The Great Depression affected the lives of Americans for a decade in the 1930s. In this episode, we explore how the national economic collapse impacted the lives of the local people of Anoka County. Hear about local bank collapses, county relief programs, and WPA projects.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director, and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreKindness matters—especially for Stacey Burnham and Missy Merschman, who began the rock garden in Anoka to “scatter kindness, positivity and love while connecting us to one another.” After the devastating news of her daughter’s suicide in 2018, Stacey began receiving tokens of friendship from Missy that carried her through a time of healing. This grew into a space in Anoka where people can leave a painted rock or take one, sit and contemplate life, or celebrate the joy of the moment. Learn more in this podcast as Stacey and Missy talk about the rock garden and the parent nonprofit, The Kindness Alliance, and share stories of hope inspired by the organization’s events.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director, and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreEvery year, ACHS moves into the Farm House on the Anoka County Fair for a week in July. In celebration of the Fair starting on July 23, this mini-history episode of the podcast explores its history, and the surprising buildings that have been moved onto the grounds over the years.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director, and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreMary Woodbury lived in the same house on the Rum River in Anoka for 75 years! She moved there as a toddler in 1861 and was on the front lines watching the city grow and change. The Mad Hatter Restaurant, which now resides in her home, and ACHS have unveiled new house tour you can enjoy that covers the 167 year history of the home. In this episode, learn about the self-guided tour, and hear Mary’s own stories in excerpts from her diary and short memoir, “Reminiscences.”
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director, and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreThe Anoka County Sheriff's department history dates back to 1857 with the 1st Sheriff James C. Frost. Who someone complained was speeding his horse down Main St. in 1868. In this episode, listen to a portion of the program about the department given March 9 at the Anoka County History Center.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreWhat is a typical day like at the Anoka County History Center? It’s not all working with artifacts, and definitely not quiet. Follow along with ACHS Volunteer Coordinator, Sara Given, for her first audio diary of everything that happened around the museum on Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - well, at least everything that happened until lunch time.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreListen to Burton Dupre's stories as he remembers growing up in Centerville in the 1920s and 30s and the farm chores and shenanigans he and his friends got up to (including when they were arrested by the Anoka Game Warden for fishing without a license.) Burton also shares his time in the service during WWII as a medic at an English hospital, and then bartender for the Company Bar in Germany.
Stories taken from his collection of short stories, “Sincerely, Burton” printed in 2001 and read by ACHS volunteer Brian Boldt.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreValentine’s Day is billed as the day of love, couples and all things romance. But where did this day of hearts and cupids come from and why do we celebrate it each February 14? Skeptics may say it is only a plot from the greeting card and candy companies….but Anoka County residents were celebrating and engaging with Valentine’s Day long before Hallmark Company even began. Learn how people in Anoka County celebrated Valentines Day through the years.
This episode is a portion of a program given at ACHS February 10, 2024.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreWith a round “tower” column and a stately presence, the 157 year old Ticknor Hill Bed & Breakfast has been welcoming guests since 1997. For 25 of those years they were greeted by Deb Wallace. In this episode, she sits down in her own parlor with Rebecca to talk about how she purchased the property with her husband, tips of running the business, and what the future might hold for the beautiful home as they decided to sell.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator
Read MoreOver 120 years ago, the first male occupants arrived at the newly constructed State Asylum for the Insane following a battle for the Anoka location. It’s history looms large in local lore and this program promises to tease fact from fiction. Listen to a portion of the program given January 13 at the History Center in this episode.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator
Originally aired June 17, 2022
Read MoreOn her family’s Ramsey farm in 1890, 10 year old Phoebe [Daisy] Guderian was kicked in the head by their horse and survived. In this episode, follow along with the story as told from newspaper reports, Daisy’s own daughter, letters from the doctor who came from the rescue and his descendant. Special guest Peter Jablonski.
Host Rebecca Desens, ACHS Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator
Originally aired June 17, 2022
Read MoreArthur Donald “Two Gun Pete” Caswell was born in 1898 and saw a different world than we do today. Through a couple recordings of him from 1977 and 1983 he shares snippets of his life during before serving in WWI, his time as a federal officer during Prohibition raiding stills, and as an inventor to make shooting ranges safer and more efficient.
Hosts Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreArthur Donald “Two Gun Pete” Caswell was born in 1898 and saw a different world than we do today. Through a couple recordings of him from 1977 and 1983 he shares snippets of his life during before serving in WWI, his time as a federal officer during Prohibition raiding stills, and as an inventor to make shooting ranges safer and more efficient.
Hosts Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MorePearl Marea Schenk was born in 1911 on her family’s farm along the Mississippi River in Ramsey (city). Over 90 years later she sat down to share her memories of growing up on the Howling Hound Farm, the changes as highway 10 became busier and busier, and the transition from horses, to cars, and then greyhound bus on her school commute along the way.
Hosts Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director and Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator.
Read MoreSamuel Starrett has become the literal poster child for the annual Ghosts of Anoka Walking Tour at ACHS. As the guides lead over 1,000 people past his home on Madison St. in Anoka, they share his legacy and stories from the homeowners about how he never really left. In this episode, you'll learn more about his daughter Alice through the eyes of ACHS volunteer Dave VenHuizen, who transcribed her six diaries. Dave chats with Rebecca about what he learned about Alice, her family, and the city of Anoka by reading her thoughts as a young society woman. Follow along with the conversation, join them on a trip to the Starrett home, meet its current owner for an inside look, and hear Heather Birch's first introduction to Sam.
Host Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator, and Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director.
Read MoreOn Friday afternoons at the Anoka County History Center, Jane LaMusga takes her place, ready to research family genealogies or the museum mystery of the day. Jane grew up in the city of Anoka and received a certificate in genealogical research from Boston University. In this episode, and across social media as “Genealogist Jane”, she shares how she started her genealogy journey, and her tips and tricks along the way.
Host Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator, and Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director.
Read MoreIt isn’t uncommon for people to stop Lynn Klonowski and ask, “Are you related to that coach or counselor in Anoka?” In this episode Lynn, accompanied by her niece Nichole, remembers her father and mother — telling the stories of their life, victories, death, and her own adoption story. Mark Klonowski worked as a coach at Anoka High School, and then served as Principal at Anoka Junior High until his unexpected death in 1965. Anna Klonowski triple majored in college before working as a math teacher and later a school counselor.
Host Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator, and Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director
Read MoreThe ACHS Cemetery Tours are back by popular demand this spring! But what does it take to organize, research, and put on a tour? Go behind-the-scenes with Daryl Lawrence and Sara Given as they share the winding road that ends at Glen Cary Cemetery in Ham Lake and Forest Hills Cemetery in Anoka.
Host Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator, and Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director.
Read MoreMove over Ford and Chevrolet, from 1910 to 1922 the City of Anoka was home to its own car manufacturing business: VEERAC. This August, ACHS hosted an old car club at the museum for an afternoon dedicated to this unique vehicle. Listen to the program as Sharon Hastings, and Steve Florman share the history of the company, their connections to it, and even the story of the one, intact and running VEERAC in the world.
Host Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator and Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director
Read MoreThe Anoka State Hospital housed and treated mentally ill patients from 1900 to 1999 and its large, three-story cottages standing next to the Rum River are a source of fascination. As part of an oral history project in 2014, Karen Siewert talked about her time working there in the early 1960s, conditions in the overcrowded buildings, and her continued work to transform the Hospital’s cemetery into one of remembrance and dignity for the patients buried there.
TW: Mental illness and outdated treatment practices
Host Sara Given, ACHS Volunteer Coordinator and Rebecca Desens, ACHS Executive Director
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