History of Lydia- Part 1: Lydia Businesses

Downtown Lydia around 1970. Photo from the SCHS Collections.

We have a great deal of information about life in early Lydia thanks to the dedicated work of the Lydia Area Historical Society. The group started in 2001 as an opportunity for older Lydia residents to gather together and share stories of the town. Over time, the Lydia Area Historical Society has scoured historic newspapers for items pertaining to Lydia’s history and invited long-time residents to join meetings and share their stories. This has resulted in the publication of a book on Lydia History and a public monument dedicated to Lydia. The Lydia Area Historical Society will also be creating an exhibit about Lydia for the Scott County Historical Society which should be opening in 2022. 

Lyia History

According to the Lydia Area Historical Society, the first European American residents of the area were a group of Irish immigrants who relocated to the ara in the 1850s. They were followed closely by a wave of immigrants from England. 

The Lydia Post Office opened in 1861, and ran until 1903, when the community became part of Jordan’s rural mail route. The first postmaster was named Calendar Pewthere. Perhaps more known in the community was Calendar’s wife, Lydia. She ran the first general store, and was on hand to help residents collect and send mail. The community still bears her name today. 

Miller’s Store

In the late 1870s, an entrepreneur named William Miller came to the area. He opened a sawmill, feedmill, and sorghum press . In 1880, at the suggestion of one of his customers, Miller took some of the excess wood from his mill and used it to build “Miller’s General Store”. 

William Miller’s enterprises proved to be successful. The sorghum press suffered a setback when a 17 year old worker, Ed Dorn, lost one of his hands in the press. This temporarily closed the business, but soon William Miller’s sons, George and Edward, opened a new press just south of Lydia.

Alvin Ebel, a lifetime Lydia resident, recalled his childhood memories of the Lydia Sorghum Mill for the Prior Lake American in 1976. He stated “...steel wringers like those of an old washing machine would press juice from sticks of sugar cane. The liquid was boiled in a vat until a sweet molasses was produced. Farmers would put this on pancakes or bread or whatever else pleased them. On the way home from school we would always pass by the sorghum press and put our fingers into the mixture. It was delicious”

 Eventually William Miller’s sons also took over operation of the store. One of George and Edward Miller’s trademarks was the acceptance of goods in trade. Instead of only taking money, the brothers allowed farmers to pay in chickens, ducks, calves, hogs, eggs and produce. They would then take these agricultural items to St. Paul for resale. 

In 1920, George and Edward Miller sold the store to William Bussman. William unfortunately died of tuberculosis soon after, and his brother Freddie and Freddie’s wife Martha took over operation. The couple continued the tradition of accepting goods as payment from local farmers, and ran the store until they retired in 1974. Eventually they expanded inventory, even selling tractors and other large pieces of farm equipment. 

Vogel’s Store

By the late 1880s, demand was high enough in Lydia that a second general store opened. F. J. Vogel’s Store was located directly across the street from Miller’s store on Lydia Road. 

In spite of his entrepreneurial enterprises, F. J. Vogel’s true passion was for politics. He was elected to the state legislature on the Republican ticket, and held office until he died from tuberculosis in 1898. After his death the store was sold to the Luedke family of Prior Like who owned the business until it burned down in 1901. 

Lydia Blacksmith 

Calendar from Wandschneider Blacksmith, 1908. From the SCHS Collections

The first blacksmith shop in Lydia was built by the Hornke family. They ran the enterprise until 1890 when they sold it to Adolph Wanderschnieder. Wanderschneider was known for being excited about using the latest technology. He first ran the shop on horsepower using a treadmill, and was one of the first in the are to transition to operating on a gas engine. 

Wanderschnieder owned the blacksmith shop until 1920 Igraitz Ratoski. Ratoski was a World War 1 veteran who fought on the side of Germany, but relocated to the United States soon after the war ended. He settled in Lydia and married Vilo Pierre who was, at the time, the teacher for the Lydia school. 

Ratoski’s tenure as blacksmith lasted until World War II, when he and his family relocated to Seattle so Ratoski could aid in the US war effort by by lending his mechanical skills to the west coast shipyards. 

