Virginia High School - Rohian / Star Of The North Yearbook (Virginia, MN)

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'xt , X, . Aff' uf- ,,,1' I . xxx' fi, M'?r,:ccit--,....QTI't It WMHC Ng Mi A A 'V ' ' A iiii A A iiiii W V I R G I I A Northern City with a Southern Name As we consider the history of the City of Virginia, the first question which arises in our minds is under what circumstances the name was selected. Humphreys was the first name suggested in honor of Mr. A. E. Humphreys, President of the Virginia Improvement Company, the Company which sold the first lots of the original eighty acres. At a meeting held in Duluth on July 10, 1892, David T. Adams, one of the promoters and a pioneer prospector on the Range, proposed the name of Virginia, stating that the town was platted in a vir- gin country surrounded for miles by virgin pine and also honoring Mr. Humphreys because he was a native of the State of Virginia. The first settlers arrived here in the spring of 1892. Because of iron ore de- posits all through this region, it was seen that a town so centrally located would form an excellent site for a center of the ore mining industry of the Range. 1 ,. Y , .. - anis, Y, 7,1 Vin- . . l K MISSABE MOUNTAIN On July 12, 1892, the plat of the town and the name of Virginia were adopted. Following a petition for the incorporation of the City of Virginia, made September 12, 1892, and signed by forty-four inhabit- ants, the Board of County Commissioners on November 12th of the same year voted to incorporate Virginia as a village. During the fall and winter of 1892 the little city was greatly hindered by the lack of facilities to transport goods and equip- ment. The Duluth and Iron Range Rail- road ran from Duluth through Mesaba and thence to Ely, but it was too far east for Virginia.. On the west the Merritt Broth- ers Railroad-now the Duluth, Missabe, and Northern Railway-came to Mountain Iron to remove iron ore from that vicinity. The passenger service was of the very best for that day. Stage coaches connected points on the Duluth and Iron Range with the IN OLDEN TIMES Duluth, Missabe and Northern. But in 1893 a spur was constructed from Wolf Junction to Virginia, aiding greatly the now rapidly growing village. In 1895 the Duluth and Iron Range also reached Virginia to aid in the ore industry. The mining interests were centered in two mines, the Sauntry Mine and the Lone Jack Mine, which were the first to load ore in Virginia. They were operated by the .,..... ff , , -... . .a , 3-...f,L'fff f' 'Q VW W'A ?,,.,,,,,,,.,.,.,,,,,,,,,,.W.,i..,s,,WM.W..,,,MM,,.,, ,,,,, . ..,,...,...,, N ,,,,.,,..,,.,,,.,,,,,.M.a.WW, A f ...... ffvf ,afff-1aniAf f-.L.gag,fff'--..'4y14111114110f,,L..:,.:,,4a,ff.L:g:::25z4F1'ff21:z,.g.fi i 'f 7ff'f' f-ff Jwfvififf' W'---li?--f.::,L3' -ffvM2v:.p:2f '-.-.--f2:w21'f:f0'-an ,.... ,.,.,,, ,,,,,.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,., ,,.,,,. ,.,,,.,, ,,,,,,,,, ,,,, .W , ,,,,,,,,.,,,. .,,,,. . , - - - ,,,fff,,.. .W..aM-.-Ww:5g,m-v-f-wwf--m--,--f- W- f-f----f-f f 1-.-1f -, W. ,,,,....,. WM, ,,.,., N, ,.,. ,7 ,N x

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X-a..M r,,,f V5 WLM .,,.... Q21 IIII h-, 1111111 ,v111 11, 111 , 11, ,gf,Q:x1 11111 ,111111 Y-,1:11 1111 11111 ....... '-'- - ' ' '--''- -------------------- - ---- '-f'--f f - .1 '- 'ff H f ' ffff--- ------------ '-- ry ---- '--f- f ------ - ---'--' - -----v----f'-'-'- V - 'f-f-f--v ' '-vf'-v--' --f - V V --f--'v-- X THF 1:7 THE OLD CITY HALL AND JAIL Oliver Iron Mining Company which still operates here. In 1917 these mines were taken over by the state interests and the name of Missabe Mountain-the Indian name for big hill -was given to them. Mining was not long to be the only indus- try in Virginia, for late in 1892 the Finlay- son lurrrber mill was built. Proximity to the source of lumber, housing facilities for workers, a natural mill pond, and fire pro- tection all contributed towards making Virgina an ideal lumbering center. Virginia in 1893 was progressing very rapidly. Water pipes were laid, forming a -W ' THE CENTRAL SCHOOL source of water for the residents and an aid to the volunteer fire department. A police department had been organized before this. Fate was not kind to the little city, for at noon Sunday, June 18, 1893, the mill whistle gave warning of a menacing fire. The mill became a raging inferno which spread to the town. By noon the next day Virginia had been completely destroyed. Immediately the people formulated plans and in two years Virginia had become a greater and a finer town than ever before. In 1895 Virginia was incorporated as a city. Electric lights were installed in the homes and on the streets during that same year. The Virginia school district number 22 was organized in 1893. This later became THE LINCOLN BUILDING known as the Independent School District of Virginia Number 22. The Central School on the corner of Third Avenue and Second Street South was one of the first schools and was built in 1893 following the iirst fire. The Primary School, dedicated in 1898, stood Where the new Lincoln School, erected in 1923, now stands on First Street North and Third Avenue. Where the fire hall now stands on Fourth Avenue between Chestnut Street and First Street North, there was erected in 1895 a frame building to house the volunteer fire department, the police department, and the City Hall. This building was replaced by the present structure in 1908. Increasing operations in the ore mining industry and in lumbering had caused the population to increase so rapidly that by 1900 the census report showed five thousand people. 07! , ,..,,,..,,.,, .,...,. ,.,,.,. , , .....,,,,,.,,,,.,,,., ..,,, ,,,,,,,,...,,.,,,,...,.,,,.,,..,,...,,,,,,,,,,,... . ..,, . . W.- ,,,,....,.,,, ,WW..WWW.., ? f f an ,vli AWA333333V.lZ 'LD Zzlf:::1gl',I My L H4,x,,.7,, ,,.,,. Vllill X ,..,,,,v.,:::,f,,mg,p,k'Xx2 .-,L ,..,,, .,....., , .,...,....,,,,,,.,.,.,,.. W ..,,,, ,.,,, ......... , WN, .,..,.,, ....,.. N .................. N N.....N,.w,W, .....,..... ff, .,,, - ,ffr 1 ,,fff,ff, ff.ff rfrr . . ,,f-f f,-, W mf -ffff fm 2 ffi' ,, ,, , 7 9'-Z