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June 10, 1999
By SARA SYVERSON Journal Staff Writer NEW ULM -- Restoration work continues on a former gasoline station located behind the Brown County Historical Museum in New Ulm. The building is a 1938 Art Deco style service garage/car dealership once owned by the Retzlaff family of New Ulm. The vision the Brown County Historical Society had for the building was to restore it to create an area to display transportation artifacts. The site would also house a workshop and meeting room and create additional storage space for the museum's collections. The Brown County Historical Society received a financial grant from ICETEA enhancement funding by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. These funds were used towards the purchase and renovation work of the building. In addition, the Historical Society started a capital campaign to raise the rest of the money necessary for the restoration/renovation project. The project received an award from the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota in 1998 because it made use of an existing historical building by renovating the interior for modern use, according to Brown County Historical Museum Curator Pam Krzmarzick. Every year the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota awards various historical sites with this honor and there were a total of 10 other historical sites who received this award this year. "It's still being completed (the building)," said Krzmarzick, "This year they will be working on the front part of the building." The project was initiated under the leadership of Vicki Pieser in 1995. The grant for ICETEA funding was written in 1995. The Brown County Historical Society had wanted to purchase the building since the 1980s, according to Krzmarzick. "We've needed more and better storage area at the museum," said Krzmarzick, "Last fall we moved everything over to the storage area in the new building." The transportation exhibit area will show museum visitors the kinds of vehicles that were used from the 1850s to the present. The transportation exhibit will feature such things as an old-style gasoline pump, obsolete signage, and various artifacts of the horse and buggy age, the steamboat era, the railroad years, and the expansion of the super highway system throughout the county. A 1934 Dodge truck was purchased and is slowly being returned to operating condition. The vehicle will be used in parades. Krzmarzick said the meeting room in the new building is available to the public for rental. Artstone, a New Ulm company, completed the craftsmanship of the exterior in the 1930s, Krzmarzick said. Wilcon Construction Company, of St. James has been doing the work on the building. The architect for the project is James Kagermeir of Mankato. Restoration of Retzlaff building continues |