1921 Duluth & St Louis County MN, Van Brunt.pdf - Garon.us

t
DULUTH AND ST. LOUIS COUNTY 557
The pioneer ball in Hi'bbing took place on January 24, 1894. The party
was held in the "new bank building" now (1902) occupied iby W. J. Ryder's
furniture store. Tickets were placed on the market at $1.50 each, and it cut
even the pioneer swells to dig up $1.50 in those days. But the dollar-fifties
were forthcoming readily enough, when it was seen that there was no help
for it, and everybody went. And everybody had a jolly time. The floor
managers were J. F. Twitchell, G. G. Robinson, Dan McFadden, Mrs. J. J,
Stuart, and Miss Celia Gandsey.
The first banking institution started in Hibbing was the Bank of Hibbing,
wihich later became the Lumbermen's and Miners' Bank.
Early Mails.— It seems that the mails came in over the trail from
Mountain Iron in the early days before Hibbing was a railroad town.
There was no regular system of mail-carrying, but occasionally a
young man would come through, and for the carrying would be paid
"for the delivery of each letter."
First Post-Office.—The first post-office was established in the
store of Murphy Brothers, said store having a tent for protection
against wind, rain, and yeggs. The tent was on First Avenue, but
before the winter came, the store and post-office were housed in a
stronger shelter, a frame building on Pine Street.
Abundance of Game.—In the hard times of the first year, 1893,
it indeed was fortunate for the "shackers" that there was an abundance
of game to be had. R. F. Berdie was responsible for the statement
that, at that time, "it was nothing unusual to step out and in
a few minutes kill, with a club, enough partridges to last a family a
day or so." Mr. Berdie also told "of a monster bull moose that he saw
standing in the street, near where the office of the 'Mesaba Ore' was
later located."
The Coming of the Railway.—Hibbing became a railroad station
in the fall of 1893, even though the first depot was only "a D. M. & X.
box-car." All depended on that vital transportation connection, and
had it been a normal year, instead of one in which all industry was
gasping—in all parts of the country—in an endeavor to recover from
the stifling effects of the world-wide money shortage there would
have been great rejoicing in Hibbing when the railway actually came.
There were many perplexing obstacles to overcome before the short
spur of steel track, from Wolf Junction could reach Hibbing. L.ack
of money stopped the work for months, and with the financial difficulty
overcome, in August, 1893, there was still an uncanny natural
obstacle that for a time bafifled the engineers. "Work was delayed
considerably by a sink-hole just one 'mile east of the present depot.
The sink-hole was the most stubborn ever encountered in road-building
in the Mesabi country. The track would be worked up to a level
at night, and in the morning it would be ten feet below." However,
the obstacle was finally overcome, and "Jack Dorsey, landlord of rhe
Cosmopolitan Hotel, drove the last spike that connected Hibbing
with the outside world."
Hibbing Fire Department.— llibbing organized a fire department
in the summer of 1894. At the outset it was not much more than "'a
bucket brigade," because funds with which equipment could be bought
was not to be had. Frank Hibbing, to help on the village, had undertaken
to bear the cost of putting in a water system, that being an
urgent necessity for reasons of health. And he was api)roached for
funds to establish the fire brigade, but could not handle that expense
also, until an ()p])()rtunity came, early in 18