Clarks Grove holds potluck dinner and final meeting for 2025

There was a very somber and quiet get-together and potluck dinner at the Clarks Grove Historical Society’s Museum on Thursday, Oct. 9. What started at 6 p.m. went until after sundown on this chilly autumn evening.

 

“Those crockpots were full when I brought them in,” one of the guests said. Another asked, “What did you put in this?” indicating they might want the recipe later. There was a single bucket of KFC’s regular chicken, and a big tray of cookies from Sam’s Club. The rest, two Calico Bean hotdishes-crockpots-, ham sandwich sliders, sweet potato casserole, tater tot hotdish, buns and accompanying butter, and sunflower salad were all homemade. For dessert, there were pumpkin bars and brownies.

 

Usually for these get-togethers there is an agenda and a meeting and a presentation, for example last June Dale Peterson, the one-time Freeborn County Fuller Brush Man described some of his experiences. But for tonight,  Peterson sat and ate, discussing the news or the museum. One story of note, discussed over Calico and bread was told by  Bob Hanson, “For my college dissertation in 1961, we had to cover a business, and I opted for this new sports team, the Washington Senators, which later changed their name to the Minnesota Twins when they moved here. My teacher got me a meeting with certain people affiliated with the team. We were presented with the new hat designs for the team, and on those baseball hats were the letters, MT for Minnesota Twins. We looked at each other and thought, ‘People are going to look at us wearing those hats and think, “empty.” So, they ended up not using that design and went with the letters TC. Years later it occurred to me that I had that hat in my hands and never thought to keep it.” There was a collective gasp in the room as people realized his mistake and agreed with him, making comments like, “That would be worth so much money now.”

 

There were simply too many cookies on that tray, so that one went back to its owner about a quarter empty, there wasn’t much else left. There was no hurry to leave once the plates were emptied, coffee was poured, and bottles of water were passed out and a story or two more were told.

 

With the potluck checked off the schedule, the Clarks Grove museum will be closing its doors for the winter, for anyone who wishes to visit they can do so but it has to be by appointment. Kathy Jensen will be the lady to call, and she can be reached at 507-256-8011; she says to be sure and leave a message if she doesn’t answer. Otherwise the simplest course for a visit will be to wait until May, when the doors will be open again for regular hours