JANUARY 20
20 years ago (2003)
A temp of 8 degrees and a wind gusting to 18 didn't stop a near-record crowd of 12,000 diehard anglers from the 13th Jaycees Ice Fishing Extravaganza on Gull Lake. The Jaycees raised more than $200,000 for charities – a new record. Bob Slaybaugh said the top five fish were walleyes, with the winner a 6.63-pounder, good for a Ford pickup.
30 years ago (1993)
A tiny bit of rain last night turned area roads into a skating rink last night. Freezing rain brought out the sanding trucks at 8 p.m. while other vehicles went bump in the night. Trucks worked until midnight, then went out again this morning. There were a dozen minor accidents and many cars in the ditch. Roads looked like a trail through desert sand.
40 years ago (1983)
(Adv.) All You “Dare” to Eat! Friday: Fish and Shrimp - $5.50; Saturday: BBQ Chicken and BBQ Ribs - $6.50; Sunday: Ham or Turkey - $5.50. All are complete dinners. Kids eat for just 99 cents when folks order dinner. Sawmill Inn – Across from the Water Tower.
60 years ago (1963)
Jerry Lyscio, whose 16-point average makes him the highest scorer in the conference, was named to the Prep Parade All-State Team of the Week. The six-foot Warrior senior guard has been a marked man in many of Brainerd's games. Dan Campbell's Brainerd High School band was named as Band of the Week.
80 years ago (1943)
Co. A of the 194th Tank Battalion was at Clark Field near Manila when the Japanese attacked in Dec. 1941. The 194th was chosen to cover the retreat of American forces to Bataan because of the unit's fighting spirit. This news was by Pvt. Wesley Kerrigan, wounded many times in the fighting, and who just returned from a hospital in Australia.
100 years ago (1923)
Jack Mutch was an excited man the other day out at Round Lake. He speared a 30-pound pickerel (northern) in his fish house and, when he landed it, he said it felt like hoisting a small calf out of the lake. Nearby fishermen said Mutch was so excited that he couldn't speak – he just kept yelling.
28/50: People in the Northern Pacific Railroad depot waiting area, circa 1910. Source: 'Out of the Woods, A Pictorial History of The Brainerd Lakes Area', Published by The Brainerd Daily Dispatch. Copyright 1994.
29/50: Chicago Tavern on Gilbert Lake circa 1938-1943. Dancing and food. Al LaBarre was the owner. Source: 'Out of the Woods, A Pictorial History of The Brainerd Lakes Area' published by The Brainerd Daily Dispatch. Copyright 1994.
30/50: State Champion was this Brainerd amateur baseball team of 1894, which later saw two of those players advance to the major leagues. Pictured here are (front row) Frary, catcher; Phyle, rf-pit.; Howe, pit., rf; C. McCarthy, 1st; (middle row) Burgum, shortstop, W.P. Buckley, manager; Hill; 3rd; (back row) W. McCarthy, cf; Blandy, lf; Warner, 2nd. Source: 'Brainerd Minnesota 1871 - 1971'. Reproduced from the Centennial Edition of the Brainerd Daily Dispatch. Copyright 1971.
37/50: Brainerd Fire Department. Dispatch archives
38/50: W.E. Lively, the hustling Maxwell auto dealer, has sold a Maxwell to Joseph Johnson. Pictured is a Maxwell Mascotte Touring 1911 by Lars-Göran Lindgren Sweden - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1526033
39/50: This truck belonged to Silas Hall's Transfer Line just after World War I. It was used for hauling freight from the NP (Northern Pacific Railroad) depot to stores around town as well as for other kinds of moving. The picture was taken in front of the railroad freight office. Before the truck, Silas Hal used teams of horses and wagons which he kept at 415 Main (now Washington Street). Source: Brainerd Minnesota 1871 - 1971. Reproduced from the Centennial Edition of the Brainerd Daily Dispatch.
40/50: The 1916 Brainerd police force, pictured here, included the following men: The plain clothes men at either end were Jack Brandt (left) and Ted Nesheim; (front row, left to right) Charles Varner, chief, and Tom Templeton. (Rear, left to right) Erick Graff, Hans Saude and August Swanson. Source: Brainerd Minnesota 1871 - 1971. Reproduced from the Centennial Edition of the Brainerd Daily Dispatch.
41/50: This building at Seventh and Laurel, still a well-known landmark in Brainerd, was the home of the Citizen's State Bank, from 1909 to 1927, when the bank then moved to quarters across the street. This picture was taken in 1913. Source: Brainerd Minnesota 1871 - 1971. Reproduced from the Centennial Edition of the Brainerd Daily Dispatch.
42/50: The "fill" grounds skating rink, located near Franklin Junior High School, winter of 1938-39. Source: 'Out of the Woods, A Pictorial History of The Brainerd Lakes Area', Published by The Brainerd Daily Dispatch. Copyright 1994.
43/50: People in the Northern Pacific Railroad depot waiting area, circa 1910. Source: 'Out of the Woods, A Pictorial History of The Brainerd Lakes Area', Published by The Brainerd Daily Dispatch. Copyright 1994.
44/50: 60 years ago (1959) (Photo) Robert Dobson, 15, is interested in how long he can keep a kite aloft. He launched a kite at 3 p.m. yesterday near the court house and it's still flying despite a near disaster when a truck caught the kite string. The weatherman says it will remain windy today. Photo illustration, Metro Creative Graphics, Inc.
45/50: Brainerd Dispatch archives
46/50: The state hospital campus on Highway 18.
47/50: Santa takes a ride during a Christmas parade in downtown Brainerd.
48/50: Children crowd around Santa during downtown Brainerd Christmas festivities.
50/50: Brainerd Dispatch archives