Lydia Creamery 

The first creamery in Lydia was operated by John Diedrich, and opened in 1890. In 1899, area farmers decided to open a cooperative creamery, and soon bought out Diedrich’s enterprise. The creamery was a success, and soon 30-40 farmers were regularly bringing their dairy in to be turned into butter. By 1910, the creamery was enough of a community cornerstone that they sponsored the local Independence Day celebration which included a dairy-themed float and fireworks. By 1921, the creamery had 77 stakeholders. Until electric cooling systems came to Lydia, farmer members would meet each winter on Fish Lake to harvest ice used to chill the butter throughout the year. 

Lydia Creamery, like several other area creameries, suffered a setback during the prohibition years due to a rash of butter robberies in the area. In 1926, thieves made away with 8 tubs of butter valued at $200. The next year there was another robbery attempt, but this time the thieves were foiled by the Floyd Andrews Inc Detective Agency which had been hired by the Land O Lakes company to protect area creameries. 

In 1930 the cooperative ended, and the creamery was purchased by Richard Boettcher,  who used the facility to make butter under the name American Beauty. Facing competition from creameries that specialized in milk, and the rising popularity of oleo (margarine), the business closed in 1940. 

The building continued to stay in use, first as a hardware store, and then as a candy and ice cream shop. It burned down in 1954 and was not rebuilt. 

Gierlich Hall and Harness Shop

In 1890, Frank Gierlich built a harness shop, and added a dance hall upstairs. The hall hosted dances every Saturday. Long time Lydia residents remembered that admittance could be had for a quarter- except for a special week in 1917 where the charge was seventy-five cents, but a motorcycle was given away as a door prize. 

The hall was also a home for community gatherings. The Methodist Church held their chicken suppers at Gierlich Hall, and it also hosted the Lydia Cremery’s annual co-op meetings. Additionally, a local group known as the Lydia Farmer’s Club would put on regular one and three act plays for the community. Every Christmas, Gierlich Hall hosted the Lydia School’s annual holiday program. 

The Gierlich Hall and Harness shop remained a community staple until it burned down in 1933. 

Lydia Feed Mill around 1965. Photo from the SCHS collections.

Lydia Feed Mill 

William Miller owned an early feed mill in Lydia, but the business best remembered as the Lydia Feed Mill was opened by Richard Boettcher in 1926. Richard ran the mill until he passed away in 1940, and ownership passed to his sons Marvin and Eitel. The mill stayed in the family until it closed in 1989. 

The Lydia Feed Mill had one brief closure. During World War II both Marvin and Eitel were drafted. The town of Lydia took up a petition to cancel the draft so that the brothers could continue to run the mill, but the request was denied. Both brothers served, and the Lydia Feed Mill was closed until they returned from their service. 

In 1958 the mill expanded,  Over time, storage bins, a truck hoist, feed mixers and an electric corn sheller were added. In 1985 the Prior Lake American profiled the Feed Mill, at the time run by Eitel Boettcher and his sister-in-law Beatrice. The paper noted that, in spite of modernization, the Feed Mill still had an old-fashioned feel. Farmers continued to leave bags of feed on the doorstep when the mill was closed over the weekend, and “Inside the office, a quarter still buys a bottle of pop, and the weather and the economy are frequent topics of conversation. ” 

Beatrice Boettcher noted that the Feed Mill had become a center of community life “Everyone used to gather at the Country Store, but when that closed last year people started coming here to visit. Later in the day, some of them go to the County Seat Restaurant.”

After the Lydia Feed Mill closed, the building remained empty for several years. It was finally demolished in 1993.

The History of Jackson Township Part 4: Early Residents of Jackson Township

Early Residents of Jackson Township

The first European American to establish a claim in the area that would become Jackson was Daniel Apgar. He came to Scott County from St Paul, but had family on the east coast. Soon after staking his claim in 1851, Daniel returned east, and brought his father Samuel Apgar, brother Ai G Apgar, and their wives and families. Ten people in total arrived in 1852. Daniel only lived on his claim for a short while, soon selling it and resettling in Stearns County. He died in an accident in 1870. 

