This document is an evolving work about a river and a steamboat and lumber man who built a house overlooking the St. Croix River.
The St. Croix River rises in the northwestern corner of Wisconsin, out of Upper St. Croix Lake in Douglas County, near Solon Springs, approximately 20 miles (32 km) south of Lake Superior. It flows south to Gordon, then southwest. It is joined by the Namekagon River in northern Burnett County, where it becomes significantly wider. A few miles downstream the St. Croix meets the boundary between Minnesota and Wisconsin, which it demarcates for another 130 miles (210 km) until its confluence with the Mississippi River.
The 1837 Treaty of St. Peters with the Ojibwe was signed at St. Peters (now Mendota) which ceded to the United States government a vast tract of land in what today is north central Wisconsin and east central Minnesota, roughly bounded by the Prairie du Chien Line in the south, Mississippi River in the west, St. Croix and Chippewa River watersheds in the north, and a 25-mile parallel east of the Wisconsin River in the east. This opened the region to logging. The river was important to the transportation of lumber downstream, from the areas where it was being cut to the sawmills that processed it. During the 1840s, important sawmills were located at St. Croix Falls and Marine on St. Croix, but as the 1850s progressed Stillwater became the primary lumber destination. During this time the population of Stillwater boomed, several additional sawmills were opened, and the town saw an influx of capital, primarily from lumber companies based downriver in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1856 construction began on a boom site two miles north of Stillwater, which was used to store and sort the lumber floating downstream and remained in operation for over fifty years.[1]:102 The St. Croix Boom Site is now a wayside rest and National Historic Landmark along Minnesota State Highway 95.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Croix_River_%28Wisconsin%E2%80%93Minnesota%29
Buying the Mansion, A “Monster House”
The St. Croix River flows to the east of Stillwater, Minnesota and to the west of the State of Wisconsin. In 1990 the man of this story, and the woman whom he then called Wife_v1.18 bought their Stillwater Victorian Mansion located up on the South Hill bluff that overlooked the St. Croix River. The Mansion was on the hill south of the Myrtle Street West road which lays in the valley climbing out of Stillwater and heading west towards Mahatomedi and White Bear Lake. They bought their Mansion (the “Monster House”) in 1990 when he was forty years old and his wife was two years younger than her husband. Their son was age 11 and their daughter was age 5. The purchase resulted in the children being moved from the Mahtomedi school district to the Stillwater school district.
Prior to buying the Victorian Manson, the man and wife spent many a Saturday and Sunday driving throughout Washington County in search of a new home. When they pulled their car up to a particularly large house, the husband would remark “That’s a Monster House”. Having finally settled upon moving to Stillwater, it took some time before they finally found several houses that might be acceptable but were not exactly what they had in mind. The realtor suggested the couple look at the Victorian Mansion although the man and wife were fairly certain that they were not going to purchase a Victorian home as they had not been drawn to any they had looked at to this point. The children were along for this visit to the Victorian. When the family drove up to the house, the man uttered the words “It’s a Monster House”, whereupon the daughter, sitting in the back seat of the car with her brother, burst into tears and wailed: “I don’t want to live in a Monster’s house!” It was explained to the little girl that her father meant that the house was very huge, not that it belonged to monsters.
Not too long after the purchase of the house, the son declared that there was a secret passage in the house. “It’s in the basement.” he declared. The man and wife asked him to point out where the passage was located. They went to the basement and the boy pointed to a metal plate that had been affixed to the chimney to cover an opening made for a stove pipe in the past. “Take that cover off and you can climb in there and get into the passage.” the boy insisted. The man and wife took their son a short distance into the adjacent room housing the boiler that heated water to make steam for the radiators still used for heating the house. There, they pointed out the other side of the chimney opposite the metal plate, showing their son that there was no passage that connected to the other side of the chimney.
Legend of the Upper Cave Entrance
There is a Stillwater legend persisting to this very day of one particular house built upon the bluff west of Stillwater upon an open cave entrance that the wealthy owner had incorporated behind a cleverly disguised secret panel in the basement. Perhaps that legend is the source of the son’s believing that upper entrance did indeed lead from the Mansion down through the mushroom and beer caves of a newly founded and thriving Stillwater. Such are the imaginings of an eleven year old boy.
1848 Stillwater Founded
Stillwater was platted in 1848, a town of about 600 people, nearly all lumbermen.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stillwater,_Minnesota
http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy&hl=en&q=1848+Stillwater+Founded&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=1848+Stillwater+Founded&psj=1&fp=8b4d4706f280eb45
http://projects.wchsmn.org/communities/stillwater/
By way of comparison, Saint Paul was platted in 1847; two years later it was named the capital of the Minnesota Territory and incorporated as a town. Saint Paul received its city charter in 1854 and when Minnesota became a state in 1858, the city retained its status as state capital. By the start of the Civil War, 10,000 people lived in Saint Paul. Saint Paul has the reputation of it being “born of whiskey”.
[01.001.03 St. Paul, Born of Whiskey]
Google Books Page
Asa Batchelder Story
Was it actually Asa Batchelder who commissioned the house to be built in 1861 prior to returning home to fight in the Civil War? Or was it the husband of Anne Batchelder who was the bride of a steamboat Pilot? Who actually built the Mansion is still a mystery. One likely suspect that fits most of the evidence is Asa Batchelder.
