In the Midst |
|
Use the Categories menu on the right to search through our many exciting articles on Cokato History.
|
|
Cokato Museum Staff, "Butter Bandits Escape By A Thin "Margarine"." In The Midst Of, Cokato Historical Society (April, 2022) vol. 42 no. 1.  Lamson Creamery and Store. The store is located on the upper level and the creamery is in the basement level. What thief doesn’t get twitchy fingers when they come across golden bars...of butter that is. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, gangs of butter thieves robbed Minnesota and Iowa creameries and stole their transport vehicles. Creameries that provided butter for companies, such as Land O’ Lakes, had the leverage of the companies offering large rewards for catching the thieves. The Cokato Enterprise reported in a January 19, 1928, article that “Land O’ Lakes Creameries, Inc has been instrumental in securing the conviction of three different gangs of butter thieves, all of whom are now serving time in the Stillwater penitentiary.”
Mike Worcester, "Lost Cokato: The "3.2" Joints," In the Midst Of, Cokato Historical Society, (September, 2017) Vol 37, No. 4.  Troll In, originally located on Broadway next to city hall. On election day 2006, the voters of Cokato shocked many, including themselves, by approving a ballot issue which allowed the city to issue licenses for the sale of strong beer, wine, and liquor. It brought to an end the status of Cokato being a “dry” town, a legacy dating back over ninety years.
We’ve written before about how Cokato became a dry town and what that meant. Our purpose here is to note how even with that dry status, area residents could buy beer at what were called “3.2 joints”. Once National Prohibition ended in Minnesota in early 1933, the 3.2 establishments could apply for licenses. Many did over the years. By 2007 when the city was given the authority to issue licenses for strong beverages, only one was left, Nelson’s Bar & Grill, on Millard Avenue. Mike Worcester, "The Saloons Must Go," In the Midst Of, Cokato Historical Society, (Spring, 1997) Vol 17, No. 2.  Calgren's saloon, Millard Ave, circa 1910. In the state of Minnesota today—'although no one is really quite sure—there are approximately sixty communities that are classified as “dry” towns.‘ Simply put these towns, by statute, do not allow the issuance of licenses to sell anything stronger that 3.2% beer. No strong beer, wine, or liquor can be sold. Cokato is one of those towns. And how it came to be this way is a story that is full of twist, turns, and legal shenanigans that could make modern audiences blush. Before we begin this tale though, some background is needed.
|
Cokato MuseumBlog articles are subject to copyright. Categories
All
Archives
October 2024
|
RSS Feed
