The Carl Mellem Family

We have established that Thorinus and Pauline had three sons who grew to manhood. We featured Emil recently. Today we focus on Carl. Carl, as we remember bought the homestead.

Carl married Minnie Holson from Warren, MN. Her sister, Lily Rafeseth, lived with her husband near Lloyd and Ella Anderson in Rosewood.

Carl and Minnie had four children:

Alice Vivian Mellem 5 25 1918

Fern LeDoris 5 18 1920

Sylvia Irene 3 6 1923

Chester LeRoy 5 25 1925

For those of you who are searching the Minnesota Historical Society for birth dates before 1935, be kind to yourself if you aren't getting hits. In looking up the Carl and Minnie Mellem children, Alice was listed as MELUM. Minnie's maiden name was spelled HALSON in two of the certificates.

JUNE 1917

We know from newspaper documents that Carl Mellem and Minnie Holson were married by Rev AO Anderson. It is the only marriage listed as performed by Reverend Anderson.

NOVEMBER 1918

Rosewood News Carl Mellem and Nina Bloom went to Thief River Falls today for medical treatment. Newell and Lloyd accompanied them.

This was during the flu epidemic. Did the family have the flu? Did they follow the rules? Schools were closed; churches and theatres were forbidden to be open.

1. Keep away from sick people
2. Do not handle things others have handled
3. Wash hands before eating
4. Keep away from crowds
5. Walk to work
6. Cover mouth and nose while coughing/sneezing
7. Keep teeth clean.

SEPTEMBER 1921

Rosewood News Arm broken in fall from chair. Lloyd Anderson, son of Mrs. Carl Bloom of this place had the misfortune of falling from a chair and breaking one of the bones in his forearm and badly twisting the other last Sunday. He was taken to the hospital by his uncle, Carl Mellem where the broken bone was set.

JANUARY 1923

Rosewood News Mrs. T Mellem and Carl Mellem went to Warren last Friday where they attended the funeral services of Mrs. Holson. Susan Holson was the mother of Minnie and Lily.

MARCH 1923

Rosewood News Two babies born. One to Carl Mellem’s on 3/6 and the other to Emil Blomberg on March 11. (This is Sylvia).

JULY 1924

Rosewood News Benhard Ranum is employed this week remodeling the Carl Mellem home

FEBRUARY 1925

Rosewood News An infant shower was held for Mrs. Carl Mellem. Delicate eats concluded the party. (This be Chester).

MAY 1935

Lloyd Anderson has been in the employ of Carl Mellem this week doing some prairie tractor breaking

Carl died at 54 in 1938 and Minnie died at 91 in 1983. They are both buried at Wildwood Cemetery in Rosewood, MN.

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Four Generations Mellem, Anderson plus Three

As we discover old photographs in old trunks and great drawers, let's be searching for mulitple generation pictures. Let's try to look at the pictures with an attitude of how generations are built and what sort of characteritics these family members have in common regarding at outward and inward appearance. Dorothy appears to be at least six months old. Although there is no snow on the ground, a good guess + or - would be March of 1939.

Thorinus was the patriarch of the family, he is 84 in this photograph and would celebrate another eleven birthdays. His daughter, Nina, is 47 and her son and Dorothy's father, Lloyd is 27. Most likely the picture was taken by Ella, Dorothy's mother. Was Lloyd tall or was Thorinus short? Or was the ground not level?

We have no pictures of the mustached Thorinus smiling. One of his great grand children told him something in Norweigan once and he didn't laugh about it. Does anyone know if he had a sense of humor? It is an inner thread we all hope to have inherited.

Nina, on the other hand, seems to be a sweet soul. Although she is looking into the sun on this picture, she seems to have some expression. In later photographs, she has a kind expression on her face. I think we all expect that in our grandmother's. My own grandmother smiled but covered her mouth when she laughed; her husband threw his head back and laughed from his belly. He also slapped his knee when he got a good one on you. Benhard as I knew him, laughed often, laughed hard, and slapped his knee often.

Lloyd looks just plain handsome in his hat cocked to the side of his head which was the common set for a hat in that era. Based on his dress and that of his mother, I am willing to gather it was on a Sunday and they were going to church. It may have been Easter. As is typical in Northern Minnesota, Easter does not mean fine spring hats and dresses. If this is Easter, it means winter coats and in Nina's case, over shoes. One can't tell if Lloyd is wearing rubbers. If the picture was taken in March they had mud to contend with as the snow melted.

