Little Chicago

Back in the mid-20th century, Shakopee had a bit of a reputation.  In a time when gambling and liquor were illegal, they were both pretty easy to obtain in Shakopee.  Restrictions on drinking and gambling made both of these activities lucrative for the business minded.  Gangsters and unscrupulous business people used corrupt officials, money, and force to keep their illegal activities unchecked and underground.  Shakopee became one of the area’s worst known offenders earning it the nicknames “Little Chicago” and “the local Las Vegas.”

In Early 1920, America enacted the 18th Amendment, also known as Prohibition, a movement that had been building in America well before 1920.  It was spurred on by heads of church, political figures, business leaders, and social reformists worried about what alcohol was doing to America and they sought to rid their country of this moral threat.  There was also a great deal of distaste for Germany at this time, it having been an opponent of America in World War I.  Seeing as most beer brewers had German surnames, this drew American distrust and ire (Holmgren, 2005).  Think “Freedom Fries” of the early 2000’s.  Their venture “succeeded” and Prohibition was put into action January 17, 1920, guided by what was known as  the Volstead Act.

While the 18th Amendment, in broad terms, made it illegal to sell, make, or transport alcohol, the Volstead Act determined what violation meant and how it should be persecuted.  The Volstead Act stated that possessing, selling, manufacturing, bartering, or transporting anything that had an alcohol content above 0.5% was an in violation of the Amendment.  Juices and ciders below this limit were permissible.  There were few exceptions to this rule.  This act still allowed alcohol to be used for medicine, sacrament, science, and industry.  It also permitted physicians to prescribe up to one pint of alcohol per month to patients.  Those permitted to have alcohol needed permits and were required to keep records for the sale of all alcohol.  First offenders could be fined up to $1000 dollars and imprisoned for up to six months.  Second offenders could be fined up to $2000 and faced imprisonment for up to five years.

Scott County, in the summer of 1919, had 40 licensed saloons in Shakopee, Jordan, New Prague, Belle Plaine, New Market, Prior Lake, and Savage.  When the 18th Amendment came into effect, many of these businesses had to make changes.  At least, they had to give the appearance of change.  Some chose to serve soft drinks and root beer instead of alcohol.  Others changed to ice cream parlors. Sometimes both ice cream and soft drinks were served. One man planned to sell tobacco, merchandise, and a low to no alcohol malt beverage referred to as near beer.  Other local businesses like the St. Paul hotel and Minneapolis House kept on as just hotels (Shakopee Argus, 1919).  Some planned to continue on their businesses and practices with full intention to abide by the new laws but for various reasons, many did not.

A general issue that the 18th Amendment faced was the concept of supply and demand.  First: with supply cut short, the ability to provide alcohol became extremely profitable.  Second: Minnesota’s proximity to Canada, which had enacted its own form of Prohibition in 1920.  Unlike America, they repealed their Prohibition after only two years as opposed to America’s 13 years.  This meant the flow of alcohol from Canada reached the Twin Cities quite readily.  Third: like most everywhere else, police and federal agents lacked the manpower to have any hopes of giving the new law any teeth.  A fourth problem encountered in this area reached back years before Prohibition even began.  This problem being a culture of corruption and lax policy enforcement already in place.

In Minnesota, the 18th Amendment was preceded by strict gambling laws enacted in 1851.  Put simply, Minnesota had outlawed all forms of gambling.  Even playing Bingo for charitable causes was illegal until 1945 (Williams, 2005).  This was already poorly enforced and helped set a groundwork for further corruption.  Some businesses had slot machines, pull tabs, and other forms of gambling that they kept “secret”, usually with the help of letting police or politicians in on the take.  Other businesses were willing to leave their gambling out in the open without fear of repercussion. With gambling laws already being ignored, and/or profitable, it was easy to get police and politicians to lay off enforcing liquor laws.

It is not surprising that these elements allowed the Twin Cities to become a haven of criminal activity.  These factors drew in some of the most famous gangsters of the time like Alvin Karpis, John Dillinger, the Barker Family, and “Baby Face” Nelson.  The picture at the top is of our own local celebrity, Isadore “Kid Cann” Blumenfeld.  In the picture, he is celebrating after being acquitted of the most high profile murder of his career, the murder case of Walter Liggett (Foster, 1999).

