Peering at the Past Rules of the rink: no profanity, no spitting on the floor

About three decades after settlers of European heritage first made their way west to southeastern Minnesota, townsfolk were able to put wheels on their feet. Evidently, some instruction on proper decorum was called for. “Gentlemen will not, and others must not spit on the floor,” was one published rule by the Rushford Roller Rink in the 1880s. “Skaters are prohibited from jumping on the floor, tripping others, and using profane or indecent language.” Wednesday and Saturday mornings (“forenoons”) were reserved for women and children.

Prices were 10 cents in the forenoon and afternoon with 15 cents required from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. “Hour tickets will not be sold.” Ten cents in 1885 would have had the purchasing power of approximately $3 in 2023.

An October 15, 1855, notice read (with original spelling), “The manager of the Rushford Roller Rink has secured the services of Mr. W. H. Hoeft of LaCrosse. Making a happy hit, Mr. Hoeft is up with the times and posted regarding the latest craze on wheels and his presence each evening to instruct, can not fail to add another charm to the rink. The Grand March will be the attraction next Friday. Music will (be) by the Coronet Band.”

Published February 21, 1889: “There will be a masquerade at the Rushford Roller Rink, March 1st 1889. All are invited to come and have a good time. Gent maskers, 25 cents; Lady maskers free; Spectators, 15 cents. Skating is free after the masks are taken off.”

Five and a half years later (September 1894), a newspaper item read, “John Nelson and a force of carpenters will convert the rink into a handsome opera house.” The future of roller skating in Rushford was not addressed.

That early popularity of roller skating in Rushford was not always viewed favorably, alleged to have weakened the morals of the youth in the community. About a decade later, a (newspaper) editor chided the public: “It would seem that the lesson of shame and dishonor brought upon so many Rushford homes during the skating craze of 1885-1886 has been forgotten by the parents and guardians of young girls.”

Later generations could skate on brick or paved sidewalks and streets. But the earliest skaters needed an indoor surface. Dancing and roller skating sometimes shared the same hardwood floor. In the 1930s and ‘40s, they were skating on Wednesdays and waltzing on weekends at the Blue Moon Ballroom in Eitzen as well as one night a week at the Opera House/City Hall in Houston. One former skater recalled indoor roller skating in Houston being discontinued in the late 1940s due to the wear on the wood dance floor. Another former skater said roller skating shared the floor with basketball at the Peterson school gymnasium.

Harmony had the only indoor, open-all-year facility, used specifically for roller skating. Articles published from the 1950s to the 1970s referred to the Harmony Recreation Center, operated by Arlene and Earl Bigalk.

Otherwise, in the mid-1900s, when there was not a makeshift rink in a basement, southeast Minnesota roller skaters were usually outdoors at temporary, movable venues. During warm weather months, there would be sections of flooring pieced together under a tent.

One skater who grew up near Rushford recalled being a skate boy one summer when Lanesboro resident Gene Johnson set up his traveling tent and flooring in Rushford. A skate boy would assist patrons putting on and adjusting their clamp-on skates.

One prominent skating business traveled to, rather than from, Lanesboro. Based in Albert Lea, Harley’s Roller Rink spent two summers (1948, 1957) at Sylvan Park in Lanesboro. Harley Jensen and his wife Helen purchased a tent in Clear Lake, Iowa in 1948 and were in business until 1965. Although they commuted each day from Albert Lea to a winter rink in Sherburn for a while and ended up with a permanent indoor rink in Albert Lea, it was primarily a traveling summer attraction, usually May to Septermber. Harley and Helen would spend the entire summer in one town while they lived in their travel trailer. Only a couple of summers was business so slow that they moved to another town before the season was over. Their first destination was Lanesboro in 1948, followed by visits to Plainview, Elmore, Sherburn, Jackson, Luverne, Zumbrota, Hayfield, Kiester, Glenville, Emmons and Alden.

On top of a wooden board base, 4 feet by 8 feet sheets of Masonite would be laid to form the skating surface. The sides of the tent were open during the day, but were dropped down at night. Surrounding the rink were benches that could be moved inside the tent overnight. Harley’s sponsored a popular promotion, which entailed patrons voting to choose the Queen of Skates.

At first, there were clamp-on skates, which were attached to usual footwear. Later, lace-up boot skates became popular. Skates were available at the rink, although some avid skaters owned their own skates, which could be stored on site in a skate case.

Music was a much-enjoyed part of a skating experience. Early on, Harley’s featured organ music either live or on reel-to-reel tapes. While in Lanesboro, Jim Lobland was the performing organist with his brother Terry as vocal soloist. In later years, phonograph records provided skating melodies. Jim would later become the director of music for the nationally famous Ice Capades skating shows.

Skating was advertised in 1957: “Grand Opening! Roller Skating, Saturday, June 1st, Skating every night except Monday, 7:30 to 10:30 P.M. Also Saturday and Sunday afternoons 2:00 to 4:00 P.M. at Harley’s Roller Rink in Sylvan Park, Lanesboro, Minnesota. Skate in one of Mother Nature’s own air-conditioned portable roller rinks. Also available for private parties.”

Lois Peterson (Class of 1951) told of skating in between spring final exams at Lanesboro High School one year. From the school up on a bluff, they would walk down on what was known as the “bunny trail” to skate in the park below.

One traveling entrepreneur hauled skates – but no tent. To be continued…