squash growers.

      Call it my upbringing, or something my DNA or my need of one-upsmanship, but when late summer rolls around, the canning jars come out and the mad dash starts.  So far this year I've put up 14 quarts of pickles. And 28 quarts of Colorado peaches.  And tomatoes....so many tomatoes.  Whole tomatoes, stewed tomatoes, frozen tomatoes.  So many that I've lost count of how many quarts of tomatoes.  We also bought 15 dozen ears of corn which we cooked outside in the big 20 gallon pot, decobbed (is that a word?) and froze.  I think there were over 40 bags.  And I'm still looking to put up pears and our family favorite, applesauce.  Can't have cheesebutton without homemade applesauce!  My ambitions get the best of me.  The half bushel of green beans I bought at market to put up hot and spicy, ended up in the compost pile three weeks later because I never found the time.  And I haven't been to the grocery store lately to see if the pears are in. (I'm sure they are.)

     But when I look at the pantry with the shelves full of quart jars lined up like soldiers, I feel like I have done my job.  It brings peace of mind and the anticipation of good meals to come.

The Quest - To Dream

     Last month I posted the eulogy that my father gave for his dad who had passed away 26 years ago.  I had taken a picture of some small wooden momentos from his office and on returning them,  I spied the wooden figurines that I had bought for him from a garage sale a long while ago.  They were of Don Quixote, the knight-errant , and his sidekick, Sancho. 

     Don Quixote was the main character in "Man of La Mancha", with its wonderful score,and was made into a movie in 1972.  We played the record over and over while I was growing up, learning all of the words and singing them often.  My sisters and I  would laugh at our father, think of him as Don Quixote with all of the adventures he would take us on.  At the end of the movie, when Don Quixote was dying, while laying in bed, he remembers the "quest" and jumps up and shouts to Sancho and his Dulcinea:

     "What is sickness to the body of a knight-errant?  What matters wounds for each time he falls he will rise again.  And woe to the wicked!  Sancho!"

     "Here your Grace."

     "My armor, my sword!"

     " More mis-adventure?"

     "Adventures, old friend."

     The cry of more mis-adventure became the battle cry at home when Dad would get the urge to go for a drive on Sunday afternoons with all of us in tow.  It was the battle cry when we would take family vacations together in RV's that had a tendency to break down.  It was the battle cry when they built the addition on the the family home.  It was the battle cry when illnesses and injuries came into play in the family.  So I could not resist when I saw them at a sale for about $3 those many years ago. 

     It also was the battle cry for the family when twenty some years ago, my brothers, at the urging of my dad, started a business called Roadware Inc.  We all went to work for this company when economic conditions, bankruptcy of another company and the desire to dream came together.  It became his quest.  To start his own busines, work with his family, become successful and make a difference.  The figures became again a centerpoint in his office, as we all realized that we could reach that unreachable star.

To dream...the impossible dream....

To fight...the unbeatable foe....

To bear...with unbearable sorrow....

To run...where the brave dare not go....

The business started in the family garage.  We laugh now when we think about how living in Minnesota, no one got to park in the garage in winter, semi-trucks pulling up in front of the house and stopping all traffic in both directions as we would run out and empty or load said truck.  Or how the company took over the lower rooms and bedrooms to house the business and the handful of employees and owners who worked every day.

To right...the unrightable wrong....

To love...pure and chaste from afar....

To try...when your arms are too weary....

To reach...the unreachable star....

Today we have moved that business into its own home, manufacture our own products and ship them throughout the world.  We get steady paychecks, we get calls from all over the world, we have more adventures.  We have a family who are friends and friends who are family.

This is my quest, to follow that star....

No matter how hopeless, no matter how far....

To fight for the right, without question or pause....

To be willing to march into Hell, for a Heavenly cause.....

And I know if I'll only be true, to this glorious quest,

That my heart will lie peaceful and calm,

when I'm laid to my rest....

And the world will be better for this:

That one man, scorned and covered with scars,

Still strove, with his last ounce of courage,

To reach...the unreachable star....

You have been a good role model, mentor, teacher, friend, storyteller, and a great father!  You have instilled in all of us to dream the impossible dream, to run where the brave dare not go.  To right, to love, to try and to reach the unreachable star!

Happy Father's Day !

Reuben Glewwe - As I remember him

This eulogy was given by Rollin Glewwe at the funeral of his father, Reuben Benjamin Glewwe, twenty-six years ago in May.

     "Most who knew him called him Rube.  Mom called him Reuben.  Lois called him Daddy, to Elva he was Dad.  To his seven grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren he's Grandpa and to the couple of handfuls of foster children he and Mom raised, all and any of those names were used with affection.

     Many admired his gentle nature, more recognized his inner strength.  All remember his sense of humor.  He was a happy man.

     A few will remember him as a boy working in the celery fields at Emil Glewwe's.  Probably even fewer recall his days driving a hay wagon at the Stockyards.  But I'll bet nobody remembers the night he came home with a sack of freshly caught bullheads over his shoulder and a grin from ear to ear.

     Some here had their cars and trucks repaired at the R B Glewwe Motor Co. back in the 30's, and maybe a few were able to plunk down the $795 it took to drive away in a brand new Willy's that night.  He passed on his love of the motor car to his grandsons - all mechanics in their own right.  They still pick up and use some of Grandpa's hand-forged tools and more important, a lot of his hand-me-down knowledge and know-how.

     My dad was the strongest man I ever knew - as a boy his brother Ed says, "Rube never picked a fight but he sure settled a lot of them."  My high school coaches would often tell me how Dad could chin himself 25 times one-handed without touching the ground.

     I was never so proud as a lad when, my Dad while giving a Sunday school object lesson, bent two steel bars in half with his bare hands!  For years I put him right up there with Charles Atlas and Bronco Nygerski.  It was years later when I found the two bent bars of body solder in his shop that he told me his secret.

     And yet with all his strength, I never saw him raise his hand in anger or even his voice.  He did raise some strong onions one year however!  Dad had a rare inner strength that not only matched but exceeded his physical strength and it was to that inner strength that we all were drawn.


     Many of Dad's friends will remember him as Minnesota Highway Department's District Stock Supervisor - a job that entailed a great deal of traveling, keeping track of all the equipment, supplies, fencing, paint, signs, bridges and what-not that the department owned.

     Several will recall the exhaustive time and motion studies and standards he undertook in that job and the certificates of merit and the plaudits he received when he retired after more that 30 years of service.

     Today as I travel to those same shops throughout the state in my business, I am constantly reminded that Dad was there ahead of me by the friendly handshakes and the inquiries as to his health and whereabouts.

     But a little known fact about my Dad - one that his office at home will attest to - is that he really would have rather have been a postmaster.  A maze of nooks, cubbyholes and crannies line the wall - each one stuffed with the letters, papers, notes and memorabilia that represent in a small way the many facets of Dad's life.  In one we might find the plans to one of the many custom-built doll houses he constructed from scratch for his daughters, grand-daughters and nieces.

     In another a character of a cow that he would turn out on the jigsaw by the dozen.  In still another, we would discover the minutes, records and bank books of the Oak Hill Cemetery board on which he served on for 20 years.  Looking further, we might discover the notes and plans for the many remodeling and construction projects he undertook on his and Mom's home as well as Lois' , Elva's and mine, the last being an entire apartment in my house which he built in the summer of 1982, just 4 short years ago.

     Yet Dad was more that a master builder.  He also was a master writer and historian.  Faithfully for the past 47 years he has recorded the daily family history from the number of runny noses his great-grandchildren had last week to the number of runs the Twins had last night.
 
     Yes Dad kept the records.  In fact the IRS used to have their new agents audit him just to show them what the words "good record keeping" means.  He also kept a remarkable memory for the people he met and loved and that includes all of us here today.

     This memory enabled him to recall the marvelous yarns and stories that have kept us laughing for the past 81 years and I'm sure I'll catch myself retelling those stories and reliving those memories for the rest of my life.

     I could go on talking about my best friend but I would rather have each of you stand and put your hand as Dad would have - shake the hands of those around you and call them by name or introduce yourself as Dad would have and smile.

     And Dad, as we shake hands here today in your memory, we just know that the next hand you shake will be the Lord's.

Reuben Benjamin Glewwe ~ 14 Aug 1904 - 09 May 1986

Who was Harold Stassen?

     Harold E Stassen, born April 13, 1907on a farm in West St. Paul, Minnesota, was the middle son of William and Elsbeth (Mueller) Stassen.  His father, William, was a not only a truck farmer but was also elected as Mayor in 1921, serving three terms, on the Board of Education for many years and over 30 years on the police commission.  Needless to say, public service was no stranger to Harold.