Samuel Apgar remained in the township, living there until his wife passed away in 1875. He then moved into Shakopee to stay with his daughter Mrs. Cogswell. Ai G Apgar staked a claim in sections 12 and 13 of Jackson Township. When Scott County was officially formed, he was elected sheriff and served for three years. In 1866 he sold his claim and moved into Minneapolis. 

J. B. Conter owned Jackson County’s lime kiln. He was born in Mondorf, Grand Duche, Luxembourg, Aug 17 1832. In 1847 he immigrated with his parents to the United States. The family settled in Port Washington Wisconsin. Conter came to Scott County in 1854, and worked as a plasterer and bricklayer. In 1866 he claimed land in Jackson Township and started Shakopee Cement and Lime Manufacturing Company, which he ran until his death. Conter also served as president of the Merchants and Farmers National Bank of Shakopee. In 1959 he married Barbara Wagner and had nine children, six of whom survived to adulthood. 

Hubert Rohel was Jackson Township’s first County Clerk. He was born in Honsfeld Achen, Prussia, June 17, 1818. When he was 35 he immigrated to the United States and moved to St Paul where he married Mary Wagner. In 1854 he came to the Shakopee area and worked as a surveyor, until one day his employer informed Rohel that he could not longer pay him. Rohel claimed land in a forested area of Jackson Township and built a log cabin. He spent the rest of his life creating and maintaining a farm on this land which, according to his obituary, brought him “great wealth”. He had five children, and passed away in 1897. His obituary stated that “his robust constitution stood him in good stead until his time came to die, and then he ceased to breathe as the pendulum of a clock run down ceases to swing.” 

Herman Strunk was a prominent local businessman, and the first owner of Shakopee Brewery in Jackson Township. Strunk was born in Germany at Grossherzugthun, Oldenburg on May 14, 1818. Both of his parents died while he was young, and he decided to immigrate to the US in 1835. He worked in shipping on steamboats that ran between St Louis and Memphis for several years before deciding to settle in St Louis in the early 1840s where he married and had 4 children. Unfortunately, St Louis was swept by a Cholera epidemic in the early 1850s, and three of his children were killed by the disease. Seeking a healthier climate, the family decided to move north in 1854. He claimed land in Jackson Township and built a brewery which he ran until the early 1860s. 

Strunk Drug around 1890. Photo from the SCHS Collections.

When the Civil War broke out, Strunk wanted to enlist, but was denied entry into the service because he was missing his two front teeth. At the time, many muskets used cartridges wrapped in paper which required the owner to bite off a twist at the end and release gunpowder. It was thought that, without teeth, Strunk would be unable to perform this task. 

Soon after, Strunk was elected County Commissioner, and then County Coroner. He served in this role for two years. In 1871, Strunk moved into Shakopee and opened Strunk Drug- the establishment which he is perhaps best known for today. It was said that from then on, he walked to the store every day until his death to check on the business. He was elected mayor of Shakopee in 1877, and as Alderman in 1880. 

Herman Strunk passed away in 1905. His obituary stated “One of Shakopee’s venerable and most highly respected citizens passed away, another of the little band of her remaining pioneer settlers was called home, and with more than a passing feeling of sorrow the death of H Strunk was received by the community with which the greater part of his long life has been closely interwoven and upon which during all those years was shed the benign influence of his upright life and sterling character.”

Hubert Nyssen at Shakopee Brewery around 1920. Photo from the SCHS Collections.

Hubert Nyssen owned Shakopee Brewery from 1875 until the facility was closed by prohibition. He immigrated from Belgium, and came to the Shakopee area in 1869 when it was “very much part of the big woods”. He initially worked as hired help and as a farm laborer. He said “You know, there was lots of hard work on the farm then. Everything was done by hand and everybody put in long hours. But I was young and healthy and able to do whatever was expected of me… I didn’t always get good wages though. I worked at whatever I could get to do and sometimes only received 50 cents a day. I remember working on the railroad grade one summer. It seems amusing to me now when I look back. We were doing some excavating work by hand. There were two crews and each tried to outdo the other.” 

