RAMSEY COUNTY A Farmer’s Fair: The Birth of the Ramsey County Fair James Lindner A Publication of the Ramsey County Historical Society —Page 11 Spring 2014 Volume 49, Number 1

Neither Posters Nor Stamps: Poster Stamp Advertising in St. Paul

Leo J. Harris, page 3

“Poster Stamps” promoted the wide range of poster stamps printed by Brown Treacy & Sperry Company in St. Paul in the first decades of the twentieth century. A related printing company, the Harvey Blodgett Company, used a poster stamp to highlight its marketing of poster stamps to merchants. This particular poster stamp features a bill poster in overalls examining a poster stamp under his magnifying glass. The Brown Treacy & Sperry stamp is courtesy of Robert Bradbury and the Harvey Blodgett stamp is courtesy of Leo J. Harris. RAMSEY COUNTY HISTORY RAMSEY COUNTY President Chad Roberts Founding Editor (1964–2006) Virginia Brainard Kunz Editor Hıstory John M. Lindley Volume 49, Number 1 Spring 2014 RAMSEY COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY the mission statement of the ramsey county historical society BOARD OF DIRECTORS adopted by the board of directors on december 20, 2007: William Frels The Ramsey County Historical Society inspires current and future generations Chair to learn from and value their history by engaging in a diverse program Cheryl Dickson First Vice Chair of presenting, publishing and preserving. Elizabeth M. Kiernat Second Vice Chair Julie Brady C O N T E N T S Secretary Carolyn J. Brusseau 3 Neither Posters Nor Stamps: Treasurer Poster Stamp Advertising in St. Paul Anne Cowie, JoAnne Driscoll, Thomas Fabel, John Guthmann, Douglas Heidenreich, Leo J. Harris Richard B. Heydinger, Jr., John Holman, Kenneth H. Johnson, David Kristal, 11 A Farmer’s Fair: Carl Kuhrmeyer, Father Kevin M. McDonough, Nancy W. McKillips, Susan McNeely, The Birth of the Ramsey County Fair James Miller, Robert Muschewske, Jeffrey Slack, James Lindner Ralph Thrane, Susan Vento, Jerry Woefel. EDITORIAL BOARD 17 Growing Up in St. Paul: Anne Cowie, chair, James B. Bell, Mike Sanchelli Remembers Swede Hollow Thomas H. Boyd, John Diers, William Frels Douglas Heidenreich, James Miller, Edited by Steven C. Trimble John Milton, Laurie M. Murphy, 23 Kisses in the Park after Dark Paul D. Nelson, Richard H. Nicholson, Jay Pfaender, David Riehle, Chad Roberts, Spooners in the News, 1921–1922 Steve Trimble, Mary Lethert Wingerd. Janice R. Quick HONORARY ADVISORY BOARD William Fallon, William Finney, George 26 Book Reviews Latimer, Joseph S. Micallef, Marvin J. Pertzik, James Reagan. Publication of Ramsey County History is supported in part by a gift from Clara M. Claussen and Frieda H. Claussen in memory of Henry H. Cowie Jr. RAMSEY COUNTY COMMISSIONERS and by a contribution from the late Reuel D. Harmon Commissioner Jim McDonough, chair Commissioner Toni Carter Commissioner Blake Huffman Commissioner Mary Jo McGuire A Message from the Editorial Board Commissioner Rafael Ortega Commissioner Victoria Reinhardt olorful and quirky—those adjectives could describe several articles in this issue. Lovely Commissioner Janice Rettman Cposter stamps advertised St. Paul businesses in the early part of the twentieth century. Leo Julie Kleinschmidt, manager, Harris gives us a tour of this nearly forgotten art form, which was produced by several respected Ramsey County St. Paul printing establishments. It’s a great illustrated read. Steve Trimble has provided us with Ramsey County History is published quarterly by the Ramsey County Historical Society, 323 Mike Sanchelli’s vivid remembrances of the Italian community in Swede Hollow, where poverty Landmark Center, 75 W. Fifth Street, St. Paul, MN coexisted with a great neighborhood spirit. He recounts his father’s vivid rendition of “America, 55102 (651-222-0701). Printed in U.S.A. Copy- the Beautiful,” which rang out every Sunday night from the bridge over Phalen Creek and signaled right © 2014, Ramsey County His torical Society. bedtime for the children playing outside. And Janice Quick reminds us that even in the 1920s, ISSN Number 0485-9758. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reprinted police were on the alert for cars without lights sitting in city parks after dark, which could mean or otherwise reproduced without written (gasp!) covert affectionate activity. It’s unclear whether such activity also occurred at the Ramsey permission from the publisher. The Society County Fair, whose White Bear Lake origins James Linder traces for us in another article. But we assumes no responsibility for statements made by contributors. Fax 651-223-8539; e-mail address: know that a circus performed there, complete with trapeze artists. Ramsey County has always had [email protected]; web site address: www.rchs.com its share of fun! Anne Cowie, Chair, Editorial Board

