The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1911-11-24
From tuesdays Daily.

From tuesdays Daily.
Madison Lake, Mimi, November
is. 19ll.-To The Free Press: The
last meeting of the Madison Lake
Commercial club appointed q COM
mittee TO secure the cooperation Of
other towns and cities in an effort
to have the Naturalization Lake
graveled road designated as a state
road and graveled its entire distance
to the twin cities.
| have the honor to be the chair
man of that committee, and write
you with a view TO giving the move
ment publicity.
Madison Lake village will under
take first with the aid of the farm
ers who are naturally interested, to
gravel, under the law, the three
miles lying east of here and extend
ing up to the LIE Sueur county
line. Our movement is designed to
encourage, or help create the inter-
est in other towns and villages along
the route which will lead them to
take an active and enthusiastic part
in the good roads movement and in
this particular direction. Mere
making good roads is everything.
Began Pushing the Work.
Just about a year ago We began
pushing the work on a six mile
stretch of gravelng between Madi-
son Lake and Eagle Lake on what
is now a part of the somewhat
famous Madison Lake-Mankato road.
We were assured that we never
could do il, that the farmers would
not take hold. that no outside help
would come, and that to begin and
not finish would do us no good and
the farmers could not go at it until
all the farm work was done, and
winter was almost on us before one
day in desperation we hired some
teams and began to haul gravel, first
having raised about 5000 in the vii
lage for starter with which to,
show our faith and determination.
The work never even Jagged after
the first shovel full was thrown and
inside of two weeks over twenty
teams were hauling gravel, everyone
donating a part Of the labor, and
every man an enthusiast for good
roads. Inside of a month the whole
six miles were completed, Eagle
Lake village working east to meet
us and west to meet the Mankato
force, the whole under the general
supervision of the county surveyor.
Road Source of Comfort.
This road has been source or
comfort, satisfaction, profit and pride
to all who have had anything to do
with it and has held good for auto
travel during all the recent rains
when every ungraveled road was
practically impossible for wagons.
Our success in this regard has
encouraged us to undertake to en-
list the help of more and larger
towns in the general scheme of al
through graveled road to the twin
cities. The reason we feel it in
cumbent on us to make the start is
that here at Madison Lake is where
the Mankato- Madison Lake road
ends. 1t is our business to shove
the good work forward. If we don't
who will? We are a dozen miles
from Mankato and she has already
aided us nightly and effectively
and generously and successfully and
we have no doubt she will yet aid
in pushing it along, but there must
De lou OIL WOTh uOue OuISluo VI
what Mankato can do. So we pro-
pose to enlist ElySian, Waterville,
Morristown. Faribault, Dundas, North
field and other towns along the
route until in every town there will
be headquarters for a good roads
movement and hundreds OF farmers
as enthusiastic as our own are in
the great movement and all feel
ing that they are part of it.
Others in the Work.
We understand that Faribault and
Mortified and Morristown have al
ready done grand work and that
between the last named two points
there is a good smooth, graveled
road, possibly as good as there is
between here and Mankato, but all
these cities are interested in filling
up the gaps in the twin cities to
Mankato state road It's the only
way in which we can get sure