Nyssen began working at Shakopee Brewery in 1873. At some point, he also attended a brewing school in Milwaukee. In 1875, he married brewery owner Mary Winkler, and took over brewery operations. When prohibition closed Shakopee Brewery, Nyssen owned the St Paul Hotel in Shakopee. Nyssen also served on the elected board of Jackson Township for eighteen years. 

Hubert’s wife, Mary Nyssen  was born Mary Johnson in Weckway Sweden on February 5th, 1843. She immigrated to the United States with her brothers at age 14, initially settling in Stillwater. On June 16th, 1863 she married Andrew Winkler and moved with him to Scott County. Winkler eventually purchased Shakopee Brewery, but his ownership was short-lived. He passed away from typhoid in 1871. At the time, it was theorized that he had caught the illness from the chill of spending too much time in the brewery ice house. Mary took over management of the brewery, and ran it until she married Hubert Nyssen in 1875. 

The History of Jackson Township Part 3: Shakopee Brewery

Shakopee Brewery 

Shakopee Brewery* was one of the most prominent early businesses in Jackson Township. The brewery was built by German immigrant Herman Strunk and opened in 1856. With its opening, the Shakopee Valley Herald ran the following statement ““We understand that the Brewery of Mr. H. H. Strunk will soon be in operation. Our citizens will then be able to procure a pleasant and healthy drink without much trouble” 

It was the first brewery in Scott County, and remained one of its largest until the doors were closed by prohibition. In 1860, Strunk opened a distillery nearby, and then sold both to F. H. Franz. Franz, in turn. Sold to Andrew Winkler in 1863 who retained ownership until his death in 1870. After Andrew Winkler’s death, his widow Mary Winkler took over brewery operations. She ran the facility independently for 5 years until she married German brewer Hubert Nyssen. The two continued to manage operations until prohibition. 

Herman Strunk had built a hunting lodge next to the brewery, and the Nyssen family added to the building and turned it into a residence. It was built out of both limestone and brick- likely the limestone that was quarried in order to build the storage cellar for the brewing facility. The first floor of the house was a family residence, while the second was reserved for lodging for farmers and salespeople who came to deliver brewery supplies. The Nyssens also operated a large farm on the brewery land which grew barley for beer production. In 1987, the Shakopee Valley News interviewed Leo McGovern who worked on the farm and at the brewery when he was 12. He recalled “They had about 80 acres there and they had stock, chickens, pigs and horses. When I worked in the brewery, I helped hand pump the beer out of the vat and into kegs.”

1897 was a difficult year for Shakopee Brewery. On October 28th, a fire started in the brewery’s ventilator system, located under the roof. Fire teams were dispatched from Shakopee, and eventually got the blaze under control using water from the facility’s cistern system, but there was a great deal of damage. Offices, staff quarters, and the entire cooling system for the brewery were destroyed. 

Luckily the brewery was insured, and Nysssen received $3925 in insurance money to help repair the damage. Nyssen stated at the time that the money was not enough to completely cover the damage (at the time the brewery was valued at $14,000.000) but it was enough that the building could be repaired and production would continue. 

Shakopee Brewery, 1912. From the SCHS Collections.

Less than a month earlier, in a slightly more farcical story, one of the brewery’s wagon teams was lost. The Shakopee Argus reported on September 30, 1897 that a delivery team from Shakopee Brewery met with a toy balloon salesman on the road. The balloons spooked the horses, and the driver lost control. In the ensuing scuffle, the horses were lost, and both drivers were injured. 

Production at Shakopee Brewery 

In August of 1903, a reporter from the Shakopee Tribune spent the day at Shakopee Brewery getting instruction on brewing “as practiced in the big stone building where the amber liquid comes foaming forth to make Shakopee famous.”  

