Depot Open House and Railroad Book Sale
September 30, 2023
Neighborhood Night Out – Minikahda Vista Neighborhood
Tuesday, August 1, 2023
Board members Ted Ekkers and William Beyer brought picture albums, maps, and yearbooks that highlighted the local area for residents to see and discuss at the annual neighborhood gathering.
Parktacular
Saturday, June 17, 2023
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Lenox Senior Resource Event
June, 13, 2023
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Women’s Club of St. Louis Park
June 6, 2023
Board Secretary Kathy Spence Johnson gave a presentation, “A Brief Walk Through St Louis Park History.”
Ambassador Candidate History Scavenger Hunt
Sunday, June 4, 2023
Board President, Ted Ekkers presented a history lesson to the St. Louis Park Ambassadors and candidates as a kickoff to their annual history scavenger hunt.
Documenting Everyday Life
SLP Community Education Course, March 20, 2023
Board member Mary Lou Nemanic and her husband Doug Nemanic gave a presentation highlighting their amazing career in a course titled “Documenting Everyday Life.” They shared highlights from over 45 years of work photographing and documenting including life on the Iron Range, hockey, rodeo, and politics.
Parkshore History Presentation
February 2023
Board member William Beyer shared history of St. Louis Park to residents and staff.
Holiday Depot Lighting
Saturday December 3, 2022
We held our 8th annual lighting of the Depot, joined by the St. Louis Park Ambassadors.
Texa-Tonka Park Sound Garden
October 8, 2022
We assisted with historical background information and had a table at Wavelets Creative’s art installation.
Places in the Park
Monday September 17, 2022
St. John’s Episcopal Church, Linden Hills
Board member William Beyer gave a talk at the Linden Hills History Group highlighting some stories related to our book Places in the Park.
Neighborhood Night Out – Minikahda Vista Neighborhood
Tuesday, August 2, 2022
Board members Ted Ekkers and William Beyer brought picture albums, maps, and yearbooks that highlighted the local area for residents to see and discuss at the annual neighborhood gathering.
Brookside Neighborhood Walking Tour
July 22, 2022
Board Secretary Kathy Spence Johnson led a walking tour of the neighborhood highlighting its history.
Walker-Lake Business Meeting
Tuesday, July 12, 2022
Sota Clothing / Walker Building
Board members Ted Ekkers and William Beyer gave a presentation to the Walker-Lake Business group highlighting history from the Walker-Lake area.
Parktacular
Saturday, June 18, 2022
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Lenox Senior Resource Event
Tuesday June 14, 2022
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Ambassador Candidate History Scavenger Hunt
Sunday, June 5, 2022
Board President, Ted Ekkers presented a history lesson to the St. Louis Park Ambassadors and candidates as a kickoff to their annual history scavenger hunt.
Holiday Depot Lighting
Saturday, Dec 4, 2021
We held our 7th annual lighting of the Depot, joined by the St. Louis Park Ambassadors.
Depot Open House and Railroad Book Sale
August 2021
Parktacular
Saturday, June 19, 2021
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Places in the Park
Board member William Beyer reviews his book “Places in the Park” for Park TV’s YouTube channel in August of 2020.
History of Bass Lake
Friday, August 14, 2020
Board member William Beyer gave a presentation on Bass Lake to the Sunrise Rotary Club of St. Louis Park.
Holiday Depot Lighting
Saturday, Dec 7, 2019
We held our 5th annual lighting of the Depot, joined by the St. Louis Park Ambassadors.
Author Reading
September 2019
Rebecca Bender, author of Still, introduced her book.
Minikahda Vista Neighborhood Night Out
Tuesday August 6, 2019
Board members Ted Ekkers and William Beyer brought picture albums, maps, and yearbooks that highlighted the local area for residents to see and discuss at the annual neighborhood gathering.
Depot Open House and Railroad Book Sale
July 20, 2019, and Sept. 21-22, 2019
Parktacular
Saturday, June 15, 2019
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Ambassador Candidate History Scavenger Hunt
Sunday, June 1, 2019
Board President Ted Ekkers presented a history lesson to the St. Louis Park Ambassadors and candidates as a kickoff to their annual history scavenger hunt.
Children First Ice Cream Social
May 2019
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Noon Rotary Club
April 8, 2019
Board member William Beyer gave a presentation to the St. Louis Park Rotary Club
Wolfe Park Neighborhood
February 20, 2019
Board member William Beyer gave a presentation at the Wolfe Park Neighborhood Annual Meeting
Boy Scouts
January 28, 2019
Aldersgate Church
Board President Ted Ekkers gave a SLP history presentation to Boy Scout Troop 307, members of which were working towards their Citizenship in the Community merit badge.