2 RAMSEY COUNTY HISTORY Book Reviews

Secret Partners: detective (and, for two years, police Big Tom Brown and the Barker chief) Tom Brown at the center of it all. Author Mahoney argues that Brown’s Gang crucial early protection of Alvin Karpis Tim Mahoney and the Barker brothers allowed them St. Paul: Historical Society to mature, so to speak, from merely Press, 2013 violent hillbillies into a sophisticated, 309 pages; photos; paperback and e- effective (and still violent), and durable book; $17.95 (paper). criminal enterprise. Hence the losses, Reviewed by Paul D. Nelson maimed bodies, and deaths that fol- lowed all belong on Brown’s eternal ow much you may enjoy this book ledger. Like all counter-factual spin- Hdepends on whether you have read nings, it is conjecture, but it’s hard to Paul Maccabee’s John Dillinger Slept disagree. Here (MHS Press, 1995). If you have Mr. Mahoney has added some valu- not, then you will find this fast-paced able new material (the fruit of com- and entertaining—gambling, bootleg- mendable digging), chiefly regard- ging, payoffs, betrayals, kidnappings, ing Brown himself and also about shootouts, and murders in our now staid another central figure, gangster Harry and law-abiding city. Sawyer—the probable author of the If you have read John Dillinger Dan Hogan murder that began the un- Slept Here, then your brow may furrow raveling. We learn Tom Brown’s ul- car-bomb murder of speakeasy owner as you read Secret Partners. You will timate fate. Still, this book is at least Dan Hogan (1928) and the kidnapping wonder, What does this book add to 80% a recapitulation of John Dillinger of mobster Leon Gleckman (1930). what has already been written? Slept Here, a book that MHS Press pro- Apres luis, le deluge. Both books tell essentially the duced more completely, with maps, In due course visiting thugs such same story, the last years and the timelines, a list of dramatis personae, at the Barker-Karpis gang turned the violent breakdown of the O’Connor and superior illustrations. waning System on its head—they con- System, an arrangement whereby If you are new to this chapter of tinued to enjoy police protection while gamblers, bootleggers, and thieves St. Paul history, you will find Secret committing terrible crimes, including were welcome in St. Paul so long as Partners a revelation and a good read. the murders of police officers, nearby: they behaved themselves and made If you already know the story, then this the Third Northwestern Bank robbery the proper payoffs. The System al- book serves as a supplement to the in Minneapolis (1932, three dead, ways carried its own seeds of destruc- still-indispensable masterpiece, John tion because it relied on the good faith $122,000 stolen); the Hamm kidnap- Dillinger Slept Here. and restraint of a selfish and cynical ping (1933, $100,000 ransom); the class—professional outlaws. Because, South St. Paul payroll robbery (1933, A St. Paul resident, Paul D. Nelson is with Prohibition especially, so much one dead, one injured, $33,000 stolen); the author of the award-winning biog- money ran through the System it was and the Edward Bremer kidnapping raphy of Fredrick L. McGhee, several inevitable that greed would overpower (1934, $200,000 ransom). articles in this magazine, and a mem- restraint. And so it did, resulting in the Secret Partners puts St. Paul police ber of the RCHS Editorial Board.

