Brainerd Water Tower

The Brainerd, Minnesota water tower was built from 1919 to 1922. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was the first all-concrete elevated tank used by a municipality in the United States.

A Look At Water Towers, an article on Minnesota water towers, notes that for many communities, a water tower is a part of its identity. This Brainerd water tower has not been used since 1960, but it remains as an attraction and symbol of the city of Brainerd.

Paul Bunyan is another attraction and symbol of Brainerd, and the water tower has become associated with Paul Bunyan in several ways — as his knife handle, his golf tee, his flash light, and his hitching post for Babe.

The Crow Wing Historical Society has historical photos of the construction of the Brainerd, Minnesota water tower.

Singer Sewing Machine Factory--Bridgeport, Connecticut

This postcard is the standard height of 3½ inches but is double width—11 inches. It was meant to be folded in half before mailing. Although unusual and uncommon, this size is usually ignored by postcard collectors.

When examining this card, I was intrigued by the fine print on the sides of the buildings. The buildings are named Wheeler & Wilson Sewing Machines, not Singer. Wheeler and Wilson was founded in 1851 and moved in 1856 to Bridgeport, Connecticut. In the 1850s and 1860s Wheeler and Wilson sewing machines were the most popular. Eventually Singer sewing machines became more popular, and Singer bought out Wheeler and Wilson in 1905. Singer company history dates the opening of their Bridgeport factory as 1907.

An interesting account of early sewing machine manufacturing history is found on the International Sewing Machine Collectors' Society (ISMACS) website. There is reproduced information and pictures from a 1873 tour of the Wheeler and Wilson Sewing Machine factory by a reporter. At that time the factory employed 6,000-7,000 in various capacities. The pictures are excellent views of workers at work with the manufacturing machines used at different stages of the manufacturing process.

Minnesota Centennial Postcard & Stamp

Minnesota celebrated its Statehood Centennial 50 years ago in 1958. This postcard was published by the Minneapolis Post Card Club. On the back is the stamp commemorating Minnesota Statehood and a First Day of Issue cancellation on May 11, 1958.

In 2008 Minnesota is celebrating it Sesquicentennial. A stamp celebrating Minnesota's 150th anniversary as the 32nd state will be issued on Saturday May 17. A first-day-of-issue ceremony will be part of Statehood Weekend Festival scheduled for May 17 to 18 on the State Capitol grounds in St. Paul.

Willie the Walleye Statue

Willie the Walleye is located in Baudette, Minnesota. The statue weighs 9,852 pounds, is 40 feet 4 inches long and has a girth of 21 feet 4 inches. This statue was constructed in 1959 and is the largest of the big walleye statues.

Baudette is located on Lake of the Woods and the Rainy River in northern Minnesota. Baudette claims to be the "Walleye Capital of the World," but a number of other towns both in Minnesota and other states have claimed the same title. Lake of the Woods Tourism officials in Baudette recently were able to obtain the Minnesota trademark to this title. They have apparently abandoned an effort to obtain a national trademark. Baudette has an annual "Willie Walleye Days" festival in early June.

The walleye is the Minnesota state fish. The 2008 Minnesota walleye season opens May 10. According to the Minnesota state DNR website

The walleye is the most sought-after fish in Minnesota. Its thick, white fillets, handsome shape and coloring, and elusive nature make it the ultimate prize among anglers. Each year, anglers in Minnesota keep roughly 3.5 million walleyes totaling 4 million pounds. The average walleye caught and kept is about 14 inches long and weighs slightly more than 1 pound. The walleye is named for its pearlescent eye, which is caused by a reflective layer of pigment, called the tapetum lucidum, that helps it see and feed at night or in murky water.

For more on the "Walleye Capital" controversy see Walleyed War of the Walleye Capitals.

Albany Tulip Festival

This undated postcard shows a scene from Albany, New York's Annual Tulip Festival where "Colorful pageantry and entertainment mark the festivities preceding the selection and crowning of the new Tulip Queen."

The 2008 Albany Tulip Festival runs from May 9 to May 11. This is the 6oth anniversary of the festival which was created after the tulip became Albany's official flower in 1948. Over 200,000 tulips are planted in the fall before the festival. The tulips bloom throughout Albany in the parks, street islands, and in front of public buildings.

The Tulip Festival celebrates Albany's Dutch heritage. Events include entertainment, arts and crafts shows, food vendors, and the crowning of a Tulip Queen.

Pope Pius XII & 9th National Eucharistic Congress

This linen postcard of Pope Pius XII commemorated the 9th National Eucharistic Congress held at St. Paul - Minneapolis in June 1941. The pope did not atttend the Congress but spoke over the radio to those assembled for the Congress.

Cardinal Pacelli, the future Pope Pius XII, was appointed Vatican Secretary of State in 1930. In 1936 he toured a number of cities in the United States. The trip covered about eight thousand miles in seven days, mainly by chartered plane.

Paul Bunyan at Escanaba Smelt Jamboree

This 1940 linen postcard shows Paul Bunyan and Sourdough Sam with Paul's Smelt Fryin Pan at the Escanaba Smelt Jamboree.

Smelt are small slender fish with silvery bellies. Smelt ascend tributary streams from the Great Lakes to spawn. Nets are used to dip the smelt from the streams. A 1941 release from the Department of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service describes the smelt as "one of the most delicious of pan fishes, the flesh being lean and sweet with a particularly delicate flavor."

Escanaba's first Smelt Jamboree was in 1935. Time Magazine had an April 18, 1938 article "Smelt v. Tourists" describing the fourth Escanaba Smelt Jamboree. Twenty thousand tourists reportedly attended. Events included a Smeltiana comic opera, coronation of a a Smelt King and Queen, banquets, smelt-eating contests, a parade, and bonfire.

Large smelt runs appear to be a thing of the past. The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has current information on "Smelt Dipping Opportunities." The smelt dipping season is mid-April to early May, depending on temperatures and location.