310 BATCHELDER GENEALOGY.
1950. ASA BATCHELDER (Stephen, Stephen, James, John, Stephen, Nathaniel, Nathaniel, Stephen), b. Wellington, Me., July 17, 1S35; m. at West Levant, Me., April 2, 1865, Sara A. Bartlett, b. March 20, 1845. He was educated in common school, Levant, Me. ; at seventeen began work as ship carpenter, Brewer, Me. ; in spring of ’55 went to Pennsylvania, engaged in lumber business for one year; in spring of ’56 went to Minnesota and was engaged in steamboating for two years; then returned to Maine and resumed ship carpentry as an occupation until he enlisted in the First Maine Heavy Artillery in July 30, 1862; served three years as private; never lost day’s duty, was never on sick list; was in Salisbury prison for six months; was married at close of war; moved to Lancaster, N. H. ; manufactured oars until 1881, when he moved with his family to So. Stillwater, Minn. ; have made business sojourns through most of the western states. Res. So. Stillwater, Minn.
http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/frederick-clifton-pierce/batchelder-batcheller-genealogy-descendants-of-rev-stephen-bachiler-of-engla-rei/page-49-batchelder-batcheller-genealogy-descendants-of-rev-stephen-bachiler-of-engla-rei.shtml
1861 Building a Stillwater Mansion
One theory is that the house records of construction and that the confusion of memories has set the year as 1861 when it was, in fact, the year was 1881.
1863 Expanding a Stillwater Mansion
18?? Second Owners of Mansion
One of the brothers was a doctor or veterinarian and the other had a reputation as a drinker. He used to toss his empty whiskey bottles into the cistern to hide his drinking. They might have lived in bachelor pads divided out of the Batchelder Mansion™ up on Chestnut Hill. It was prudent to live up on the hill because of the flooding down below in the valley carved by the St. Croix river valley during the times of the melting of the glaciers. It was during the times of the onrush of the hardwood forests of the St. Croix river valley that the story really begins.
1957 or ’58 Third Owners of Mansion
L bought the house from the Batchelder boys who were old men by this time.
1983 or ’84 Fourth Owners of Mansion
The son R who owns an old home restoration business bought the house from his father L.
1990 Fifth Owners of Mansion
The Mansion™ was bought from a man R who had, a few years previously, bought the Mansion from his father L. Now it had come to pass many years before that L had bought the home from the Batchelder boys, who were the sons of the a riverboat Captain, like his father and grandfather before him. By fanciful daydreaming, probably descended from several generations of riverboat Captains spread back up the Ohio river valley going back to the times of the Revolutionary War and before that the original Batchelder Patriarch who came over on the Mayflower.
1991 Sunroom Begun
The surface of the Earth is covered with gravity wells that collect rainwater runoff. One such rain catchment area up Brown’s Creek way provides drinking water for the downtown residents of Stillwater. Brown’s Creek flows into the St. Croix River. In this manner did the man drink routinely of the waters of the St. Croix River. When a man drinks the waters of a place for long enough it may be truly said that man has that watershed in his blood. The man became a man of the St. Croix River valley.
1992 Sunroom Underway
It became the Spring of 1992.
1993 Batchelder Boys Visit
Lyle working in yard, sunroom had been added (1991)
summer of 1993
Batchelder boys stopped by. Their mother painted the woodwork in the living room because she thought it was too dark. Stained to match the Cherry fireplace mantle.
2nd Owner — relative of Batchelder. Two brothers (grandpa and great uncle of boys who visited.
2000 Man Runs Against Michelle Bachman/h3>
The man ran against Michelle Bachman for the seat of Minnesota State Senator. He lost that election. Perhaps there exist Washington County residents who would now change their vote if History had Rewind and Replay buttons.
2004 Man and Wife_v1.32 List Mansion For Sale
2005 Man And Wife_v1.33 Sell Mansion
2011 Man And Wife_v1. Board Shakespeare™
The Shakespeare™ lay floating cross-wise to the current with her fore ramp lay upon the dock. [...to be continued]
–
Sunday, February 6, 2011 01.001.03 Stillwater, Minnesota, Saint Croix River
THE END — Stillwater, Minnesota, St. Croix River
RESOURCES FOR FUTURE EXPLORATION
http://www.mnhs.org/people/photographers/galleries.htm
This URL provides a comprehensive list of known photographers in Minnesota.
Black & Batchelder
Locations:
Address:
Halmrast Brothers
Principal: Halmrast, Gustav
Principal: Halmrast, Andrew
Locations:
Address: 531 Washington Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dates of operation: 1894
Address: 114 South Second, Stillwater, Minnesota
Dates of operation: 1894-1897, 1900-1901
Decades Worked in Minnesota: 1890s; 1900s
Halmrast Photo Studio
Principal: Halmrast, Gustav
Locations:
Address: 114 South Second, Stillwater, Minnesota
Dates of operation: 1914-1915
Decades Worked in Minnesota: 1910sHalmrast Studio
Principal: Halmrast, Andrew E.
Principal: Halmrast, Eilif
Principal: Halmrast, Ragnhild
Locations:
Address: 1429 East Franklin, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Address: 2843 Bloomington Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dates of operation: 1943-1957
Decades Worked in Minnesota: 1890s; 1900s; 1910s; 1920s; 1930s; 1940s; 1950s
Notes: Established by Andrew E. Halmrast in 1890s, continued by Eilif Halmrast in 1930s and 1940s, and continued by Ragnhild Halmrast in 1940s and 1950s.Halmrast Studio of Photography
Locations:
Address: 1619 East Lake, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dates of operation: 1974
Decades Worked in Minnesota: 1910s