Most likely the picture was taken at the little house on the south side of town where Thorinus lived. It is believed that during this time, Carl Bloom, Nina's husband, was in the San in Thief River Falls and Thorinus was living with his daughter. The Thief River Falls Times states in the Rosewood News that Mrs. Carl Bloom visited Mr. Carl Bloom.

We talked about this land back in June after the courthouse in Marshall County did a trace for me. Do you remember it was homesteaded by Thorinus and Pauline, then sold to Carl Mellem EXCEPT a small parcel which was kept by Thorinus?

There was, in the last two sales, a parcel of land set aside and not included in the transfer. The following information shows the land being sold to Nina and Carl Bloom on October 13, 1937. According to the deed record, this land was owned by Thorinus Mellem and sold it to Carl O Bloom and Nina Bloom for $300.00.

The blog also states a land transfer on October 22, 1958 where Carl O and Nina Bloom sold this parcel to Arthur and Myrtle Swenson $1700.00. Yet on the back of a picture of Carl and Nina, written in Carl's handwriting, it says, "Taken 24 September 1954, the day we sold our house in Rosewood." Do I need to look at that sale again? What did I miss?

For those of you doing genealogy, I am hopeful your searches continue to expand for you and that you are gleeful in your new information. For some of you it is about getting back to the beginning, for other's, it is learning about branches and how they sprout out. I am fascinated on how communities worked together and I am in agreement with what it said in Rolland Sande's obituary, "His main interest was in people and their life stories".

Last night I received an email from Enid Mellem Sande. My sweet Thomas came running when he heard me squeal. Not only had she identified the members of the Rosewood String Band which I had sent to the children of Lloyd and Ella Anderson a few months before but she had been working on updating the Sande expansion; I sent her a multiple page questionaire.

What thrilled me was what she said about sending on the information. I was tickled that her oldest son, Gary, was reading the blog to her over the phone. I giggled when I read that Gail and stated I had gotten Gary's red hair on his blond sister, Lynell's head. "I have forwarded all this stuff to Ervin, Harlan and my kids. Gail said you took Gary's red hair and put it on Lynnell who was blonde. Gary called the other night and read me stuff from your website for about 45 minutes....."

The glorious thing about it is that, like Shirley correcting my errors, Enid and her family will bump me back on the path of right information and hopefully share stories which will enrich the blog and encourage others. I apologize to Lynell for thinking she had red hair. It must be wonderful to be a red head; I always wanted red hair and freckles. Let's hope it prompts her to send me a picture of herself and prove my memory wrong.

On October 10, this Wednesday, it will be the 153 anniversary of the birth of Thorinus Mellem. Look at the strength of people that came out of that lineage. Can you look back into your family history and see a patriarch? Let's hope so.

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DUMB LAWS Montana to Wyoming Part 2 of 2

MONTANA
It is a felony for a wife to open her husbands mail.
It is a misdemeanor to show movies that depict acts of felonious crime.
It Whitehall, it is illegal to operate a vehicle with ice picks attached to the wheels.

NEBRASKA
It is illegal for a mother to give her daughter a perm without a state license.
In Waterloo, barbers are forbidden from eating onions between 7am and 7pm.
In Omaha, barbers are forbidden form shaving their customers chests.
The owner of every hotel in Hastings, is required by law to provide each guest with a clean and pressed nightshirt.
If I child burps during a church service, their parents may be arrested.
It is illegal for bar owners to sell beer unless they are simultaneously brewing a kettle of soup.

NEVADA
IN Nyala, a man is forbidden from buying drinks for more than three people.
In Eureka, men are forbidden from kissing women.
Everyone walking on the streets of Elko is required to wear a mask.
In Eureka, men who wear moustaches are forbidden from kissing women.

NEW HAMPSHIRE
It is illegal to sell the clothes one is wearing to pay off a gambling debt.
It is illegal to check into a hotel with an assumed name.

NEW JERSEY
It is against the law to frown at a police officer.
In Newark, it is illegal to sell ice cream after 6pm, unless the customer has a note from his/her doctor.
It is illegal to slurp soup.
In Trenton, it is illegal to throw a bad pickle in the street.

NEW MEXICO
In Raton, it is illegal for a woman to ride horseback down a public street with a kimono on.
The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary is banned in Carlsbad.
State officials ordered 400 words of "sexually explicit material" to be cut from Romeo and Juliet.