     Harold graduated from Humboldt High School when he was 15 years old. He went to the University of Minnesota by day and worked many a part-time job by night.  He was elected All-Class President of the University in 1925, a debater and orator and captain of the rifle team, where he joined the MN R.O.T.C. and scored a perfect 400 at the rifle match in 1925.  He completed law school in three years and was admitted to the Minnesota Bar at age 21.

     The following year he married my great aunt Esther Glewwe and soon after was elected Dakota County Attorney.  Prohibition was underway and South St Paul was known for its "shady" characters and get-away cars due to the high number of "dry" bars and proximity of the stock yards and plenty of money exchanging hands.  This gave many opportunities to County Attorney Stassen to bring about justice in the courts.  He successfully argued his first case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court when he was 26. 
         
            "'Turmoil' is too weak a word to describe the political situation in Minnesota in 1938.
          
           Labor strikes and retaliatory lockouts produced killings in the streets; thugs and gangsters
       controlled the powerful Teamsters Union; angry mobs marched on the capitol building in
       St Paul and took over the Senate and House in a "sit in"; waste and political favoritism in
       government reached scandalous proportions. . . .
         
           Harold Stassen, then president of the Minnesota Young Republicans, formed an organization
       that startled not only the state but the nation by electing him governor in 1938, at the age of
       thirty-one.  His "Diaper Brigade" included a lieutenant governor even younger - twenty eight
       years - and the speaker of the lower house of the state legislature just under thirty years." 1

  

Their legislative record:

•        Minnesota's first civil service law "to raise the standards of public service";
•        New state purchasing system to eliminate political graft and reduce costs;
•        A program to develop low grade iron ore;
•        A law "to curb the small-loan sharks";
•        A single tax commissioner to equalize tax assessments and make tax collection uniform;
•       A balanced state budget
•       A Labor Conciliation Law that provides for a "cooling off" period.

I Want To Be With Them

     With the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 by the Japanese brought more change to Harold's career.  When he ran for reelection as governor in 1942, he announced in a radio broadcast from the Governor's Office on March 27, "The offensive drive for victory against the totalitarian forces that threaten the future of free men will be conducted in the main by the young men of my generation.  I want to be with them." 2 He won reelection.
       

     True to his word,  he would serve until the end of the legislature session and on April 27, 1943 would resign and leave the next day for active duty in the United States Navy.  Harold was assigned as Assistant Chief of Staff to Admiral William (Bull) Halsey, Commander of the Third Fleet in the Pacific. 

The United Nations

          "The nations of the world must not merely agree that they wish to live together in peace;

they must establish a mechanism of government to achieve that end." 3

     In February of 1945, President Roosevelt, named Stassen as part of the American delegation to the Founding Conference of the United Nations.  Two months later, with the death of President Roosevelt, the new President, Harry Truman, reappointed the original UN team and their negotiations began in late April.  At the end of the conference, Stassen was voted as one of two delegates who made the most effective contributions to the development of the UN Charter.  After signing the United Nations Charter, Stassen rejoined Admiral Halsey's staff aboard the Missouri.

The End of World War II

     Harold Stassen was on morning watch on the bridge of the USS Missouri on August 12, 1945 when news came that Japan had surrendered.  He wrote in the Admiral's official log book "So closes the watch we have been looking forward to.  Unconditional surrender of Japan - with Admiral Halsey at sea in command of the greatest combined fighting fleet of all history.  There is a gleam in his eye on the bridge that is unmistakable!"   H.E. Stassen  4

     Before the formal surrender ceremony was to take place in September, Harold Stassen and Commodore Roger Simpson were given a special assignment, to supervise "Operation Benevolence" and rescue 14,000 American prisoners from a Japanese war camp.  Although Japan had surrendered, the war camp had not received official notice to release their prisoners and the fear was that the prisoners would all be killed before being released.  Family lore tells how Harold pulled up to the gates of the prison camp in a jeep, jumped out and said his orders were for the release of all prisoners.  The Japanese said they had no such order from their commanders and and by whose orders were these given.  Harold unholstered his gun and said by these orders and all of the men were released.

      Following their successful rescue mission, Harold returned to the USS Missouri and stood on deck with General Douglas MacArthur on September 2, 1945 for the signing of surrender from the Japanese and the end of WWII.  Harold was promoted to Captain and received the Legion of Honor, the Bronze Star and many other commendations and ribbons.  He returned to civilian life in 1946.

