10 years ago (2010)
•The National Weather Service determined Monday that Friday night’s storm damage was caused by straight-line winds gusting up to 80 mph.
Uprooted trees and destroyed buildings were thought to be the work of a tornado, but meteorologist Todd Heitkamp said strong winds were to blame.
“I didn’t see any evidence on the ground or on radar of any tornadic activity,” said Heitkamp, warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service.
“Most of the damage I saw was due to strong, straight-line winds.”
The weather terminology — tornado vs. strong winds — didn’t change the outcome for storm victims.
Kelly and Sarah Schmidt saw the most severe storm damage on their farm northwest of Hardwick.
The house, barn and several outbuildings were destroyed, and trees— including large cotton-woods—were stripped, damaged and even uprooted.
The Schmidts were gone on a family vacation Friday night, so no one was hurt when the storm came through around 10:20 p.m.
25 years ago (1995)
•A Veterans Memorial Park and monument was approved by the Luverne City Council Monday, to be constructed on the west side of the pond behind the Veterans Nursing Home.
The council voted unanimously to approve the project, presented by Warren Herreid, the spokesman of the Rock County Veterans Group. He presented the council with a drawing done by George Bonnema, owner of Luverne Flowers.
Although Herreid did not know how much the total project would cost, he assured the council his group could pledge up to $15,000 toward the project.
That money would finance the concrete for the sidewalks, the monument site, a flagpole and some landscaping. He also said donations to the project have been made.
50 years ago (1970)
•A Hardwick area farm family lost most of their clothing, their bedroom furniture, and other belongings when fire gutted the second floor of their home Friday afternoon.
Mr. and Mrs. Myron Arp, and their seven children found a temporary place to live in a vacant house on a nearby farm, but that provided little consolation as they viewed the devastation that the blaze had caused.
The family had attended the funeral of Mrs. Arp’s uncle, John Kindt, in Jasper that afternoon. They came home, sat down for a cup of coffee, and Mr. Arp decided to go out to the field. Mrs. Arp was in her kitchen when 11-year-old daughter, Lorilee, came running in from the out of doors and cried out that fire was coming out of one of the upstairs windows. Mrs. Arp immediately called the Hardwick fire department, and one of the boys went out to get his father from the field.
The blaze had progressed to the point that it would have been dangerous to go upstairs. They managed to move out some of the downstairs furniture, however.
Firemen kept the house form burning to the ground, but the entire second floor was gutted.
75 years ago (1945)
•Arie Berkhoff, farmer living near Steen, suffered a crushed right foot last week, when he was over run by a tractor. Berkhoff had stopped to grease the machine, and had the work nearly completed when apparently the clutch released, throwing the tractor into gear. He was thrown under the tractor, but managed to grab hold of the shifting lever and stop it before it could go farther. He was taken to Rock Rapids hospital, and it will be about six or seven weeks before he will be able to do much work.
100 years ago (1920)
•Starting with August 1st, the Urquhart-Fleming Motor Co., of this city, will take over the agency for the Fordson tractors in connection with selling rights for the Ford automobiles.
For the past year the agency for the Fordson tractors in this territory has been held by a Worthington company, who have covered this county through sub-agencies. But the contract for this arrangement expires with the close of the present month, and the new arrangement expires with the close of the present month, and the new arrangement has been made in conformity with the policy of the Ford company to have all its products handled by an exclusive agency.
The Urquhart-Fleming company will have the same territory for the Fordson tractors as for the Ford automobiles, which is all of Rock county and the western half of Nobles county.
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