NEW YORK
In New York City, it is illegal for a woman to be on the street wearing "body hugging clothing."
In New York City, it is illegal for a man to ogle a lady. The accused are forced to wear horse-blinders.
Also in New York City, it is disorderly conduct for one man to greet another on the street by placing the end of his thumb against the tip of his nose, at the same time extending and wiggling the fingers of his hand.

NORTH CAROLINA
In Charlotte, women must have their bodies covered by 16 yards of cloth at all time.
In Ashville, it is illegal to sneeze on city streets.

NORTH DAKOTA
In Fargo, one may be jailed for wearing a hat while dancing, or even for wearing a hat to a party where dancing is taking place.
It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep with your shoes on.
It is illegal to serve beer and pretzels at the same time in any bar, club, or restaurant.

OHIO
In Cleveland, women are forbidden from wearing patent leather shoes, for men can see the reflection of their underwear.
In Columbus, it is illegal for stores to sell Cornflakes on Sunday.
It Oxford, it is illegal for a women to undress in front of a man's picture.
In Youngstown, it is illegal to run out of gas.
Catch-22 is banned in Strongsville.

OKLAHOMA
People who make ugly faces at dogs may be fined and/or jailed.
In Schuster, it is illegal for a woman to gamble while wearing a towel.

OREGON
One may not bathe without wearing "suitable clothing," i.e., clothing that covers one's body from neck to knee.
In Hood River, it is illegal to juggle without a license.
In Marion county, ministers are forbidden from eating onions or garlic before giving a sermon.
As of January 1, 2000 all 5 bedroom homes will be evacuated and searched by police for drug substances every 2 months.
If caught in possession of Marijuana during the month of February, you will be assigned to two thousand hours of community service.
It is illegal to be seen in public with the number 69 on an article of clothing.

PENNSYLVANIA
Any motorist who sights a team of horses coming toward him must pull well off the road, cover his car with a blanket or canvas that blends with the countryside, and let the horses pass. If the horses appear to be skittish, the motorist must take his car apart piece by piece, and hide it under the nearest bush.
In Morrisville, women need a permit to wear cosmetics.
Ministers are forbidden from performing marriages when either the bride or the groom is drunk.

RHODE ISLAND
In Providence, it is illegal to sell toothpaste and a toothbrush to the same customer on a Sunday. It is illegal to throw pickle juice on a trolley.
In Newport, it is illegal to smoke a pipe after sundown.

SOUTH CAROLINA
Every citizen is obliged to carry his gun to church.
No horses are allowed into Fountain Inn unless they are wearing pants.
In Charleston, all carriage horses must wear diapers.

SOUTH DAKOTA
It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep in a cheese factory.
Movies that show police officers being struck, beaten or treated in an offensive manner are forbidden.

TENNESSEE
It is illegal to use a lasso to catch fish.
In Dyersburg, it is illegal for a woman to call a man for a date.
In Memphis restaurants, it is illegal to give any pie to fellow diners, it's illegal to take unfinished pie home and all pie must be eaten on the premises.
In Memphis, it is illegal for a woman to drive by herself, unless a man is walking or running in front of the vehicle, waving a red flag in order to warn approaching pedestrians and motorists.

TEXAS
It is illegal for children to have unusual haircuts.
A recently passed anti-crime laws requires criminals to give their victims 24 hours notice, either orally or in writing, and explain to the nature of the crime about to be committed.
It is illegal to milk another person's cow.
In El Paso, churches, hotels, halls of assembly, stores, markets, banking rooms, railroad depots, and saloons are required to have spittoons on hand.
In Houston, it is illegal to sell Limburger cheese on Sunday.
The entire Encyclopedia Britannica is banned in Texas because it contains a formula for making beer at home.

UTAH
Birds have the right of way on all highways.
A husband is responsible for every criminal act committed by his wife while she is in his presence.

VERMONT
Women must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth.
It is illegal to deny the existence of God.
It is illegal to whistle underwater.

VIRGINIA
In Richmond, it is illegal to flip a coin in any eating establishment to determine who buys a cup of coffee.
It is illegal for a man to kick his wife out of bed.
It is illegal for a man to pat his wife's derriere.
There is a state law prohibiting "corrupt practices of bribery by any person other than candidates".

