On this date in 1881, suffering from dyspepsia, heart disease, and depression, Justus C. Ramsey, younger brother of statesman Alexander, commits suicide in St. Paul. After winning $10,000 in a lottery, Justus had arrived in Minnesota from Pennsylvania in 1849, invested heavily in real estate, and served in the territorial legislature. In early August 1862 […]
General
1820-05-05
On this date in 1820, Colonel Henry Leavenworth’s troops move to Camp Coldwater in what is now Minnehaha Regional Park in Minneapolis. Camp Coldwater was so-called because of the numerous springs of clear cool water found on the river bluff below the camp ground.
1826-05-03
On this date in 1826, Captain D. F. Reeder arrives on the 120 ton steamboat Lawrence at Fort Snelling. The following day Captain Reeder invites the ladies and gentlemen of Fort Snelling on a pleasure cruise up to St. Anthony Falls. Accompanied by a band, the Lawrence steamed up the Mississippi River to within three […]
1933-06-15
On this date in 1933, William Hamm Jr., president of the Theodore Hamm’s Brewery, was kidnapped by the Barker-Karpis gang near his home at 671 Greenbrier Avenue in St. Paul. Hamm was forced into the back of a car and taken to Wisconsin, where he was forced to sign four ransom notes. He was then […]
1934-01-16
On this date in 1934, banker Edward Bremer Jr., heir to the Schmidt Brewery fortune, was kidnapped by the Barker-Karpis gang in St. Paul while on his way to work. He had just dropped his daughter off at the Summit School when he was approached by two men and forced into the back of a […]
