Cass County Historical Society Collage
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Animiki

Our research center is open from May 1 – September 15, Tuesday – Friday to genealogists and researchers for a $10.00 fee. The museum is closed for the winter, but the research center is accessible by appointment. We offer an obituary file and microfilmed county newspapers from 1894 to present, hundreds of family and individual histories, numerous city and village histories, and thousands of photographs.  We also have information on all of the eighty-nine cemeteries in Cass County and transcriptions of forty-four of them. We have recently compiled several new lists of county information we have such as past postmasters, early county divorces, box holders at Ah-Gwah-Ching and family histories in the Longville Centennial book. Newly available on our publications page are excerpts from local history books about Boy River, Federal Dam, Remer and Sugar Point, posted with the permission of the author.

New for 2011: The 1898 Battle of Sugar Point 1898 Battle of Sugar Point

A 40-minute presentation and book signing is scheduled at the museum at 7:00 p.m. on July 26th and August 23rd for the new Cass County publication, The 1898 Battle of Sugar Point.

Authors Cecelia McKeig and Renee Geving will sketch out some of the stories from the battle and its aftermath. The book includes important information from the Chicago and D.C. branches of the National Archives as well as much local research that was gathered over the past eight years. The new book will sell for $24.95 and is available through the Cass County Museum and the Little Apple Bookstore in Walker. If ordered, please include sales tax and shipping.

2011 Walking Tours of Walker

The third annual History Walk takes place on July 12th and again on August 9th. This year’s walk is along Minnesota Avenue. The walks start at 7:00 p.m. from the Cass County Museum and explore Minnesota Avenue history.

Drive In and Visit Us!

For researchers who are unable to personally visit the research center, the staff will do research for a fee.  For those who desire additional family research, we can refer you to a genealogist who specializes in Cass County research.  Additional information is available by phone, mail, or email.

Meetings

Next scheduled Board Meeting August 9 at the Museum. Time TBD.

The Cass County Historical Society's Annual Meeting will be held at the Museum at 7:00 p.m. on October 11, 2011.  We eagerly welcome new members!

2011 Summer Hours: Tuesday-Friday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Additional Hours for July: Saturday 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Admission: Adults $4.00; Children $1.00; Family $9.00 (Group rates available with reservations)

Our newsletter, "Cass County Clippings" is available in PDF format on our Newsletter page.

Ah-Gwah-Ching Bricks Available

Ah-Gwah-Ching Main Building

Ah-Gwah-Ching Sanatorium served its patients from 1907-1961. The new antibiotic agent, Streptomycin, was introduced in April of 1947. The first tubercular patient to receive the antibiotic made a complete recovery. This new drug enabled patients to be treated closer to home. The death rate for tuberculosis showed a steady decline from then on. After treating nearly 14,000 patients over 55 years in the battle against tuberculosis, the facility closed on January 1, 1962. The complex was converted into a state nursing home for geriatric patients known as Ah-Gwah-Ching Nursing Home.

A limited number of Ah Gwah Ching bricks were salvaged after the buildings were torn down at the site and were delivered to the county garage. These bricks were carefully cleaned. They are for sale as a fundraiser for the Cass County Historical Society. The price for each brick is $10. Please contact the museum to purchase a brick.

The following local history book and additional publications are available at the museum or by mail.

Still Available: Murder and MayhemMurder & Mayhem

The dynamic writing duo, Renee Geving and Cecelia McKeig, have produced this paperback entitled Murder and Mayhem about crimes in early Cass County, several of which have never been solved. Renee Geving is from Walker and is director of the Cass County Museum. Cecelia is a resident of Federal Dam, and they have utilized the newspaper archives and the state archives to put together these accounts.

If readers are looking for a good murder story of the north woods, a gripping tale of love gone wrong, or an unsolved murder of a hundred years ago, this is the book to have. The book follows the stories from newspaper accounts of the day and court records and addresses such pointed questions as, Who killed Patrick Hawley and buried his body in a manure pile? Who shot George Barclay on a cold October night at Pine River? Was Cass Lake’s Dr. Dumas an outstanding citizen, wrongly accused, or a Jekyll and Hyde character? Why was there only one hanging in Cass County? Was Chounard an example to the rest of the would-be offenders?

Follow the development of the story in the words of the first-hand witnesses, and in the editorials of the day. The book is currently being sold at the Cass County Museum and at the Little Apple Bookstore.