First he wrote about the barley that was used in production of beer at the facility. “Barley is the first requisite after the brewery is equipped, Mr Nyssen raises considerable of this grain, and buys a whole lot more from farmers every fall...The barley is soaked in an immense tank for 60 hours, about a hundred bushels at a time and then spread out on cement floors in the malt cellar and kept at a temperature of 54 degrees.” After this, the barley was turned every day for six days in order to sprout the grain. Next, it was loaded into “a room high up and just beneath the tall cupola which is a feature architecturally in nearly every brewery.” The floor of this room was made of sheet iron, perforated with holes. The barley was heated from below up to 212 degrees in order to remove moisture. During the heating and cooling process  “It is necessary for a man with a long shovel to dash around the heated inferno and turn the grain repeatedly. It takes no imagination to picture it a hot job and the man who can stay in the room for fifteen or twenty minutes at a time is in the line for a job at fire-eating at a circus sideshow” 

After cooling, the grain was ground in a mill, then mashed into a large vat of water that was accessible only by ladders. This process was fairly specific. First, the water was heated to 122 degrees, then held at 154 degrees. When it “gives off no color”, it was raised to 166 degrees and left to stand for an hour. The wort (liquid) was then drawn off int a vat, and the soaked grain was fed to hogs and cattle. This heating process supposedly took half a cord of firewood. The end result was then tasted to ensure it resembled “sweet water” 

After this the liquid was once again boiled, and divided into barrels. Three quarters of a pound of hops was put into each barrel in lots- the first when two hours before the boiling is done, and the second a half hour after the first. When this process is complete, the beer was taken to the cellar and cooled to forty two degrees using an open vat and coiled brass tubing. After this, yeast was added to the brew. 

Shakopee Brewery, 1907. Photo from the SCHS Collections.

The reporter asked Nyssen where brewing yeast came from. He learned, “One brewery gets its start from another. It is passed from brew to brew in a brewery, and has been at Nyssen’s for half a century nearly, and the supply has never given out. One thing is sure, the beer would not be beer without yeast”

After the yeast was added, the beer was transferred to fermenting tubs to be turned into alcohol. The brewery chalked the date on the side, and allowed each tub to sit for two weeks. After this, the beer was transferred into storage vets for another 6 weeks. Next, it was transferred once again into “chip casks”, where shaved beech chips were added to give it color. Then “kreusen” was mixed in to cause the beer to foam. 

Finally the beer was pressurized, and racked into kegs in the brewery cellar. The cellar was a vaulted space, running underground in the hill for one hundred feet. It was only lit with candlelight, and blocked by a series of doors in order to keep a constant temperature. 

* Note- Shakopee Brewery was known by several different names as ownership changed. For the sake of readability, we have consistently referred to the facility as “Shakopee Brewery”

The History of Jackson Township Part 2: The Early Township

The New Township 

At the founding of Jackson Township, there were already many people living in the area. Because of the small size of the township, and its proximity to Shakopee, Jackson remained connected to the larger town. In spite of this, residents of the township quickly moved to establish their own governing body. The first official meeting of the township occurred in the home of W. F. Weiser in Shakopee in 1870. By 1872, residents had formed their own elected governing group. Joseph Graffentadt was elected Chairman, Franz Baumhoefer and John Thul were supervisors, and Hubert Rohel became clerk. 

The first school in Jackson had been built in 1868, before Jackson separated from Shakopee. It was a small, frame building and 43 students were enrolled. A few years later, a larger brick building was built to replace it. After the Jackson district officially merged with Shakopee Schools, the brick building became the township hall. It remained in service until 1981. 

Early Business

There were several prominent early businesses in the township. The Jackson Mill was built by the Ries brothers in the early 1860s. It was a small, water powered mill with one grinding stone. In 1870, the mill was sold to Franz Baumhoefer. He increased the capacity, adding a second grinding stone and converting the mill to steam power. At its height, the mill was producing 40 barrels of flour per day. 

J. B. Conter’s lime kiln opened in 1858. At the time there were four lime kilns in the area, but Conter’s was the largest. In 1858, Conter’s kiln produced 16000 barrels of lime, while its next closest competitor produced 14,000.

Lime had a number of important uses in 19 th century America. It served the construction industry as a key ingredient in mortar, plaster, and whitewash. Lime mortar was vital for brick construction because it held the bricks together. Lime mixed with milk and salt created whitewash, an early form of paint. Regardless of which material was used to build a home’s exterior, the interior walls could be plastered with whitewash to create a smooth surface.

Lime also had agricultural uses. It was added as a soil additive to neutralize the acids in highly acidic soils, and it was added to heavily clay soils to help break them down. 

