The Glaeve Family Moves to West Saint Paul

 

Grandpa left Cass Lake for St. Paul sometime in 1925.  His intent was to find a job and a place to live before bringing the family. Did they sell the farm?  Were they renting or did they own the house in Cass Lake? Many questions remain, including why and how he chose West St. Paul.  Did he hear of a job? Did someone he knew live there?  My hunch is that it may have been a suggestion made by his pastor.  One of  the pastors serving their congregation was a Siebert and one of Dad's playmates was a Siebert.  Check on Siebert in Cass Lake and one of the famous sons of Cass Lake is Dick Siebert who became quite a baseball player at the University of Minnesota.  Dick later played professional baseball and followed his professional career as a much celebrated coach of the Gopher's baseball team.  So celebrated that upon his retirement, they named the baseball field after him, and to this day it is known as Siebert Field.  So there is much we don't know but hope to find out. 

 

Fred is listed in the St. Paul city directory for 1925 as boarding at 18 West Indiana Ave. The address was in the West Saint Paul Flats, a low-lying area near the river that was prone to flooding.
 

The neighborhood attracted those of limited means, and where many new immigrants of German, Lebanese, Syrian and Jewish ethnicity first lived.   Fred initially sought a job at the South St. Paul stockyards but there is no indication that he found work there.  Instead we find him listed in 1925  as an employee of the Collis Co.

The family in 1925-1926 was living at 402 South Robert Street. Family members in that directory are Fred, Ella, Martha, Martin and Reynold. The others must have established their residence elsewhere.

Marie we know was studying for her Practical Nursing degree in Sioux City, South Dakota. She is listed in the Sioux City Directory as a lodger at the home of Olive and William Krug.   Most of her fellow lodgers were of German parentage. 

Eleanore may have lived briefly on Robert Street, but at age 17 was probably living elsewhere and working as a domestic. We did not find a residence for her in 1925, but in 1930 she is employed by the family of a Polish-American Rabbi at 1290 Goodrich Ave.

Emil at age 19 or 20 was also living on his own. He may aleady have been working as a Motorman for the "Street Railway."  In the 1930 St. Paul Directory, he is listed as living with a friend.