Northfield Historical Society - History at its best!

First National Bank Promotional Piece

Hayes Scriven — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:39:22 +0000

NHS founder, Elvin Heiberg dropped off this First National Bank (FNB) promotional piece. It is a dollar bill sponge. I really like the bottom line of " DIP THIS "DOLLAR" IN WATER - WATCH IT GROW." Does anyone know the year in which they would have used this? FNB does a great job with their promotional pieces, my favorite are the click pens and sticky notes!

Sidewalk height??

Hayes Scriven — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:27:00 +0000

In doing some research on Bridge Square I came across this photo and the height of the sidewalk caught my eye.

2009 Cemetery Stories a big success!

Hayes Scriven — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:39:57 +0000

Even though the temperature was less than ideal 338 brave souls journeyed to the Northfield Cemetery to witness history coming to life! Cemetery Stories was a great success! Thank you to all that came out and participated!

Echoes of War: Vietnam War Nurses and Their Stories

Hayes Scriven — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:59:16 +0000

Physician to give voice to nurses’ stories from Vietnam

Kay E. Schwebke, MD, MPH, medical director of Long Term Care Center at Northfield Hospital, and Diane Carlson-Evans, former Northfielder and founder and chair of the Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, will speak Thursday evening, Oct. 8, at St. Olaf College about the courage and fortitude of nurses who served in Vietnam and whose service is memorialized by the Vietnam Women's Memorial in Washington, D.C. Their presentation begins at 7 p.m. in the Viking Theater in Buntrock Commons.

Their talk, “Echoes of War: Vietnam War Nurses and Their Stories,” addresses the anguish, the heartache and the pride the nurses internalized after serving in battle zones and experiencing the trauma of war. They will talk about how those experiences echoed throughout the nurses’lives and how they have coped with the aftermath.

The project is based on interviews with nurses who served in Vietnam during the 1960s and '70s. Its genesis came from listening to a researcher discuss the prevalence of post-traumatic stress among women who served in combat zones. Sharing stories about traumatic events is critical to beginning the healing process, Dr. Schwebke said. She wanted to give nurses an opportunity to talk about their experiences.

"I realized there were many important stories that needed to be told, and I had to keep those stories alive," she said.

Her presentation is co-sponsored by St. Olaf College Department of Nursing, Northfield Hospital & Clinics and the Northfield Historical Society. The event is free and open to the public. A reception will follow the presentation.

Cemetery Stories October 10!

Hayes Scriven — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 18:48:26 +0000

Cemetery Stories will be on October 10, 2009 at the Northfield Cemetery (across from the high school). The first public tour is at 5:15 p.m. Each tour will last about an hour. Listen to pioneers Joseph Drake and Charles Scofield talk about early Northfield or listen to high school students talk about living with polio and many other interesting people from Northfield's past. There is something for everyone! The tours are at: 5:15, 5:30, 6:00, 6:15, 6:30, 7:00, and 7:15. Call NHS at 507-645-9268 to reserve your spot today as space is limited, except for the last tour at 7:15 p.m.

James-Younger Gang Conference photos, Night 1 and Day 2

Hayes Scriven — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 20:35:02 +0000

Here are the photos from last night’s river boat dinner cruise and today’s tour of the James J. Hill House and the MN State Capital. Tonight is the big banquet and I will be back home tomorrow, but not for long. I am attending and presenting at the Minnesota Association of Museums conference on Tuesday at the St. Paul River Center.

James-Younger Gang Conference photos

Hayes Scriven — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 20:26:49 +0000

Today was our first day of tours and presentations at the James-Younger Gang Conference in St. Paul. In the morning we attended a presentation by Dr. James Bailey and Dr. Kate Blue on the forensic investigation into the Northfield Historical Society skeleton. You can see previous post and photos here, here and here. After lunch we received a behind the scenes tour of MHS. We were able to see some rare firearms and some large 3-D objects. The highlight of the tour was seeing the 28th Virginia Infantry Battle Flag and the Clell Miller duster that was picked up off the street after the failed 1876 bank raid. Stay tuned for more photos!

The Northfield News vs. the Northfield Independent

Alyssa Ness — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:17:57 +0000

“When you’ve read the Independent, you’ve read the news.” - early slogan for the Northfield Independent

Long before there were online news sites or local blogs, our newspapers had an older form of competition to contend with: other newspapers. We primarily hear about two big-city papers vying for subscriptions in the same area, but this was also the case in our small town, where the Northfield News and the Northfield Independent operated simultaneously between 1887 and 1962.

The Northfield News: 1876 - Present

Amusingly, the Northfield News is not native to Northfield; Henry E. Lawrence originally established his newspaper in a neighboring village in the fall of 1876. For three years, Lawrence’s “Dundas News” was published in Dundas, but in 1879 the paper was transferred to Northfield, where it was rechristened the “Northfield News” and eventually absorbed another community paper previously known as the Rice County Journal.

DJJD through videos and pictures

Hayes Scriven — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:18:55 +0000

Now that Defeat of Jesse James Days has come and gone. I would like to share with you some photos and videos from the weekend. All of the videos are from the Northfield News and all the photos are from the official DJJD web gallery.

2009 Bank Raids

2009 Rodeo

2009 Bank Raid Video

NHS and DJJD featured on KSTP!

Hayes Scriven — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:05:55 +0000

On Thursday, KSTP featured NHS and DJJD on their afternoon show Twins Cities Live. They talked to NHS founder and KYMN personality Wayne Eddy, and NHS Executive Director Hayes Scriven. Check out the video and enjoy DJJD! If you have any question on what is happening this weekend please call us at 507-645-9268 or email us.