Lime was created by burning limestone. Chunks of limestone were dropped into a lime kiln from above. For this reason, the river bluffs of Jackson were prime for the building of lime kiln, allowing easy high access to the kiln’s tall chimney. After it was loaded in to the kiln, the limestone would be heated to around 1650 degrees fahrenheit, which caused the stone to break down, forming a powder. This powder would be scooped out of the kiln, and loaded into barrels for sale. At the time, lime sold for around ninety cents per barrel. 

Invoice from J. B. Conter, 1894. From the SCHS Collections.

A later focal point in the township was Valley Ballroom. It was built in 1933, and hosted performers such as Lawrence Welk, Polka Master Whoopie John Wilfahrt and Guy DiLeo. Norbert (Nubby) Thies, a former town supervisor who grew up in the area said “I remember that people from all over the area would come to the dance hall for an evening of fun and entertainment. Every Christmas and New Years they would have a big dance.” Valley Ballroom closed its doors in 1959. The building was condemned and demolished to make way for the construction of the County Road 41 bridge.

The History of Jackson Township Part 1: The Creation of the Township

The Railroad

The history of Jackson Township is closely intertwined with the history of the railroad in Scott County. The process of bringing the railroad to the county began with a series of stops and starts. The Minnesota Territory first received federal land grants to provide for railroad construction in 1857. Unfortunately, the next decade was noted for a series of tumultuous events that delayed construction. First, there was “the panic of 1857”, an economic depression in the United States and England characterized by the declining international economy and over-expansion of the domestic economy. During this time, rail companies were reluctant to add to their lines. Next were two concurrent wars- the US Dakota war of 1862 and the Civil war that lasted from 1861 - 1865. Because of this, rail did not actually come to Shakopee (the first stop in Scott County) until 1865. 

Train and tracks by the Shakopee Powerhouse, 1905. Photo from the SCHS Collections.

Rail could make or break a fledgling town. Rail brought goods and supplies, and allowed local manufacturers and farmers  to conveniently ship their products. It also brought new people to settle and expand local communities. 

Similarly, the location of a railroad shaped a community. Business corridors sprang up or moved in order to be near the rail line. Often the homes of wealthy citizens would follow, wanting to be near places of work or convenient shopping. By the time rail planning began for Shakopee, local policy-makers were well aware of the impact rail could have on a town. 

The Creation of Jackson Township 

Jackson Township was explicitly created in order to control the path of rail lines. The township is the smallest in the county, and lies directly west of Shakopee. In 1869 surveyors from the Hastings and Dakota Railroad were given the task of planning a route through Shakopee. There was a surprising amount of negotiation involved in this process. The railroad charter stipulated that the route had to go within the city limits of the town, but not how centrally it had to be located. Surveyors were tasked with finding the best location for the lowest land cost. 

City officials wanted the railroad to be centrally located in order to benefit the business district, but this land often sold at a premium, leading railroad surveyors to look towards less expensive land on the outskirts of town. Because of this, the surveyors were initially planning to route the rail line on the western end of town. 

Rather than negotiating to make centrally located land less expensive to the rail company, and therefore more appealing, Shakopee officials at the time decided to force the surveyors to buy downtown land at a higher price. They applied for a completely new city charter, excluding the nine miles on the western side of town which had been of interest to the rail companies. This land was designated “Jackson Township”, making it no longer technically a part of Shakopee, and therefore not a permissible location for new lines under the terms of the rail charter. 

The New Township 

At the founding of Jackson Township, there were already many people living in the area. Because of the small size of the township, and its proximity to Shakopee, Jackson remained connected to the larger town. In spite of this, residents of the township quickly moved to establish their own governing body. The first official meeting of the township occurred in the home of W. F. Weiser in Shakopee in 1870. By 1872, residents had formed their own elected governing group. Joseph Graffentadt was elected Chairman, Franz Baumhoefer and John Thul were supervisors, and Hubert Rohel became clerk. 

The first school in Jackson had been built in 1868, before Jackson separated from Shakopee. It was a small, frame building and 43 students were enrolled. A few years later, a larger brick building was built to replace it. After the Jackson district officially merged with Shakopee Schools, the brick building became the township hall. It remained in service until 1981.