Last Glance

Lens on the Lake: Fitness for All Levels and All Ages. Local photographer captures fitness at all levels and ages. Read more about Lens on the Lake: Fitness for All Levels and All Ages

Lens on the Lake: Morning at Matoska. Local photographer captures the warmth of the morning light. Read more about Lens on the Lake: Morning at Matoska

Sending greetings of one form or another over the holiday season may seem commonplace today, but before printing was affordable and postal services were developed, it took much more effort to send those well-wishes. It is widely believed Sir Henry Cole sent the earliest Christmas cards in the United Kingdom in the 1840s.

Cards began to appear in the United States about a decade later, but really didn’t gain in popularity until the 1870s. Those earliest cards were typically designed with religious or nature scenes depicting an iconic Christmas or winter setting. Read more about You’ve Got Mail

The flagpole along Highway 61 at the south end of Railroad Park was the result of a community expression of patriotism. During the summer of 1939, the effort to bring a municipal flagpole to our city was launched. By October, most of the funds had been raised, and the 75-foot flagpole was ordered. It was installed in time to be dedicated to veterans of all wars in a brief ceremony on Armistice Day that year. Read more about Community Came Together to Raise Funds for Railroad Park Flagpole

Roger Benson began flying as a young man out of Tom North’s field on Highway 96 east of White Bear Lake on the way to Stillwater. In the 1930s, he plowed an airstrip on his family’s farm just east of Bald Eagle Lake in White Bear Township. In 1942, Roger, by then an experienced aviator, enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps. In November 1944, Roger died in the South Pacific after being hospitalized with severe burns from a crash. The Benson family named the flying field on their farm Roger’s Field in his memory. Read more about Flyboys

The Ramsey County Fair began with high expectations in August 1913 on the present site of Central Middle School. For a $2 membership, attendees received a pass, which allowed entering and leaving the fairgrounds throughout the four-day event. Read more about Grow It and Show It

Walter Tuchfarber, a Bald Eagle resident in the early 1950s, invented the “Cruz-Raft,” the precursor to the pontoon boat. “Tuch” was inspired by Canadian loggers who used engines to push big booms of floating timbers tied together; he brought that concept home to Bald Eagle and created the first Cruz-Raft, where more than just a few people could enjoy being on the water together. Read more about Float Your Boat: White Bear Lake Inventor Created the Precursor to the Pontoon