‘Tales from Pioneers & Soldiers Cemetery’ Archives
Potter”'s Field Tales no less rich and fascinating! Generosity doesn”'t tell it all!
By Sue Hunter Weir There are 350 people buried in the cemetery”'s Potters Field whose remains were used as research subjects in anatomy courses at the University of Minnesota during the years 1914-1916. They were, to the say the least, a colorful lot: homeless men, prison inmates, men who were both the instigators and victims of crime. If they had one characteristic that they share was their social isolation; when they died, their bodies went unclaimed by friends or family. Other traits that many, though not all of them, shared, were alcoholism, mental illness and the effects of poverty. In the early part of the last century, state law required the county coroner to turn over the remains of anyone whose body went unclaimed to medical schools. Because so many people believed that their bodies and souls were to be reunited on Judgment Day, the idea of dissection was, for the majority of people, unthinkable. As a result, there was a shortage of cadavers which [...]
Bra·vo! Bra·vo! Bra·vis·si·mo!
By Sue Hunter Weir It was an event like no other in Minneapolis. As far as we know the concert on October 8th was the first rock concert ever held in a Minneapolis cemetery. And, what a concert it was! It was one of those days when everything came together: beautiful weather, fantastic music and a wonderful, wonderful crowd. How big was the crowd? Our best estimate is that 1,500 people attended. We sold about 900 advance tickets and between three and four hundred tickets at the gates. Kids under twelve and volunteers got in free. Many who attended said that, although they had driven past the cemetery hundreds of times, this was the first time they”'d stopped into the grounds. Many also told us that they had no idea how much history could be learned there. One of the big hits of the day was the smartphone history hunt which enabled people to use their phones to learn more about 25 of the people buried in the cemetery. Kids had their own history hunt and could get their [...]
It”'s the “The Cat”'s Meow””“ Jeremy Messersmith in Concert on “Graveyard Stage” at Cedar and Lake
By Sue Hunter Weir We are honored to have Jeremy Messersmith on the “Graveyard Stage” preceeded by Lucy Michelle and the Velvet Lapelles perform as part of a Cemetery Open House Gate Saturday, October 8th in conjunction with the Partners in Preservation Voting. Ticket sale proceeds will be used to continue our 1,853 foot fence restoration project. Jeremy”'s performance will include, without hesitation, songs from his most recent album, “The Reluctant Graveyard.” “The Reluctant Graveyard,” was named as one of the top ten albums of 2010 by National Public Radio”'s “All Songs Considered” and best local album by the Star Tribune. Some of the songs on “The Reluctant Graveyard,” including “Toussaint Grey,” were inspired by inhabitants of Minneapolis Pioneers and Soldiers Cemetery. Chris Riemenschneider, music critic for the Minneapolis Tribune, predicts that “this should be one of the most [...]
