Marshall-Wells Hardware merchandise is loaded and ready for delivery to various railroad lines for transport. The first horse-drawn sleigh will take the orders packed into it to the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha depot. The truck behind the sleigh is destined for the Soo Line depot. The next in line will be shipped on the Great Northern railway and the one after that will go to the Northern Pacific. The Union Depot served seven railroads including the GN and NP. It still stands as the St. Louis County Heritage and Arts Center. All of the other depots are gone. The Marshall-Wells Company started in 1886 as Chapin and Wells Company a wholesale hardware business. Albert Morley Marshall, son of Seth, bought controlling interest in 1893 and changed the name to Marshall-Wells Company. The company grew to include 14 wholesale offices throughout the northwestern U.S. and Canada. In 1955 Ambrook Industries Inc. of New York bought controlling interest. Kelley-How-Thomson and Marshall-Wells merged January 1, 1958. Kelley-How-Thomson had been a subsidiary of Marshall-Wells since 1955 when Ambrook bought Marshall-Wells and reorganized. The Coast-to-Coast Stores bought the Duluth division of Marshall-Wells-Kelley-How-Thomson Company in 1958, which ended the Duluth firm's operation. Also in the image are the People's Hotel 246 Lake Avenue South, and the Lyceum Theater billboard.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Unidentified rural photo; image might be of road construction; water tower in background; equipment may also have been used for farming; summer foliage; sepia tone photograph.
Contributing Institution:
Hennepin County Library, James K. Hosmer Special Collections Library
The stockyard industry was a million dollar operation at the turn of the century. The stockyards, completed in September, 1889, could accommodate 5000 cattle, 10,000 hogs, 20,000 sheep, and 500 horses on its 30 acres. Cattle pens are shown.
Bell Lumber and Pole Company was formed in 1919 to treat telephone poles and lumber. The pole yards were very important to the employment and economy of New Brighton. All of the heavy work was done by horses and pole yard workers in the early years.
400 Block, South Front Street, 1860, with horse-drawn buggies and buildings; notes on back of photo say,""1860--Front St.--Cherry to Jackson (West Side)" and ""More likely Jackson to Cherry." Photo is printed in reverse (text on signs is backwards).
Bonde Building on the corner of Litchfield Avenue and 4th Street S.W. in Willmar, MN. Peter Bonde was sheriff in Kandiyohi County from 1906-1927. He was known as the Prohibition Sheriff. Images in this collection were taken by Peter Bonde from 1890-1910.
Lewis (fur coat) and Frank Bow's horse team pull sled to distribute oil for Cornplanter oil company of Forty-sixth Avenue West. They are stopped on Second Street in downtown in front of Central High school.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections