Dec
30
Elks Converge in Bemidji
At first glance, it sounds like a wildlife story: Elks in Bemidji! But it is really the result of my spending way too much time lost in research on Sunday and not enough time writing.
During a lengthy “fishing expedition” on the site Newspapers.com (to keep the wildlife theme going), I discovered that my great-grandfather’s Crookston, Minn., band was hired in the summer of 1908 to provide entertainment for the state Elks convention. The three-day gathering of Elks (the men, not the animal) was held in Bemidji.
The band is prominently displayed on the front page of the Jun. 17, 1908, edition of the Bemidji Daily Pioneer.
It’s hard to see the musicians’ faces clearly, but I recognized the photo, anyway.
During a lengthy “fishing expedition” on the site Newspapers.com (to keep the wildlife theme going), I discovered that my great-grandfather’s Crookston, Minn., band was hired in the summer of 1908 to provide entertainment for the state Elks convention. The three-day gathering of Elks (the men, not the animal) was held in Bemidji.
The band is prominently displayed on the front page of the Jun. 17, 1908, edition of the Bemidji Daily Pioneer.
It’s hard to see the musicians’ faces clearly, but I recognized the photo, anyway.
