Document - Historical Society Minutes - Eagan Historical Society Minutes 08032010 - 8/3/2010MEETING NOTES/MINUTES
EAGAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY
TUESDAY
AUGUST 3, 2010
3:30 p.m. – EAGAN ROOM
Members present: Joan Remick, Millie Gignac, Ted Ringberg, Martin DesLauriers, Mary
Ellen Voracek, Kim Hazel, Dawn Simpson and Bernie Jansen. Also present was Communication
Coordinator Joanna Foote.
ELECT CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR
Nominations were taken and a motion was made by DesLauriers and seconded by Gignac
to elect Mary Ellen Voracek as Chair and Kim Hazel as Vice Chair of the Eagan Historical
Society. All members voted in favor.
KNIGHT MEMORIAL DECISIONS
The Committee discussed ideas for a memorial for Gin Knight.
Hazel made a motion to purchase a bench on her behalf and place the bench at the Historic
1914 Town Hall. DesLauriers seconded the motion. All members voted in favor.
DesLauriers made a motion to have the Chair and Vice Chair make the final decision on
bench type and cost and assist with the wording for the plaque. Remick seconded the motion. All
members voted in favor.
Foote stated she will bring grant processing information to the September 7th and/or
October 5th meetings for the Committee to review.
DODD ROAD SIGN – DEDICATION DATE
Foote introduced the item. The Committee discussed September 7 and September 26 as
possible dates for the Dodd Road Marker Dedication.
DesLauriers made a motion to set 5:00 p.m., September 7, 2010, as the date for the Dodd
Road sign dedication. Hazel seconded the motion. All members voted in favor.
The Committee discussed an invite list for the dedication. It was decided to invite the
Eagan City Council, the Eagan legislative delegation, Parks Commission, Senior city staff as well
as some of the original families and individuals and businesses alon Dodd Road such as Trinity
Lone Oak Church congregation. Simpson volunteered to create an invitation; Committee members
agreed to help address the invitation envelopes, which will be mailed out by the City when
complete.
VIDEO INTERVIEWS
Foote introduced the item stating she has a list of potential people to be interviewed.
DesLauriers stated he was interviewed by Tad Johnson of the This Week Live (the cable program
hosted by Thisweek Newspapers). It was decided that the interviews would take place on
Thursday, September 9, 2010, and Tuesday, September 14, 2010, with September 20, 2010 as a
back-up date. Times for the interviews will be determined at a later date.
HISTORICAL MARKERS
Foote stated there are funds for two markers in 2010 so the second will be worked up in the
near future. Several possible locations exist including the Patrick Eagan Park/McCarthy property
which Simpson has been working on gathering information and images from the McCarthy family.
Simpson noted she met with members of the McCarthy family for several hours and has
gathered a good deal of oral history and photos of which she has made notes and scanned. She will
be meeting with another McCarthy family member to visit the park property (formerly McCarthy
homestead property and will be shown the location of a “Soddy house” that the McCarthy brothers
built and lived in when they first homesteaded the land in the 1850s. It was also noted that Tom
Sweeny lived on the other side and a large number of people all lived together in this Soddy house
while cabins were being built.
DesLauriers told a story stating that during the New Ulm uprising, Chief Black Dog came
and told DesLauriers’ great grandfather Quigley and possibly the McCarthy’s as well that they did
not need to go to the Fort Snelling for protection as most other settlers were being advised to do.
Chief Black Dog left two of his braves at each farm of these family farms to let them know they
were safe from massacre as they had good relations with the tribe.
NEXT MEETING
The next regular meeting of the Eagan Historical Society will be Tuesday, September 7,
2010 at 3:30 p.m.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 4:55 p.m.