WASHINGTON
In Seattle, women who sit on men's laps on buses or trains without placing a pillow between them face an automatic 6 months in jail.
In Seattle, it is illegal to carry a concealed weapon longer than 6 feet.
It is illegal to pretend one's parents are rich.
In the state of Washington there is a law against having sex with a virgin under any circumstances. (Including the wedding night.)

WEST VIRGINIA
In Nicholas County, no clergy members may tell jokes or humorous stories from the pulpit during church services.
It is illegal to snooze on a train.

WISCONSIN
In St. Croix, women are not allowed to wear anything red in public.
It is illegal to cut a women's hair.
It is illegal to kiss on a train.
Cheese making requires a license. Limburger cheese making requires a master cheese license.

WYOMING
It is illegal to wear a hat that obstructs peoples' view in a public theater or place of amusement.
It is illegal for a women to stand within five feet of a bar while drinking.

DUMB LAWS Alabama to Missouri

The feed back from yesterday's post about Blue Laws was interesting. It appears some of them are still enforced. Car dealerships in Texas, is an example. They may choose which weekend day to be open but they may only be open one day. In North Dakota, retail may open at noon on Sunday.

When my two older children were teenagers, Bud got a ticket for parking on the grass in the front yard. His sister, Rachel, was furious and went to the city office to read about laws affecting Lawrence, KS. Still on the books at that time was a law that you could urinate in the gutter of the street. As for parking your car in the front yard, a ticket was issued but we did learn one could park your vehicle in the back yard.

Here are some dumb laws from other states. This blog will run two days. Today is Alabama to Missouri.