Holiday Depot Lighting
Saturday, Dec 1, 2018
We held our 4th annual lighting of the Depot, joined by the St. Louis Park Ambassadors.
Depot Open House
July 22, 2018
Parktacular
Saturday June 16, 2018
Board members interacted with attendees of the event at our booth.
Ambassador Candidate History Scavenger Hunt
Sunday, June 3, 2018
Board member Jim Robbins presented a history lesson to the St. Louis Park Ambassadors and candidates as a kickoff to their annual history scavenger hunt.
Holiday Depot Lighting
Saturday, December 2, 2017
5:30pm
Our third annual holiday lighting was a great success! Joining us this year was the string quartet, The Ta Ta Quartet as well as the St. Louis Park Ambassadors.
Capital Campaign Fundraiser
Spirits in The Park
Tuesday, October 10, 2017
Time 7:00pm
Location: Copperwing Distillery
We shared the history of Prohibition and some of the well known watering holes of SLP through the years while enjoying some period appropriate cocktails courtesy of Copperwing Distillery.
In the News
October 7, 2017
Star Tribune: “Sense of Place: Historical Societies offer more than just history”
Capital Campaign Fundraiser
Where Billions Began: Joan Kroc and the Battle for McDonald’s in SLP
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
Time 6:30pm
Location: SLP High School Auditorium
We welcomed from California, Lisa Napoli, author of the recent book “Ray & Joan”, who shared the real story of the McDonald’s founder and the connection to the St. Louis Park franchise.
And thanks to ParkTV, you can watch the entire program online!
In the News
July 17, 2017
Video recording of our fundraiser event with Lisa Napoli, author of “Ray & Joan”
In the News
July 12, 2017
Star Tribune cites the Historical Society in their article covering the sale of Holiday Station Stores
Ambassador Candidate History Scavenger Hunt
June 3, 2017
Board President Ted Ekkers presented a history lesson to the St. Louis Park Ambassadors and candidates as a kickoff to their annual history scavenger hunt.
Capital Campaign Fundraiser
Thomas Friedman: Thank You For Being Late
Sunday, April 30, 2017
Location: Sabes Jewish Community Center
Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, author, and native son, Tom Friedman sat down with another distinguished alum, Susan Linnee, to reflect on his time growing up in St. Louis Park and the influence it had on his career. And thanks to ParkTV, you can watch the entire program online!
In the News
January 29, 2017
Star Tribune: “This Must Be The Place”, article about Thomas Friedman and St. Louis Park
Holiday Depot Lighting
December 3, 2016
We held our 2nd annual lighting of the Depot, joined by the St. Louis Park Ambassadors.
In the News
October 9, 2016
Patrick Reusse’s’ article in the Star Tribune notes the help from Jeanne Andersen regarding a “Twin Cities Stadium Mystery”
Press Release
August 13, 2016
Depot Open House and SWLRT Info Session
Press Release
August 10, 2016
Historical Society Moves Ahead on SLP History Center
Ambassador Candidate History Scavenger Hunt
Sunday, June 11, 2016
Board President Ted Ekkers presented a history lesson to the St. Louis Park Ambassadors and candidates as a kickoff to their annual history scavenger hunt.
Historic Connections: Our City’s Park System
Tuesday May 10th, 2016
Louisiana Oaks Park Pavillon
It was a beautiful spring evening at Louisiana Oaks Park where we got to learn a little history of our park system and hear from three leaders who have shaped those parks for the past 30+ years; Director Cindy Walsh, former Director Cris Gears, and former Maintenance Superintendant, Gene Gustafson. And thanks to ParkTV, you can watch the entire program online!
In the News
February 11, 2016
Jeanne Anderson interviewed about Historical Society for “Life in the Park” on Community TV
Beer, Wine and Spirits in SLP
Tuesday Feb 9, 2016
Steel Toe Brewery, 4848 W. 35th St. SLP
We had a fun time at Steel Toe Brewery where owner Jason Schoneman kicked things off with a little history of his brewery. SLPHS President, Ted Ekkers then shared a history of all things brewed about SLP from the early years as a dry town to the era of prohibition, and lastly a virtual pub crawl about the popular bars in the post prohibition years. You can watch highlights of the presentation courtesy of Park TV.
