Tag Archives: 1891

19th Century, farming, Food, Food Science, Industry, Intercession, Judgment & Counter-Judgment Cycle, Minnesota, omnipresent history

Hormel Company Opens 1891

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1891

“George A. Hormel, an ambitious entrepreneur and the son of German immigrants, established today’s Hormel Foods Corporation in 1891 as Geo. A. Hormel & Co., in Austin, Minnesota.

George Hormel opened the Hormel meat-packing company at the right time. As corn replaced wheat in some southern Minnesota fields, it created an abundance of hog feed and, as a result, a boom in hog farming and meat packing. 

By 1920, Hormel beat out the south Saint Paul stockyards to lead the state’s meat-packing industry. In the year 2000, only two other states raised and marketed more pork.” * 

Lord, thank You for George Hormel, and his business to make food available and more affordable to more people. Bless his heritage, those who worked with him, competed with him, and the places that they worked. Will You bless the animals, past, present, and future of Minnesota? Will You bless the farms and farmers who raise any animal that is used for food? Will You bless the packers, and all who work in the meat-packing industry?

* http://www.mnhs.org/about/dipity_timeline.htm

 

 

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19th Century, Architecture, History, Intercession, Judgment & Counter-Judgment Cycle, Labor, Minnesota, omnipresent history

James J. Hill House Completed

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1891

“Rugged stone, massive scale, fine detail, and ingenious mechanical systems recall the powerful presence of James J. Hill, builder of the Great Northern Railway. Completed in 1891, the red sandstone residence was the setting of the public and private lives of the Hill family.” *

Lord, what is the importance of home construction in Your economy?  Albeit this is an impressive home, but why does it matter now? Will You guide my heart and mind toward Your thoughts on the matter?

Eternal Father, a commencement thought; our home reflects our character. Mr. Hill spent much his life on the epic tasks of building a railway. His home reflects a willingness to solve difficult problems: custom shaping stones, miles of board feet of trim, and making a castle comfortable enough to live in Minnesota’s weather extremes. 

So I want to bless the heritage of Mr. Hill’s patience, long-range planning, and tenacity to face both expected and unexpected problems.I want to bless the myriad of workmen who truly put their sweat and soul into their trades to make this home exceptional. Will You bless them and all their generations of tradesmen in the present? Will You help us view the trades as an act of worship?

I’m reminded that my Messiah chose to be a carpenter, and apprenticed under His earthly father. (Joseph) Will You help us, especially men, see that worship is not just obscure and ancient songs and rituals in a church, but in fitting pipes, framing walls, running electrical lines, and every kind of working with our hands? May all who labor in tasks that go unseen and unnoticed be blessed this day in Jesus’ name! 

Another idea that attaches to character; we can build to serve a function, or build to impress others. Lord, I will not condemn this man for the pursuit of greatness. I think You get the credit when we succeed at exceptional endeavors, I think a fractal of the light of Your character shines through any human who dares to do what they love.

But Lord hear this prayer, our lives are often like homes! We build for ‘curb appeal’. We erect lovely facades. We spend considerable time and effort on the way things look to the detriment of the way things are. We already possess the favor of the King of the Universe, but how we work for the favor of our fellow human beings?! 

Will You forgive James J. Hill the past sins of empire building? Will You release his heritage, our state, and even the ground that those objects of empire occupy from separations past, present, and future? Will You forgive us for the empire building in our hearts? Will You forgive us for maintaining facades we build to our own greatness? Will You help us humbly acknowledge the efforts others have spent in our successes? Father, have mercy! Christ, have mercy! Counselor, have mercy!

* http://www.mnhs.org/about/dipity_timeline.htm

 

 

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19th Century, Exploration, History, Intercession, Judgment & Counter-Judgment Cycle, Minnesota, omnipresent history, State Government

Itasca State Park Established 1891

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1891

“Conservationists win a bitter fight against lumber interests to establish Itasca, Minnesota’s first state park, at the headwaters of the Mississippi River.” * 

“Even after Schoolcraft’s discovery, a few other explorers claimed they had found the source in various tributaries of Lake Itasca. The controversy continued until 1889 when Jacob V. Brower studied the topography of the Itasca basin. He concluded that several creeks do contribute to Lake Itasca, but only at the lake’s outlet is a river formed. To learn more about his great North American River, stop at the interpretive center next to the parking lot before leaving. A souvenir shop is located in the same complex.