ALABAMA
It is illegal to play Dominoes on Sunday.
It is illegal to wear a fake moustache that causes laughter in a church.
Putting salt on a railroad track may be punishable by death.
ALASKA
In Fairbanks, it is illegal to feed alcoholic beverages to a moose.
It is illegal to a wake a bear for the purpose of photography, although it is legal to shoot a sleeping bear.
A law in Fairbanks, does not allow moose to have sex on city streets.
ARIZONA
In Tucson, it is illegal for women to wear pants.
In Globe, it is illegal to play cards in the street with a Native American.
In Glendale, it is illegal to drive a car in reverse.
In Nogales, it is illegal to wear suspenders.
ARKANSAS
In Fayetteville, it is illegal to kill any living creature, including insects.
In Little Rock, if a man and a woman flirt with each other in the streets, they could be jailed for 30 days.
A man can legally beat his wife, but not more than once a month.
CALIFORNIA
It is a misdemeanor to shoot at any kind of game from a moving vehicle, unless it's a whale.
In Pacific Grove, molesting butterflies can result in a $500 fine.
In Pasadena, it is illegal for a secretary to be alone in a room with her boss.
It is illegal to set a mousetrap without a hunting license.
In Long Beach, it is illegal to curse on a mini-golf course.
In San Francisco, it is illegal to wipe one's car with used underwear.
It is illegal to cry on the witness stand in Los Angeles.
It is illegal to eat oranges in a bathtub.
Due to the ambled name of "Texas Instrument," the TI-82,TI-83,TI-83+,TI-86, and TI-89 were all banished from California. If caught with one, 4 weeks of prison is assigned.
In Ventura County, cats and dogs are not allowed to have sex without a permit.
COLORADO
In Durango, it is illegal to go out in public dressed in clothing unbecoming to one's gender.
In Logan County, it is illegal for a man to kiss a woman while she is asleep.
In Pueblo, it is illegal to let a dandelion grow within city limits.
CONNECTICUT
In Hartford, it is illegal to educate a dog.
It is illegal to dispose of used razor blades.
In New Britain, the speed limit for fire trucks in 25 mph, even when going to a fire.
In Hartford, it is illegal for a man to kiss his wife on a Sunday.
DELAWARE
In Lewes, it is illegal to wear pants that are form-fitting around the waist.
It is illegal to fly over a body of water unless sufficient supplies of food and water are on board.
FLORIDA
In Miami, it is illegal for a man to wear of any kind of strapless gown.
Unmarried women who parachute on Sundays may be jailed.
In Sarasota, it is illegal to sing while wearing a bathing suit.
GEORGIA
All males in the state between the ages of 16 and 50 are required to work on public roads.
In Columbus, it is illegal to sit on one's porch in an indecent position.
In Quitman, it is illegal for a chicken to cross the road.
It is illegal to change the clothes on a storefront mannequin unless the shades are down.
HAWAII
It is illegal to appear in public wearing only swimming trunks.
It is illegal to own a mongoose without a permit.
IDAHO
In Pocatello, the carrying of concealed weapons is forbidden, unless some are exhibited to public view.
Also in the latter town, it is prohibited for pedestrians and motorists to display frowns, grimaces, scowls, threatening and glowering looks, gloomy and depressed facial appearances, generally all of which reflect unfavorably upon the city's reputation.
Boxes of candy given as romantic gifts must weigh more than 50 pounds.
ILLINOIS
In Chicago, people who are diseased, maimed, mutilated, or deformed to the point of being an unsightly or disgusting object are banned from going out in public.
Also in Chicago, it is illegal to fish in pajamas.
One more in Chicago, it is illegal to take a French poodle to the opera.
It is illegal to speak English, the officially recognized language is "American."
A state law in Illinois mandates that all bachelors should be called master, not mister, when addressed by their female counterparts.
In Oblong, it's punishable by law to make love while hunting or fishing on your wedding day.
In Gurnee, it is illegal for women weighing more than 200 pounds to ride horses in shorts.
In Joliet, it is illegal to mispronounce the name Joliet.
INDIANA
Monkeys are forbidden to smoke cigarettes in South Bend.
In Gary, it is illegal to attend the theater within four hours of eating garlic.
IOWA
State law forbids any establishment from charging admission to see a one-armed piano player.
In Fort Madison, fireman are required to practice for 15 minutes before going to a fire.
After lovemaking, men are NOT allowed to take more than three gulps of beer while lying in bed with their wives-or holding them in his arms.
KANSAS
It is illegal for restaurants to sell cherry pie a la mode on Sundays.
In Wichita, it is illegal to carry a concealed bean snapper.
In Lang, it is illegal to ride a mule down Main Street in August, unless the animal is wearing a straw hat.
In Natoma, it is illegal to throw a knife at any one wearing a striped shirt.
KENTUCKY
It is illegal for a woman to appear in a bathing suit on a highway unless she is a) escorted by at least two police officers, b) armed with a club, or c) lighter than 90 pounds or more than 200 pounds.
It is illegal to remarry the same man four times.
State law stipulates that a person is considered sober until he or she "cannot hold onto the ground".
LOUISIANA
In New Orleans, fire trucks are required by law to stop at all red lights.
It is considered simple assault to bite someone in New Orleans, but it is aggravated assault if the biter has false teeth.
It is against the law to gargle in public.
MAINE
In Portland, it is illegal for men to tickle women under the chin with feather dusters.
The most money one can legally win gambling is three dollars.
It Rumford, it is illegal for a tenant to bite his/her landlord.
In Waterville, it is illegal to blow one's nose in public.
MARYLAND
In Baltimore, it is illegal to wash or scrub sinks, no matter how dirty they get.
Every person who has bowled since 1833 may be fined $2 for each offence.
In Hale Thorpe, it is illegal to kiss for more than one second.
It's illegal to mistreat oysters.
It's illegal to play Randy Newman's "Short People" on the radio.
MASSACHUSETTS
In Salem, even married couples are forbidden from sleeping nude in the rented rooms.
It is illegal to wear a goatee without a license.
Dueling with water pistols is illegal.
In Boston, it is illegal for someone to take a bath unless ordered by a physician.
In 1659, Christmas was outlawed.
MICHIGAN
A man legally owns his wife's hair.
In Detroit, it is illegal to ogle a woman from a moving car.
In Port Huron, the speed limit for ambulances is 20 mph.
Under state law, dentists are officially classified as mechanics.
In Clawson, it is legal for a farmer to "sleep with his pigs, cows, horses, goats, and chickens".
MINNESOTA
Women may face up to 30 days in jail if they impersonate Santa Claus.
In Minneapolis, double parkers can be put on a chain gang.
Every man in Brainerd is required by Law to grow a beard.
It's illegal to tease skunks.
MISSISSIPPI
It is still legal to kill one's servant.
In Truro, a would-be groom must prove himself manly prior to marriage by hunting and killing 6 blackbirds or 3 cows.
In Alexandria, no man is allowed to make love to his wife with the smell of garlic, onions, or sardines on his breath. If his wife so requests, law mandates that he must brush his teeth.
MISSOURI
In Saco, women are forbidden from wearing hats that might frighten timid persons, children, or animals.
In St. Louis, it is illegal for an on-duty firefighter to rescue a woman wearing a nightgown. In order to be rescued, a woman must be fully dressed.
While children may purchase shotguns in Kansas City, they are not allowed to buy toy cap guns.
In Merryville, women are prohibited from wearing corsets because "The privilege of admiring the curvaceous, unencumbered body of a young woman should not be denied to the normal, red-blooded American male".