In 1920, Leon Gleckman was “the kingpin of the St. Paul liquor industry.”  In St. Paul, he installed his own chief of police.  This man, Thomas Brown, maintained his position through the entirety of Prohibition and even two years afterwards.  He was not removed until wiretapping revealed his corroboration with criminal activities in 1935.  Brown and his corroborators allowed organized crime to operate with very little to stand in its way (Foster, 1999).

In March of 1921, raids were conducted in Scott County and surrounding areas.  In Carver County, ten arrests were made and one complete still was found with large quantities of mash.  Mash being the fermented mixture of cornmeal, sugar, water, and yeast used to make moonshine.  Four arrests were made in Jordan and it was claimed that 100 gallons of liquor was seized, 25 gallons having come from one house alone.  Three arrests were made in Belle Plaine, along with two others in Chaska.  R. H. Mies, the mayor of Hampton was arrested for having approximately 10 gallons of liquor in a restaurant he owned.  Near Fish Lake, police expected to find stills but only found liquor.  In New Market, a man was raided after drunkenly bragging that he had already made $16,000 off of the sale of illegal liquor.  Shakopee stands out slightly in this list of raids, with only one arrest.  One arrest but seven other cases that were pending further investigation.  The reason for this?  Those seven were being investigated on suspicion of having been tipped off to the raids (Jordan Independent, 1921).

Operators in Shakopee had local police and politicians deep in their pockets.  Businesses, such as the Rock Spring Cafe, had runners to inform them of when raids were coming and safe houses to house their illicit materials.  Informants in the police department, much as in the case of Thomas Brown of St. Paul, profited from keeping gambling dens and speakeasies informed.  In later years, corruption was so bad that Shakopee’s mayor at that time, Mayor Cavanaugh, requested Pat Thielen become a police officer so there would be someone he could trust in the police department.  After making thirty-two arrests, people tried to use threats and whatever other leverage they had to stop him (Thielen).  This is one of the reasons Shakopee became known as “Little Chicago.”  It became known for its blatant disregard of gambling and liquor laws.  Betty Dols, Scott County Historical Society’s librarian, once wrote, “Anyone over sixty years of age can remember when there were slot machines in every bar, restaurant, store and cafe in Shakopee.” (Dols, 2003)  In fact, one reason Mayor Cavanaugh sought out Pat Thielen is because Governor Youngdahl gave a deadline to have Shakopee cleaned up or he would step in.

Shakopee also gained repute from its most famous establishments, The Millpond Club and the Rock Spring Cafe.  The Rock Spring Cafe was a curious case in which gambling and drinking was done in an exclusive basement room.  It was exclusive for two reasons.  On one hand, it only catered to wealthy patrons from out of town, mostly customers from the Twin Cities.  Secondly, only those that were well known to the man guarding the basement were allowed to enter.  People could come here to drink and gamble safely because the Rock Spring Cafe always had the aforementioned runners prepared to warn of any incoming raids.  The Millpond Club was renowned for its gambling.  It was said to have any of the same methods of gambling that could be found in Las Vegas.  They protected their business with political arrangements.  No police interfered with their business, even after they were robbed at gun point.  Instead, the Millpond Club beefed up security by installing a bulletproof enclosure in the gambling room that contained a guard armed with a shotgun.

As mentioned, Shakopee’s unsavory reputation did not go unnoticed.  Governor Youngdahl had turned his focus on cleaning this city up.  In the late 1940’s, police enforcement was increased.  Illegal activities were finally punished as they were supposed to be.  Governor Youngdahl also reduced Shakopee’s liquor licenses from 9 to 5 (Dols, 1999).  In time, Shakopee lost its role as a destination for debauchery and its title of “Little Chicago.”

Written by Tony Connors, Curatorial Assistant.

Sources:

Holmgren, Chuck.  (2005, February 4).  It’s the Booze Talkin’: Prohibition and the Gangster Film.  Retrieved from https://http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA03/holmgren/prohib/prohib. html.

N/A.  (1919, June 27).  Saloon Men Are Readjusting Businesses.  Shakopee Argus.

Williams, John.  (2005, March).  Gambling in Minnesota.  Retrieved from: http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/pubs/gambhist.pdf.

Foster.  (1999).  For the Record: 150 Years of Law and Lawyers in Minnesota.  Minnesota: Minnesota State Bar Association.