Brower struggled for years to preserve Itasca. In 1891, the legislature established Itasca State Park. It is Minnesota’s first state park, and one of the oldest in the country. But Brower, appointed the first park commissioner, received no pay and no funds or support to make the park a reality. Logging companies muscled their way into the park and began to clear-cut the timber. It wasn’t until 1919 that the major logging operations were completed. Today, however, there are still stands of virgin red and white pine in the park with some of the oldest and largest pine trees in Minnesota.”**

Help me with this, Lord of the Forests! I’m neither a man of the woods or of the city, but have empathies with both. What shall I pray?

First, let me say thanks for the discovery or rediscovery of the source of the Mississippi. May You bless this river, and keep, and make Your face shine on it! Thanks for the creation that it has blessed and upheld! Thanks for this pathway across our nation! 

I thank You that You are not offended by our science! I thank You that You do not bristle at our questions! I thank You that, though You may hide the truth for a time, You bless those that earnestly seek it. 

With this in mind, will You bless Schoolcraft, Brower, and any other unnamed or unrecorded explorer for the source of the Mississippi? Will You bless their heritage of family, friends, and any who would follow in their path to study and discover new aspects of this Creation?

Also, I ask Your blessing on those who sought to gather a harvest from this land. Every human on the face of this planet uses its resources on a daily basis. Thankou for those who worked the logging camps, fished, hunted, mined, or sought a better life in this region. Will You also bless their heritage of people who gather resources or repurpose those resources?

And here comes the guardian lie, that the motives of the former are superior to the latter, or that the actions of the latter are superior to the former, etc. You have made some to explore, some to study, some to harvest, some to gather, some to refine what is gathered, but NONE can claim superiority! We are all independently dependent on the Author of Life! We are necessary parts of the same body, but we have failed to recognize this, acknowledge this point of separation, or seek forgiveness, or give honor where it is due. 

Will You forgive us of our zealous judgements and counter-judgements regarding the land use of Itasca? Will you forgive our arrogance towards our neighbor for whom Christ rose and highly esteems? Will You remove the curses that have bound this land, this state, and this river? Will You help us remember the wisdom that You already have given regarding land? ***

** http://mntrails.com/trail-log/itasca-state-park-log

*** See “The Year of Jubilee Leviticus 25 http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt0325.htm

 

 

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19th Century, Business, History, Intercession, Logging, Minnesota, omnipresent history

Lumber Giant 1891

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1891

“German immigrant Frederick Weyerhaeuser, one of the most powerful men in American lumbering, moves his offices to St. Paul. Skilled at bringing competitors together in huge undertakings, he makes heavy investments in Minnesota timber and mills before moving on to the Pacific Northwest.” * 

Lord, I believe every person makes an impact on the future. Therefore, every Minnesotan has made an impact this state and it’s consciousness. I am a bit awed by the impact Weyerhauser made on St. Paul and Minnesota!

I can imagine the moxie it took to set up the processing of all the logs that were floated down the Mississippi. Or to have the courage to sign a land deed to purchase 900,000 acres. That’s an astronomical responsibility.

When a man or woman is so dedicated and effective in their field, they cultivate both admirers and critics. Will You forgive St. Paul and all areas that Mr. Weyerhauser impacted of our judgments’ towards him? Will You also forgive any injustices committed by him, or his company towards Minnesotans? We, too often, love the ideal of success, but are fearful and jealous of the successful in practice. Forgive us this foible! 

May You bless the heritage of Weyerhauser and all who partook in the logging industry on the Mississippi! May we learn from their mistakes, and have Your insights on how to better use our land, timber, and all wood by-products. Thank You for this precious resource! 

* http://www.mnhs.org/about/dipity_timeline.htm

 

 

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19th Century, History, Indian, Intercession, Minnesota, Native Americans

Farmers Flee Ojibwe 1891

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1891

“Fearing an Indian uprising, throngs of people flee the Red River Valley. The sheriff of Kittson County requests rifles, the roads jam, and panic ensues. The gathering of Ojibwe turns out to be a peaceful annual ceremony.” * 

Lord this seems like a very human reaction: fearing the unknown neighbor. I acknowledge this fear, of this moment, as sin. This judgment of the Ojibwe celebration appears quite rash, and based on incomplete information. Will You forgive us our judgments then and bring blessing to all descendants of those who panicked or were simply preparing a party; a pow-wow? Will You rebuild to the trust, neighbor to neighbor in Kittson county?

Also, forgive us in the present! We often suspect those of a differing upbringing, thereby not giving them the benefit of the doubt we do to those who are more familiar. We make assumptions based on incomplete facts that unnecessarily alienate us from each other. Christ have mercy! Will You give us the grace to know each other in Minnesota? 

* http://www.mnhs.org/about/dipity_timeline.htm

 

 

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