Ice Skating and Blue Laws

For all of us who enjoyed ice skating, this one is for you. The picture is of the river in Thief River Falls. In studying the picture, we can see the First Street bridge in the back ground. We can see that one of the river boats is moored in the center on the opposite shore. This was probably taken from the Soo Line Tracks above. We can see a large area has been cleared. Most of the people skating appear to be males. It isn't like going to the Arena and being one of the first to make an oval on the freshly topped ice. One of many of our precious memories is waiting for Chuck to say 'okay' and zipping on a clean, flat surface. The Arena was a gathering place for skaters on a Sunday afternoon when the Thieves weren't playing hockey. It was a place to go on Friday nights and watch the Prowlers while we banged on the boards with cow bells and cheered our team along. It was where prominent citizen's stood on the board seats next to the wall in their storm coats and beaver like hats and clapped their fur lined gloves together as a way of sponsoring the home teams. Between the twenty minute hockey periods, we would drink burnt cocoa served by Bonnie Dicken's mother made on a big stove in the corner.



The Arena seems to be empty now, I wonder if the skate blade cuts in the floor of the bathrooms are still there as are the ghosts of autographs on the walls. It was been replaced by the Huck Olson Center which has been over shadowed by the Ralph Englestad Arena which seats greater than 11,000 people. Can people simply skate there or is it booked with groups during the winter season?



In the fifties, Thief River Falls had several outdoor rinks. At the site of the old Central School on North Fourth and LaBree, there was a rink and a warming house. The ice was poured in the early winter and as the season went on, it got harder to skate on. Northrop, Knox, and Old Washington had rinks. Frank went to Catholic School but played neighborhood hockey at the rink at Knox. Northrop School, now the site of an apartment building, had a rink. I remember skating on the ice at Washington. All of the outdoor rinks were subject to snowfalls. Although they were cleared, the ice was only perfect once; right after the water froze. The river, as pictured, frozen naturally with ridges. If you wished to skate, you put up with the roughness.

Yet, back in the mid teens, the idea of an outdoor skating rink was founded, it would charge for admission. The city of Thief River Falls raised its head as did the religious leaders of the day. The idea ran smack dab into the Blue Law.


Perhaps we need to look at just what a blue law is. It is a type of law designed to enforce moral standards, particularly the observance of Sunday as a day of worship or rest. Most have been repealed or are simply unenforced, although prohibitions on the sale of alcoholic beverages and occasionally almost all commerce, on Sundays are still enforced in many areas. Blue Laws often prohibit an activity only during certain hours and there are usually exceptions to the prohibition of commerce, like grocery and drug stores. In some places blue laws may be enforced due to religious principles, but others are retained as a matter of tradition or out of convenience. The paper they are written on is NOT blue; it may have been named that because of the rigid beliefs of the blue noses.


Check out the skate law in Thief River Falls in 1916.

APRIL 1916
There is a New Amusement law. Pool rooms open only five hours on Sunday. Bowling alleys and skating rinks to be closed on Sundays

Skating rink for city assured by council
Money to be raised by sale of season tickets

JANUARY 1917
Skating rink to open Sunday, January 7. The ice is located at the corner of Duluth and third and there is a warming house. A season ticket for the coming season will cost $2.50, 15 cents if bought in singles. Children under 14 are free but may not skate after 9 P. The rink will be open from 7:30 to 10 PM.

No hockey playing will be permitted on the rink at any time that the public is using the ice.

Side by side article read:

Rink cannot open and charge a fee on Sunday. City ordinance #150 prohibits skating on Sunday. License also needed to run rink. Penalty for violation is $10-$100 plus or fine of 90 days in jail.

1 11 1917 City passes ordinance to allow skating on Sunday


I know someone is going to raise a fit about movies anytime when they read this. It is dark in the theater, something can happen!!! OH MY!!! No dancing either, people stand too close and it may suggest something else. OH DEAR!!! I know someone who got dressed for church and went out and shot crows until it was time to leave for church, although some states had blue laws against hunting until recently. But ice skating? How can that be morally wrong?

Tie those ice or hockey skates together, put them around your neck and at least in memory, skate as fast and far as you can without Chuck blowing the whistle at you for speeding.