26 RAMSEY COUNTY HISTORY Computers and Commerce: road’s St. Paul headquarters at 175 East A Study of Technology Fourth Street in 1956–57 consisted of: (1) the Univac I central computer (ef- and Management at Eckert- fectively only 12,000 digits of internal Mauchly Computer Company, memory) and its cooling unit, each as Engineering Research Associates, large as a medium-sized house trailer; and Remington Rand, 1947–1957 (2) 10 Uniservo magnetic tape handling units, each the size of a standard refrig- Arthur L. Norberg erator; (3) Unicard and Uniprinter input Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press, and output units each nearly the size 2005 of a large side-by-side refrigerator and 384 pages; hardcover; 33 illustrations; with two more dedicated Uniservos; a $40.00. large control-panel desk with its own Reviewed by Robert F. Garland oscilloscope and connected electric Uni-typewriter; and last and least, the omputers and Commerce is likely computer center’s vacuum cleaner Cto interest Ramsey County History that some humorist had labeled the readers. Engineering Research Associ- “Unisuck.” The GN initially leased the ates (ERA) was a Ramsey County/St. UNIVAC 1 for $22,500 per month and Paul company and a significant prede- about two years later purchased it for cessor of the . about $500,000. The book tells an important part of the There are enjoyable takeaways from story of the early development of large- a handy glossary of the very numerous Computers and Commerce. They in- scale electronic computers, some of acronyms found throughout the book, clude the discovery that ERA’s “DNA which were either created in St. Paul and some may wonder at the omission of story” includes not only Control Data, and/or used by St. Paul businesses. any reference to Alan Turing, the British but also that of St. Paul’s World War Arthur Norberg writes from the mathematician who was a seminal figure II glider manufacturer, Northwestern scholarly perspective of the past direc- in the early development of computers. Aeronautical Corporation. The book is tor of the University of Minnesota’s When compared to the computers also a good reminder that having tech- Charles Babbage Institute (Babbage developed by ERA and EMCC, twenty- nically superior products (as ERA and is credited as the inventor of the first first century readers may be amazed by EMCC often did) is not a sure recipe for mechanical computer). Norberg does the changes and improvements on the success if you are often out-managed, a good job of recording highly techni- scale of several orders of magnitude out-sold, and out-performed in techni- cal events of half-a-century ago. He that are found in every aspect of today’s cal support to clients by IBM, as ERA, generally overcomes the difficulties of devices. The enormous physical size, EMCC and Remington Rand often were. the lapse of time, incomplete document tiny memories, plodding processors, A subset of readers, who once were files, and the fact that much of ERA’s limited output displays, use of vacuum (with this reviewer) ERA or Univac soft- work was for the U.S. government and tubes, and so on that characterized the ware writers and systems analysts, will of a highly classified nature. products of ERA and EMCC in the enjoy the reminders of what it was like Norberg is interested in the way that 1950s are hardly recognizable today to program these fine machines. As a scientists and engineers do their work as computers. Software writers using bit of a “Parthian Arrow,” this particular and communicate about it and weaves today’s virtually instantaneous proces- reader and reviewer must add, however, this into his account of the early days sors and totally accessible memories that based on his personal experience at of ERA and Eckert-Mauchly (EMCC), would be dismayed by the complexi- the Great Northern Railway, Norberg’s an early computer manufacturing com- ties of accessing data stored in elaborate inferences that the UNIVAC Solid State pany that was based in Philadelphia. “lattices” on revolving drums or in elec- computer was a worthy successor to the He reintroduces us, along the way, to tronic waves in tubes of mercury. wonderful UNIVAC I are overblown. important early figures including John We now carry powerful comput- von Neumann, Presper Eckert and ers in our pockets and purses, connect Robert F. Garland is a retired financial John Mauchly (lead creators of the first them to large display screens, receive executive and past RCHS board member. UNIVAC), and William Norris, the very information wirelessly, and display re- He is the author of a number of articles able, longtime CEO of Control Data. sults wirelessly at remote locations. By and book reviews in Ramsey County His- Norberg writes well and makes good use contrast, the Great Northern Railway’s tory, and of two series of novels, the most of interesting photographs. Most readers far, far less potent UNIVAC I that was recent of which are The Hoisted Petard will wish, however, that he had included installed on the fifth floor of the rail- and Nonsense on Woodhouse Avenue.

RAMSEY COUNTY HISTORY 27 NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. Postage PAID Published by the Ramsey County Historical Society Twin Cities, MN Permit #3989 323 Landmark Center 75 West Fifth Street Saint Paul, Minnesota 55102

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About 1935 artist Jacob Theodore Sohner painted this scene of the Phalen Creek neighborhood in Swede Hollow. Although the colors Sohner used here are primarily shades of brown, black, and other dark tones, the reminiscences of Mike Sanchelli, who was born and grew up in Swede Hollow in the 1920s and ’30s, largely reflect other, more colorful shades of an artist’s palette. Photo of Swede Hollow by Jacob Theodore Sohner courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society. For more on Mike Sanchelli and Swede Hollow, see page 17.