N/A.  (1921, March 24).  Prohibition Officers Active Herabouts.  Jordan Independent.

Pat Thielen.  Transcript from a tape recording.

Dols, Betty.  (2003).  Gambling in Shakopee.  Shakopee Heritage Society Newsletter, 1, 9, 2-3.

Images of Football in Scott County

With the Super Bowl in Minneapolis this weekend, what better occasion could there be to share some historical photographs of football in Scott County from our collection? Pictures that begin around 1890 show an interesting progression of equipment, from padded body suits with a simple leather cap to the more recognizable shoulder pads and hard helmets with facemasks we’re familiar with today. Many of the later images were captured by LeRoy Lebens as part of his work as the official photographer for the Waniyetu Shakopee High School Yearbook, which are a part of his larger collection we are currently inventorying here at SCHS. If you’re interested in learning more about sports in Scott County or the LeRoy Lebens photo collection, come by and see us at the Scott County Historical Society!

1890- Frank Dierberger of Shakopee

1905 Rock Spring Team- George Vierling, Reno Ketterer, Ed V. Mertz, Math Klinkhammer, Joseph R. Witt, Emil Strehlow

1914 Belle Plaine Minnesota Valley Champion Team- Lorenz Woods, Bill Crahan, Emmett O’Neill, James McDevitt, Martin Donovan, George Brown, Mike Pendy, Tom Sheehan, Leo Pendy, Herman Beutow, Bob White and John Weibeler

1922- Leo Hartmann of Shakopee High School

1922 Shakopee High School Team

1936 Shakopee High School Team

1939 Shakopee High School Team

1939 Shakopee High School Team

1942 Shakopee High School Program

1955 Shakopee High School

1958 Shakopee High School

1958 Shakopee High School

Shakopee “Small Fry” League 1955-1960

Shakopee “Small Fry” League 1955-1960

The Unboxing of Fallout Shelter Items – 56 Years Later

The very last donation of 2017 was given to SCHS by the Rahr Malting Company on December 21, 2017. It was exactly as if the we had received an early Christmas present. The donation consisted of five boxes, of both the small and large variety, and all that was written down on the paper was that they were civil defense supplies from 1962. Needless to say, it was very exciting opening and uncovering the items inside of these civil defense boxes. As it turns out, these boxes were like a Christmas gift to SCHS, just opened up fifty-six years after they were originally packaged. Although it may have felt like Christmas here at the museum, the items in these boxes were originally packed for a much darker and serious purpose: in the event that a fallout shelter was needed in the future.

The Rahr Corporation, established in 1847 in Michigan, has since expanded to several different locations, one of them happening to be on 1st Avenue West in Shakopee. The facility in Shakopee was built in 1937, and had been added onto in 1954, 1977, 1981, 1994, and 2016.1 The information that many may have forgotten, however, was that the Rahr Malting Company was designated as a fallout shelter in 1961-1962 for the citizens of Shakopee. The boxes that were donated to SCHS were chalk full of fallout shelter items, many of them having been undisturbed for more than fifty years.

Included in the items were lists for Medical Fallout Shelter Kit “A”, which was one of the smaller boxes that could treat 50-65 shelter occupants, and for Medical Fallout Shelter Kit “C”, which was one of the larger boxes that could treat 300-325 shelter occupants. Each list identifies the items and the quantity of each item. Kit “C” contained the exact same items as in Kit “A”, just in larger quantities due to the larger number of proposed occupants. Also included was a brochure titled Fallout Shelter Medical Kit Instructions, dated July 1962, as well as a thicker brochure titled Family Guide: Emergency Health Care, which detailed instructions on caring for individuals while in a fallout shelter. These lists and brochure can be viewed below.

The items that were packed in these boxes were medical supplies, which would be extremely necessary in the event of needing a fallout shelter. Any and all items that could fit were made to sit inside their own individual brown cardboard box, the name of the item written on the front of the box. Items included several different kinds of bandages, scissors, thermometers, tweezers, safety pins, isopropyl alcohol, surgical soap, toothache remedy, eye and nose drops, diarrhea medication, many different kinds of pills (sulfadiazine, penicillin, aspirin, cascara (a laxative)), as well as tins of baking soda, petroleum jelly, and bottles of table salt. Also included were small bottles of iodine pills that would have been used to treat water in fallout shelters. All of these items were necessities when living in a closed off fallout shelter, be it with either 50-65 people, or 300-325. These items were chosen and packed with care, ready to offer aid to those who were sick. Although many of these items were labeled as being packed and stored in 1962, we, unfortunately, don’t have information on which building on the Rahr Malting campus was to be used as the fallout shelter.

