by Cori Hilsgen
news@thewsleaders.com
St. Joseph Area Historical Society members Ellie Studer and her daughter, Cathy Studer, are passionate about preserving area history.
The two recently created historical plaques for four businesses in St. Joseph and presented them to current owners to place in their businesses’ windows.
Those four businesses include the Drug Store (now The Local Blend), First State Bank of St. Joseph (now Rockhouse Productions), Loso’s Store (now Minnesota Street Market) and the St. Joseph Meat Market.
The two women recently presented the plaques to Harvey Pfannenstein (St. Joseph Meat Market), Jeff Velline (Rockhouse Productions) and Stacie Engholm (Local Blend) at the St. Joseph Area Historical Society building. Pfannenstein received two plaques because he has two buildings. Another plaque will be given to the Minnesota Street Market.
Each plaque includes the history of the building, building names and a few interesting facts and photos.
The idea for the plaques was first discussed in 2006 when St. Joseph Area Historical Society representatives met with other people who were working with revitalizing the downtown St. Joseph area.
Ellie Studer and a few other people from the historical society visited several cities to view their plaques. Later, Ellie and Cathy visited the city of Ely and they saw several plaques on the front windows of many of their buildings. This encouraged them to begin creating the St. Joseph plaques.
Cathy said it took a while to get the plaques finished. They did several trial ones, making several changes, before they finally had one they were happy with.
Cathy, who is a media specialist for the Albany Area School District, said she began working to finalize the plaques after the past school year ended.
They asked for input from some of the area business owners and began finalizing the text. Cathy added a little color and had the information proofed before they completed the first plaques.
The plaques were created at FedEx in St. Cloud and are made of a styrene product using an ultraviolet protective ink. They were paid for by the historical society.
The two women and other members of the historical society hope to encourage interest for additional signs, focusing on downtown buildings that have historical significance.
The downtown area is where most businesses were started, but some of the buildings have been torn down and replaced.
Cathy said a long-range plan might also be a “Historic Tour” of St. Joseph listing the businesses that have plaques, similar to what they also saw in Ely.
The plaques were created to inform local residents, old and new, about the history of the city.
Ellie and her late husband, Darol Studer, were instrumental in forming the St. Joseph Area Historical Society in 2002. The historical society’s mission is to preserve the history of the St. Joseph area.
In the early days of the historical society’s formation there were more than 30 members, but membership has started to decline.
The group welcomes and is seeking new members to help continue its mission. There are possible plans for a new location for the historical society in the new community center. The new location would provide more space to display a larger variety of local memorabilia.
The St. Joseph Area Historical Society is located at 25 First Ave. NW. It’s open from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. on the first Friday and 4-7 p.m. on the third Friday of each month or by appointment by calling 320-363-8428. Visit the stjosephhistoricalsocietyweebly.com website or Facebook page for additional information.
St. Joseph Area Historical Society member Cathy Studer (left) and Ellie Studer (right) present historical plaques to (left to right) Harvey Pfannenstein of the St. Joseph Meat Market, Jeff Velline of Rockhouse Productions and Stacie Engholm of The Local Blend at the historical society building located at 25 1st Ave. NW, St. Joseph. Each plaque includes the history of the building, building names, interesting facts and a few photos.
St. Joseph Area Historical Society members Ellie Studer and her daughter, Cathy Studer, recently created historical plaques for four businesses in St. Joseph. Those businesses are the Drug Store (now the Local Blend), First State Bank of St. Joseph (now Rockhouse Productions), Loso’s Store (now Minnesota Street Market) and the St. Joseph Meat Market.
Jeff Velline of Rockhouse Productions examines a historical plaque created by members of the St. Joseph Area Historical Society. The plaques were created to inform local residents, old and new, about the history of the city.
Jeff Velline of Rockhouse Productions and Harvey Pfannenstein of the St. Joseph Meat Market visit with Cathy Studer and Ellie Studer (left to right) at the St. Joseph Area Historical Society.
