In lieu of a program for today, Russ Smith asked if Rachael Martin would update our club on the sale of the museum building. Naturally, she began with a history lesson.
Our club member, Henry Walter, formed a committee of the Cloquet Rotary Club to organize the Carlton County Historical Society in 1949. At first they were housed in the County Sheriff's office, then the Courthouse, then the Haubner building in Carlton, then in the Garfield School in Cloquet. When they had to leave the Garfield School due to FDLTCC moving in, the Cloquet Public Library had just built a new building and were planning to vacate the old library building on Cloquet Avenue. So the City of Cloquet sold the old library building to the County for $1 to house the Carlton County Historical Society in 1987, and the museum people moved in the same day the library people moved out. Over the years, the old library building, built in 1919, has deteriorated and the county now finds it a financial burden. Although the County's building agreement with the historical society comes up for renewal in 9 years, the County Commissioners voted to put the building up for sale on May 29, and gave the historical society notice to vacate by August 6. The historical society was not prepared for this sudden development, and is now seeking a place to relocate. If anyone knows of a place available, please contact Rachael as soon as possible. After the 4-Way Test, the meeting adjourned.
Excerpts taken from the Cloquet Rotary log, edited by Rachael Martin