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The Emil Mellem Family

The picture above is of Emil and Hilda Mellem and their children, Enid, Harlan, and Ervin. Ervin is the oldest, born in 1925, Enid in 1929, and Harlan in 1931.

Emil, 1889, the father was a brother to Nina Anderson Bloom, 1891. Hilda, his wife, was born in 1895. Emil was the eighth child out of twelve born to Pauline and Thorinus Mellem.

Who is this Enid? Why is she being blogged? What does she know that we need to know? Enid is now 78. She has been a big help in identifying the women in the Mellem picture of 1934. When I wrote the “It’s no Bull” blog, she wrote to tell me they did not have a bull on their farm.

She and her husband, Rolland, lived on the Sande farm as third generation small grain and dairy farmers. We lived across the road from their farm. I used bike over with cream cans on the arms of my bicycle to get raw milk for my family, mostly brother Greg who was, as mother said, “a calf”. I didn’t like milk but I liked the Sande family.

I think I would know Enid anywhere. At the time of the farm, she was a mother of four children and helped on the farm. She had beautiful red hair and a great smile. I could understand why my grand parents were so fond of her. In reading old papers, I saw that she did spend time with them. I wondered if that was common. We do know that the Emil Mellem’s and the Benhard Ranum’s lived very close to each other~~One might say they lived on the same side of the swamp.

Enid and Rolland had four children. Gary, the one that liked to grab the cows tails, Lynell, a cute, perky red head, Gail, and Carol The children have had children, and by now, perhaps they have had children. At the time of Rolland’s death their were 15 grand children and 5 great grandchildren.

Evrin, her older brother and his wife, Donna, (nee Hruby), came to visit us in the early fifties when their son, Leslie was little. Leslie couldn’t have been more than 2 at the time and liked playing with trucks on the carpet free floor in the living room. At the time, it was apparent that Ervin and Daddy were close. It is possible that at eleven years difference, Daddy was part of Ervin’s learning curve. I do remember that Ervin was living in Le Sueur working for Green Giant. I liked to imagine he was the poster boy for the HO HO HO commercial. Leslie died in May of 2001.

I caught up with Harlan at the all school reunion a few years ago. He is a darling man with boyish charm. He is highly lovable and is supposed to be the one in the family that knows the genealogy. What do you expect from someone born on Valentine’s Day? Unfortunately, he isn’t great at answering his emails.

What do the papers say about Emil and Hilda and their family?

April 1917
Rosewood News Emil Mellem was home from Langdon, ND last Sunday to bid good bye to his friends and relatives before leaving for the military training camp, where he has enlisted as a carpenter.
Rosewood News Nina Anderson received a letter from her brother, Emil Mellem, that morning stating that he had arrived safely in France. Mr. Mellem enlisted last summer.

1922
Rosewood News Emil Mellem, Mrs. Carl Bloom, Mrs. Peter Mellem and Mrs. Hilda Mellem motored to Strathcona last Saturday and from that place on Sunday in company with the Backlund family on a blue berry expedition.

Emil Mellem has been chosen as entertainment committee head for the Farmer's Club

May 1924
Rosewood News There are three new buildings under construction this week. The construction work on the basement for the T Mellem home which will be moved from the present location south of town to the village has began and the work will be continued under the supervision of Gust Opseth, contractor until complete. Work on the basement for the new 24 x 23 frame two story residences for Emil Mellem on his farm adjoining town the east was also begun by contractor, Benhard Ranum. Ranum will be rushed to completion. Benny Ranum is also remodeling his home with an above ground addition and a full 11 x24 basement commencing work the last week.

August 1924
Rosewood News Emil Mellem from Red Lake Falls and Miss Hilda Hanson from Angus were over Sunday visitors at the T Mellem home with other relatives

December 25, 1924
Hanson Mellem Wedding
Emil Mellem of this place and Miss Hanson whose home is in the town of Numedal were united in marriage at the home of Rev. W Drotts at Viking last Monday afternoon and were attended by Mr. and Mrs. WH Hauglid of Numedal, Mrs. Hauglid being a sister of the bride. The newlyweds will make their home at Rosewood where Mr. Mellem has recently completed a new residence on his farm southwest of the town. The community’s congratulations are extended.

July 1925 Rosewood News Emil Mellem is doing road construction near Crookston

October 1925Rosewood News A baby boy was born to Mr. and Mrs. Emil Mellem in the Warren hospital.

