The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1904-06-03
Has as Many if Not More Attrac
lions Than Brooklyn.
Need of An Electric Line TO Build
Up That Suburb.
Hope That Railroad Car Shops Will
Be Erected There.
From Tuesdays Daily.

West Mankato, though fully as at
tractive as residence locality as North
Mankato, aside from business considera-
tions, and perhaps with better facili-
ties for the enjoyment of life, on ac-
count of the proximity of Sibley park,
presents a contrast to brooklyn" in the
matter of growth and development.
North Mankato has sprung up in a
hurry. Residences have been going up
Just across the river at the rate of a
score or more every year. Belgrade ave-
nue. and adjacent streets are becoming
more and more thickly settled. Trans
| fers are numerous.
The growth of West Mankato has been
comparatively gradual and the people are
somewhat more conservative. In the
year 1872, William L. Wilson, the first
permanent settler of that part of town,
put up small dwelling with his own
hands. Now there are about a thousand
people scattered over that big ward, that
covers about section of land beyond
the slough.
This house that Mr.. Wilson built at
that time is still standing, and is used
by him as storehouse. just in front
of it is his home, a handsome frame
dwelling at the Mound avenue entrance
to the park. He raised the first crop that
was ever grown on that fiat. Mankato
was at that time city of not more than
three thousand people. Most of these
inhabitants lived in what is now the
central part of town.
The early settlement of the city be-
yond the slough was extremely slow.
Those who did settle here made their
living, if not wholly, to a large extent,
by tilling the soil. Mr.. Wilson was
always eager to do something to get
the west end of the city to grow. While
there were yet but few families, he
made fight to get a school established.
He succeeded in inducing the school
board to appropriate money for little
country school, as it were, to be held in
the little church building now used by
the West Mankato Baptist mission.
School was held here only two weeks.
Mr.. Wilson drove around through the
snow collecting children for the school.
By so doing he succeeded in getting up
an enrolment of seventeen. The super
intendent fought hard against the school
and declared that he did not have time to
go out and visit it, as it was so far from
the main part of the city and had so
few pupils. The superintendent finally
had his way, the school was abolished
and Mr.. Wilson was for the time de-
feated.
1t was not until the year 1885 that a
school building was finally establish
ed in West Mankato. The school open
ed with about hundred pupils. Since
that time the building has been con-
siderably enlarged and has more than
double that enrolment
Mr.. Wilson in the year 1881 suffered
a catastrophe that might have discour-
aged man of less determination. The
river flooded the flat all around his home
for depth of two feet. The family
seized what bedding and other house
hold articles they could lay hands upon,
and fled to Sibley mound. Here they
Impoverished tent of blankets, and
thus camped for a week or ten days.
The school proved to be quite draw
ing card in the growth of the population.
The park too had had great deal to
do with the settlement of this ward.
Owing to the fact that the population
is so widely scattered, there are far less
stores than one would expect to find in
a community of thousand people. The
retail business section such as it is, lies
on West Front street, just west of
Hubbell avenue. Here Charles F. Hall
man has grocery, feed and hardware
stores; W. Siebert, a grocery store; Au-
gust Hultengren, meat market; and
A. B. Sweiger, a blacksmith shop.
There are some industries here to
which local inhabitants are wont to
look for employment, and it is certainly
the matter of making living which is
the greatest factor in the upbuilding of
any settlement. West of Woodland ave-
nue. lie the big cement works. On Sib-
ley street the Mankato Sidewalk COM
pany has a plant. There are ice houses
run by Charles Miller, c. G.. Swanson,
F. E. Hidde and Hannah & Polchow.
Good building lots can be purchased
here at about 5000 each, though on Front
street they come much higher. What the
sixth ward most needs for its growth, as
most people seem to agree, is street
car line. Charles F. Hallman thinks
there is one factor needed, that is of still
greater Importance than the street car
line. He hopes to see railroad shops es-
tablished in West Mankato, giving en-
ployment to an army of laborers. Then,
he says, the lots will sell off like hot
cakes, and people will be awakened in
the morning in all parts of the ward by
the sound of the saw and the hammer.