  Presidential Candidate 

        "Government of free men is the most difficult form to operate which man has ever devised.  It requires a high caliber of administration.  But the fruits are

 worth the labor."  5

     Harold Stassen took his first run for President in 1948.  Doing well in the primaries and garnering delegates, Stassen went to the Republican National Convention confident that he would do well.  But behind the scenes, wheelings and dealings put the Dewey-Warren ticket together and Harold's time was over.  He returned to Minnesota and in August of 1948 was invited to become president of the University of Pennsylvania.  He accepted at the urging of fellow president of Columbia University and close friend, Dwight D Eisenhower.   He stayed in this position until 1953. 

Special Assistant to the President

          "General, you should be the next president of the United States. 

It would be best for future world peace, and best for the

national security and economic prosperity of the United States." 6

      Meanwhile, in 1951, Eisenhower left the States to take over as NATO Supreme Commander in Europe.  Stassen was determined that Eisenhower should run for the nomination of President in 1952, but Eisenhower was currently living overseas.  A committee sent Harold overseas to convince Eisenhower to return and run for President.  While waiting for Eisenhower to return to the states and retire from the Army, Harold Stassen, in an effort to keep the nomination from Robert Taft, mounted a second campaign for President.  At the National Convention in July of 1948, during the first ballot, Stassen had all of his delegates switch their votes to Eisenhower, guaranteeing him the nomination and the "I Like Ike" campaign was underway.

     After Eisenhower's win as President, Harold Stassen was called to Washington D.C. to take on a new role, as Director of Mutual Security, in charge of all foreign operations - foreign aid, foreign relief, all foreign operations except covert ones run by the CIA.  It was a Cabinet rank and he would also sit on the National Security Council.  Stassen was also named as Special Assistant to the President.  He was instrumental in helping the President write his remarks given at the Geneva Convention in 1949, when Eisenhower insisted that all embrace the "Open Skies" procedures allowing for arial photography of military facilities.  Stassen butted heads many times during the years with Secretary of State John Dulles, and after many years of travel and world peace efforts, Harold resigned from the Cabinet on February 15, 1958.


     He returned to Philadelphia and established a private law firm specializing in international law.  For the next twenty years he wrote many a paper expounding ways to bring peace to the world.  He ran for President a number of times.  He remarked when asked about those campaigns, "Certainly, I never suffered any delusions that lightening would suddenly strike and I would be nominated.  1948 gave me my one real chance; but each time, when I announced that I would run for President, I got a temporary forum to expound my views on economic policies, foreign actions, and on the UN.  Future world peace continues to be my most compelling interest." 7
 

     In 1978, Harold and Esther moved back to Minnesota and Sunfish Lake.  He set up his law practice in the Stassen building, which was in the original pasture of his father's farm. Harold, as the only original signer of the UN Charter still living, worked tirelessly on his views about the United Nations and the need for a new charter.  He published a draft charter that was published in October of 1985.  My father recalls the many times at family gatherings when all the men would gather around Harold and listen to his stories of international intrigue and the "who's who" of family and friends.  Harold was a gracious man, always listening and always listened to. 


     The family held a party for Harold Stassen on his 90th birthday, at the Radisson St. Paul Hotel overlooking the Mississippi River. Stassen received tributes from Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright and UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, the members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and the current president at the time, Bill Clinton awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 8  Always the statesman, Harold also handed out copies of his book "Eisenhower, Turning the World Toward Peace." 


     A few years later in 2000, the State of Minnesota dedicated a new building the Harold E Stassen Building which now houses the MN Department of Revenue.

     Harold E Stassen, passed away on March 4, 2001, five months after his beloved wife Esther.  They are both buried at Acacia Cemetery in Mendota Heights, Minnesota.

Happy 105 Birthday
Great Uncle Harold!

1. "Eisenhower, Turning the World Toward Peace", Harold Stassen and Marshall Houts, Merrill/Magnus Publishing Company, St Paul, 1990, viii.

2. "Man Was Meant to Be Free, Selected Statements of Governor Harold E Stassen, 1940-1951", Edited by Amos J Peaslee, Doubleday & Company, Inc., Garden City, New York, 1951, p.25
3. "Man Was Meant to Be Free", Peaslee, p45
4. "Eisenhower, Turning the World Toward Peace", Stassen, pxiii
5. "Man Was Meant to Be Free", Peaselee, p179
6. "Eisenhower", Stassen, p1
7. Ibed. p viii
8. http://npaphistory.wikispaces.com
Other excerpts are from "A Moment is History on the occassion of his 90th Birthday", Lois Glewwe 1997