Nonetheless, these items are a museum’s treasure, and very much a look into the past when nuclear war felt very much like an imminent threat. These boxes stored in the Rahr Malting Company show that a very national fear was felt by everyone everywhere throughout the United States, even in small Shakopee, Minnesota.

Many of these items have not been viewed since the 1960s, so I am pleased to allow you a secondhand look at these fallout shelter items. Enjoy.

18th Amendment Ratified in MN 1-17-1919

You could say it all began in 1673 when Increase Mather wrote “wine is from God, but the Drunkard is from the Devil.”[1]  Little would he know that 247 years later the United States would embark on an “experiment noble in purpose” with the passing of the 18th Amendment: prohibition.[2]  Early 20th century reformers had gained in political power and support so that by 1919, the amendment was passed.  (The MN Legislature passed the amendment on January 17, 1919.)  As of January 1920, anything over .5% alcohol became illegal, far stricter than any previous prohibitory laws.  The new law went so far as to regulate the use of medicinal liquor and sacramental wines, but not outlaw it.[3]

Prohibition, while ultimately failing, did work in some respects.  The national consumption of alcohol was reduced from 2.6 gallons per capita in the 1910’s to less than one gallon in the early 1930’s.  There were fewer arrests for drunkenness and fewer deaths from alcoholism.[4]  But “Congress grossly underestimated the enforcement needs required by the outlawing of alcohol.”  A mere $5 million was set aside for the newly formed Prohibition Bureau and a force of only 1,526 federal agents was assembled.  With the U.S.  population at approximately 110 million people in 1920, that was one agent for every 71,000 people.[5]

Lack of ability to enforce the law allowed liquor to still be easily available to anyone who knew the right people and had enough money.  Others made their own “bathtub gin.”  Prescriptions for alcohol were issued freely and the consumption of sacramental wine increased by 800,000 gallons during 1920 and 1921.[6]

No where was alcohol consumption more prevalent than in cities, and Minnesota cities were no exception.  “There were literally thousands of bootleggers in Minnesota.”[7]  Due to the extreme corruption of the St. Paul (and most likely other) police, enforcement fell to the federal agents, who were vastly understaffed.

But the excitement wasn’t limited to the big city; Scott County had its share of fun.  The Belle Plaine Herald pointed out that “…though the moon went dry long ago it still manages to get full once a month.”[8]  The Shakopee Argus expressed similar sentiments, “…there are a few more moonshine nights nowadays than the old almanac calls for.”[9]  Martin Doherty, of Shakopee, caused “quite a sensation” by having his establishment raided twice in July 1920.[10]

In March of 1921 illegal activity was again thriving in Scott County, as reported by the Jordan Independent:

 Ten Arrests Claimed

Four Towns Hit in Rum Raids—Federal Agents Swoop Down in Scott and Carver Counties. – Moonshining [sic] and bootlegging were found operating in full sway…when Federal prohibition agents made raids on four towns …[11]

The article goes on to detail that 100 gallons were seized at Jordan and four arrests made. Belle Plaine saw three arrests and Chaska two.  And that…

Shakopee Got A Tip

An advance ‘tip’ on the raid at Shakopee, through some unknown leak in government organization, gave seven or eight persons on whom warrants were to be served and opportunity to hide evidence. [12]

During the week of September 1, 1921, a “mammoth still” was found in Eagle Creek township, along with “50 gallons of double distilled moonshine…and considerable liquor mash.”[13]

In 1924 Mike Abdo and Harry Simon were arrested for transporting liquor.  The trial transcript of the questioning of Simon reveals the process of getting bootleg.  They took the car to Michaels Auto Laundry in St. Paul and Simon paid a man named Belle $450 for 50 gallons of alcohol, $9 per gallon.  Then Belle takes the car and it comes back loaded with alcohol.  But Abdo and Simon were not to make a clean getaway.  They were followed back from St. Paul and confronted 3 miles west of Shakopee “On Number 5,” but not by federal agents.  Simon said “We were riding along and a seven passenger Packard car containing two men drove up along side and commanded me to put up my hands and I did not put them up apparently as quick as they wanted me to and they shot when they came even with the car.” They took 45 of the 50 gallons of alcohol, and left Abdo and Simon to their fates.  The two were discovered with the remaining alcohol when Abdo took Simon to hospital.[14]

