Too often, we lament the loss of historic sites once ruin has set in. How sad it was that there was no one to save it because of cost, time, or other barriers. Small country communities, limited in more means than others, witness their share of historical losses. Sometimes though, it just takes motivated people and the right set of circumstances.
Peterson resident John Erickson worried community history would be lost. A passionate history buff and eager curator, he began what he called “Save Peterson” 50 years ago. Erickson began asking senior citizens gathering at City Hall if they had any old photos he could borrow so he could copy them. It took a drive of more than 40 miles to Moen Photos, La Crosse, Wis,, to make copies.
Shortly after, Erickson noticed a for sale sign on the boarded-up, 1877 Milwaukee Railroad depot that sat on Church Street in Peterson. “At first, I didn’t think about it much, but then I heard voices saying someone was interested in tearing down the depot for the lumber,” he says. “I started to think about a building that wouldn’t belong to this or that family in Peterson, but a building that could truly be a Peterson Museum.”
In 1972, Erickson wrote a letter to the Milwaukee Railroad and asked for a meeting. Over the next few years, he attended several meetings to attempt to purchase the building on its original site. Unfortunately, there was no interest by the railroad company in leaving it on the site. A committee of four — Erickson, Roberta Tew, Hilda Quickstad, and Bruce Benson — banded together to find a way to relocate the depot, guaranteeing to raise the money or pay the cost themselves. Erickson contacted the company, suggesting a bid of $1 and removal of the depot in 90 days, and it was accepted.
In need of a lot, the committee contacted the family of a privately-owned, vacant lot in hopes of a possible sale. They were surprised when the lot was donated by owner Jean Volkman instead. A bid to move the depot three blocks to its new location was made by Hans Haef, of La Crescent, for $3,900. The depot successfully moved in 1973 for a cost of just $1,900. In another welcome surprise, Haef donated the remaining $2,000.
The interior was renovated that winter with assistance from locals and through the Green Thumb Program. Showcases from the Agrimson-Johnson Store and Boyum Service station provided centerpieces to items donated and purchased at auction, in addition to those copied photos. The museum officially opened during Gammel Dag Fest, the city’s annual celebration, June of 1974.
By the ‘90s, the museum was already getting cramped. In 1997, efforts to raise funds for a 2,160-square-foot, $90,000 annex to the depot kicked off. It received a boost three years later during the all-school reunion when a 1936 graduate offered the first $1,000 donation. “We always felt that if we had a space for collecting items and written material about this community, the items would come to us,” adds Erickson.
And they did. Now another 20 years down the road and the museum is once again looking to expand. “We thought that would be enough room for anything we could come up with, but now we are basically full; we need more space,” adds Erickson. “Over the years, we have collected many artifacts pertaining to the community that would have been lost without the museum.”
Among cherished items, including letters written to Peter Peterson Haslerud, the founder of Peterson in the 1850s, and the 220 genealogies of families that live or have lived in the Peterson area, the museum is also home to a collection of more than 8,000 items and more pouring in weekly. Memorabilia, advertising, patented inventions from Peterson, antique farming and fire equipment, hand-carved Norwegian kubbestol, military uniforms of every branch and era, and more line every inch of the museum. More than 1,200 people visited the museum, which also serves as the Visitor Center, in 2019.
The museum is now planning a new 720-square-foot addition to the annex for additional items recently acquired from the former Peterson School District. Trophies, plaques, and graduate pictures will join extracurricular uniforms and other items from the school. “We need a space for those items that are important to Peterson,” notes Erickson. “We will be faced with deciding where to go with these items until we have the proper place to accommodate them.”
$10,000-20,000 in donations is promised to the $60,000 project. “We know there will be some unforeseen additional costs as the project proceeds,” cautions Friends of Peterson member Gail Boyum. “We are hoping more people will offer to donate their time to help with this project to defray the costs.” Grants, while not yet acquired, are being sought.
According to Boyum, Peterson graduate Larry Malmin, an architect out of Minnetonka, has volunteered to do the architectural drawings for the addition at no cost. Another local family, the Thompsons, is donating sand from their quarry to level the land for the new building. The museum is also operated mainly by volunteer staff, including Milford Olson, John Solberg, Cheryl Eaton, Karen Pederson, Bertha Boyum, Chris Grindland, Boyum, and Erickson. “This is the beginning of how interested Peterson students are in saving their identity and that of the Peterson Schools,” enthuses Boyum.
“It is a proven fact that if we have the space, additional items will come to the museum,” adds Erickson.
For more information about the project and fundraising efforts, contact the museum at (507) 875-2415, John Erickson at johdar@acegroup.cc or (507) 895-2551, or Gail Boyum at (507) 429-2464. The museum is open seven days a week, from May 1 through October 31, and by appointment year-round.
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