ASK ARLO: What was the Town Between Revillo and Strandburg?

Ask Arlo September 5, 2019 Arlo Levisen 0

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Arlo Levisen is the President of the Grant County Historical Society. He has extensive knowledge on the history of the area, including: Grant County... ASK ARLO: What was the Town Between Revillo and Strandburg?

Arlo Levisen is the President of the Grant County Historical Society. He has extensive knowledge on the history of the area, including: Grant County History, Big Stone Lake History, the History of the Holland Grist Mill, the History of the Milbank Congregational Church and much more! Send in your questions. Arlo will have the answers!

Why was Thompson started between Revillo and Strandberg? I understand they had a hotel. C.P.

The name of the town was WILSON, not Thompson.  It came into being in 1882 as a place for workers building the railroad, the Winona and St. Peter, coming in from Minnesota, making it’s way to Watertown and points west.
The town, itself, did not last very long, some over a decade – not quite into the early 1900’s.  Almost all of the structures were built for the railroad workers, including a fairly large dormitory, which certainly could be considered a hotel.
There was a post office, eating establishments, stables and other basic services designed to meet the more specific needs of these workers.  Once that need changed over time, due to the progress of the railroad to the west, these services were no longer needed.  As well, with the establishment of both Revillo and Strandburg, in 1884, both “stand-alone” communities, there was just too much competition for another real business community to survive economically.
Perhaps longer remembered was the WILSON BRIDGE, over the South Branch of the Yellowbanks River – just east of the Wilson Townsite and east of SD HW #15.  The railroaders constructed this huge wooden bridge in the 1880’s and it lasted until it was demolished in 1967.
About author

Arlo Levisen

Arlo Levisen currently serves as the president of the Grant County Historical Society. He was born in Milbank in 1944 and grew up on his family's farm just east of Stockholm. Arlo attended school in Stockholm, Milbank, and South Shore. In 1967, he graduated from Northern State College with a B.S. degree in Elementary Education and History. He also earned degrees in Elementary School Administration and School Superintendency. He was employed as the Grant-Deuel School Superintendent from 1990 until his retirement in 2005. He and his wife, Paulette, reside near Big Stone Lake. They have two children and four grandchildren.

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