Such excitement continued through the ‘20’s and into the early 1930’s.  The passing of Prohibition ended up creating more crime then before and in 1933, the “great experiment” came to and end.  Shakopee residents voted 10-1 in favor of it’s repeal.[15]

[1] Quote from “It’s the Booze Talkin’: Prohibition and the Gangster Film.” Chuck Holmgren.  http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA03 /holmgren/prohib/prohib.html

[2] Quote from The American Nation: A History of the United States.  John A. Garraty and Mark C. Carnes.  (New York: Longman, 200) 102.

[3] Holmgren, “It’s the Booze Talkin’.”

[4] Garraty, 702.

[5] Holmgren.

[6] Garraty, 702.

[7] For the Record: 150 Years of Law & Lawyers in Minnesota.  (Minnesota State Bar Association, 1999) 231.

[8] Belle Plaine Herald, April 1, 1920.

[9] Shakopee Argus, January 30, 1920.

[10] Shakopee Argus, July 9 and July 30, 1920.

[11] Jordan Independent, March 24, 1921.

[12] Jordan Independent, March 24, 1921.

[13] Jordan Independent, September 1, 1921.

[14] State of Minnesota Vs. Mike Abdo and Harry Simon, 1924.

[15] Shakopee Argus-Tribune, September 14, 1933.

Harvesting Ice

Back in the days before refrigerators and freezers, harvesting ice was a major wintertime business in Scott County. In the month of January when the ice was “ripe,” men would go to work cutting blocks of it out of local lakes and the Minnesota River.

In the book As I Remember Scott County, Frances Brandl of Belle Plaine, whose brothers ran an ice harvesting business, details this process:

Cutting ice was a very hard, heavy job. First of all it was cold, very cold, during the month of January. At times it was also wet, should one slip and fall into the lake, which happened.

The ice was sawed with a long heavy saw with a wooden handle on one end. The ice blocks were sawed 18×36 inches. The depth varied with the winter. Blocks had to be sawed very straight on all sides or they would not pack tight in the ice houses. The ice was covered and packed tight with saw dust.

Farmers loaded ice onto horse-drawn sleds and hauled it back to their farms, while icemen went door-to-door in town selling blocks to families for their iceboxes. Harvested ice was also used by grocery stores, saloons, creameries, meat packers, and breweries. In fact, all of the breweries that existed in Scott County prior to Prohibition were located along the Minnesota River or another stream or creek to allow for easy access to ice, and the breweries all had ice storage facilities as well.

Ice harvested in the winter months was used throughout the spring and summer – the sawdust or straw it was packed in kept it from melting. In addition to preserving food, this ice made possible a favorite summertime treat: ice cream.

Below are photos from the SCHS’s collection of a 1905 ice harvest on the Minnesota River. These photos depict a complex operation that involved cutting blocks of ice by hand and then using a wooden pulley system and conveyor belt to move the ice.

Ice harvesting on the Minnesota River at Shakopee. In the background you can see a wooden pulley system and conveyor belt used for moving blocks of ice. 1905. From the SCHS Collections

Workmen cutting ice on the Minnesota River at Shakopee. They are standing on a wooden boardwalk placed over the frozen river. 1905. From the SCHS Collections.

Close-up of the wooden pulley system and conveyor belt used to move blocks of ice. 1905. From the SCHS Collections

Another view of the pulley system and conveyor belt. The ice visible in the foreground of the photo appears to have been scored. 1905. From the SCHS Collections

The front side of the wooden pulley system and conveyor belt. The wooden pulley system is constructed along the shore of the river. The front side shows areas divided by vertically placed pieces of wood. Blocks of ice available for purchase are stacked within each stall. The image is looking down into one stall, which contains blocks of ice, five workers and a wooden conveyor belt. 1905. From the SCHS Collections

Men standing on the narrow wooden boardwalk cutting blocks of ice by hand. 1905. From the SCHS Collections.