March 1926
Rosewood News Emil Mellem has been in the hospital in Warren for two weeks with a disease of the skin.

February 1942
A group of young people gathered at the Lloyd Anderson home Saturday evening for string band practice. The following attended: Gene, Betty, and Dorothy Wood, Ervin and Enid Mellem, Chester and Fern Mellem, Oliver and Ilene Rye, Inez Walter Hellquist, Harlan Mellem, Lloyd Rafteseth, and Kermit, Juliette, and Vernon Ranstrom.

Rosewood News Emil Mellem left o Friday for Sherack where he will be employed on road work

1940
1 18 Mr. And Mrs. Lloyd Anderson had visitors last week. Emil Mellem, Enid, and Harlan

March 21, 1940
Ervin Mellem entertained a number of friends at his home Saturday evening. Games were played and at midnight, Mrs. Emil Mellem served a delicious lunch to the group. Those attending were; Adrian, Alton, and Audrey Nelson, Chester Engelstad, Ina and Elna Crown, Alice, Fern, and Chester Mellem, Oliver Rye, Arnold Harvey and Donald Hanson, Wallace and Mavis Anderson, Vernon and Joyce Mellem, Helen, Jean, Betty, and Dorothy Wood, Florence and Victor Hellquist, Gene Hallin, Leona Asasby (sp), LaVerne Bloom, Clifford Rye, Bob Wood and Mrs. Emma Hanson.

May 23 1940
Enid Mellem motors with Benhard Ranum’s to Warren to visit with Mr. And Mrs. Otto Ranum, they also went to Stephen.

February 1942

A group of young people gathered at the Lloyd Anderson home Saturday evening for string band practice. The following attended: Gene, Betty, and Dorothy Wood, Ervin and Enid Mellem, Chester and Fern Mellem, Oliver and Ilene Rye, Inez Walter Hellquist, Harlan Mellem, Lloyd Rafteseth, and Kermit, Juliette, and Vernon Rafteseth.

February 1948
Mrs. Roland Sande and infant son Gary left for their home at Erskine Saturday after having spent a few days with Mrs. Sande’s parents, Mr. And Mrs. Emil Mellem

AprilL 194804 19 Mrs. Carl Bloom was moved back to her house after spending the winter months at the Emil Mellem home

It appears that Nina and Emil were close. She received letters from him while he was in the service. Nina lived with them in the winter while her husband, Carl Bloom was in the san in Thief River Falls.

Emil (4-16-1889 to 1-26-1971) and Hilda (1-6-1895 to 5-29-1988) are buried in South Greenwood Cemetery Block 2, Lot 45, graves 1 and 4. in Thief River Falls, Minnesota.

I have great admiration for these New Solum families. I have not lived in that kind of era where people were connected in such an honorable way. The neighborhood friendships they formed and the help they extended are beyond my wildest imagination.

e

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE STUMP OVER!!!

I am so excited!!! I just got an email from Enid and this is what she says:

From left to right: Lena Nordgaard Larson, Carrie Bergvall, Thorenus, Ella Backlund, Nina Anderson Bloom.

To remind you of who the girls were, pictured are highlighted in green
57 Carrie, (Nick) Bergvall, Texas
39 Ella , (Henning) Backlund, Stratcona, MN and later Roseau, MN
49 Theo who also went by Lena, (SS) Norgaard, Viking, MN She is listed as Larson, she must have remarried.
41 Tina, (Alfred) Carlson, New York . On a farm in upstate New York. Not in NYC.
36 Mabel, (John) Bergland, Bemidji, MN moved to Pontiac, Michigan
43 Nina, (Carl) Bloom, Rosewood, MN


Pete, Emil and Carl. Aren't you glad I am so old that I remember?????Bergvall's came to TRF in about 1936 and we had a Family Reunion at the Carl Mellem place (where Grandpa originally lived) so I think the picture was taken there.

THEN:

I see you had the year 1934 and I think that is right. Tina and Alfred lived on a farm in upstate New York--I even looked in my mother's old address book and couldn't find the name of the town. Her daughter, at one time, lived at Leeds. Also, Mabel lived in Pontiac, Michigan--not in Bemidji. Hope tht helps.

It helps us a lot! I wrote back to tell her I had used Bemidji, MN for Mabel, as that was her address when her sister died in 1926.

There is never a dead end!!! HUZZAH!