Historic Depot Lighting Ceremony
Sat. Dec 5th, 2015
Jorvig Park, 6210 W. 37th Street
We had a great turn out to see the holiday lights at the Depot for the first in what we hope in an annual tradition. It was a warm December evening, but still good for some hot chocolate. We also shared some winter themed photos from the archives.
In the News
December 4, 2015
Star Tribune article about SLP history and suburban revival
Your Family Stuff, Your Family Story: Family Archiving Workshop
Sat. Nov 14, 2015
We had a small but fun gathering with Kathy Johnson who shared some tips about preserving a wide arrange of family artifacts. A few of us shared some of our items which included pictures, family papers, personal objects, and house tools. If you have questions about a unique challenge with your archiving and storytelling, reach out to Kathy with your questions!
Historic Connections: How Development Shapes Our City
Tue. Oct 13th, 2015
Thanks for those who came to our first Historic Connections event. The evening featured a panel discussion moderated by Mayor Jeff Jacobs about the current issues around development we face today. Our President, Ted Ekkers started the evening with a presentation highlighting 130 years of development milestones in commercial, industrial, transportation and schools. Both presentations were recorded by ParkTV and can be viewed on YouTube:
History Presentation: 130 years of industrial, commercial, transportation and schools
Panel Discussion featuring:
Robb Bader, Bader Development
Brad Bakken, Citizens Independent Bank
Greg Hunt, City Economic Development Coordinator
Carl Robertson, Sjoquist Architect and City Planning Commission
Jeff Jacobs, Mayor [moderator]
2015 Annual Members Meeting
Tue. Sep 15th, 2015
Thanks to everyone who came to our Annual Meeting. We elected a new Trustee, Jane Hagstrom! Jane is a SLPHS graduate and currently works as the Outreach & Sales Director for TowerLight in SLP. We also shared some key achievements for the year, including:
- Membership is at 275, up 35% to last year
- While expenses for the year doubled due to rent and some investments in the office, we have managed to more than double our revenue to meet our expense. Next year our rent increases so there will be continued pressure on us to raise funds.
- The Re-Echo got a redesign, we have a new monthly email newsletter, Park History Today, to share Society news, we reached 1,000 likes on Facebook and started a Twitter account.
- We relaunched our website and introduced a new logo for the Society.
- We had two very successful fundraisers with our Antique Parade and Street Signs and we plan to repeat those events as well as put further emphasis on the state-wide Give to the Max Day on November 15th, 2015.
- We have given talks at numerous groups around the city and hosted public events with our goal to have a public event every month.
- The collection continues to grow with great artifacts from schools and businesses as well as wonderful new photos from the 1930s.
- And we thanked our many volunteers not on the Board who have helped us achieve all these great things!
Historic Depot Open House
August 30, 2015
What a great event on a beautiful summer day! We had about 150 people attend the open house where they got to see the Depot, try the telegraph machine, and hear a presentation from Doug Johnson about the history of the various rail lines through the Park. Thanks to everyone who attended this fun event!
Park TV recorded this presentation.
In the News
June 28, 2015
Star Tribune picks up a story on our Street Sign fundraiser.
ANTIQUE PARADE
May 16, 2015
We had a great turnout for our first, and hopefully now annual, Antique Parade. Almost 90 items were appraised by St Louis Park native Bonnie Lindberg and her partner James Marrinan from Appraisal Specialists Midwest. Special thanks to Discover St Louis Park, Independent School District 283 for sponsoring the event, and to the following businesses for providing refreshments: Honey & Rye Bakehouse, Nelson’s, Byerly’s, Cub Foods at Knollwood, CVS at Excelsior and Grand, and Jennings Liquor (for the ice!). And thanks to the Fire Department for bringing their 1928 antique fire truck, “Molly,” to the show! The Star Tribune covered the event.
In the News
April 22, 2015
Jeanne and Ted interviewed by The Echo about how students can get involved with the Society.
THE INTERNET AS A GENEAOLOGY TOOL
April 11, 2015
Professional genealogist Mary Wickersham shared some of the basics about researching your family history. She reviewed online tools, tips about searching, and other sources. Mary is a St Louis Park resident and has provided courses through many forums including the Hennepin Library System, Minnesota Historical Society and the Irish Genealogical Society International where she is a past President.
In the News
March 23, 2015
Trustee Jeanne Andersen quoted in the StarTribune about Highway 100
In the News
February 17, 2015
Trustee Jeanne Andersen quoted about SLP Founding