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DINNER CRUISE: Coming to White Bear Lake PAGE 14A
Meet Arthur, the male half of the Fillebrown siblings
Augmentation bills in committee
BY DEBRA NEUTKENS EDITOR
BY DEBRA NEUTKENS EDITOR
In 1977, Helen Fillebrown and her brother Arthur bequeathed their beloved cottage to the White Bear Lake Area Historical Society. It held a treasure trove of memorabilia from their past. The siblings spent many happy summers at the Lake Avenue home, which was purchased by their father in 1905. Neither ever married and both Helen and Arthur eventually made the historic house their permanent address. In a presentation at the library March 16, retired history teacher Maureen Raymond talked about Arthur, the lesser known of the Fillebrown children, who was nine years younger than Helen. When Arthur was born in 1892, White Bear Lake was a thriving resort community. St. Paul families flocked to the lake to escape the summer heat, including Jonas W. Fillebrown and his wife Harriet. When the 1879 cottage came up for sale in 1905, the Fillebrowns, already familiar with the area, bought it. Helen was 21 and Arthur 12. “It was the beginning of Arthur’s lifelong love of the lake,” Raymond said. “By all accounts, Arthur had a happy childhood,” she continued. “He had attentive caregivers, including his grandmother, Amelia Cox, a solid education and summers at the lake where he sailed, swam and fished.” One of many discoveries among the steamer trunks and dresser drawers after his death was Arthur’s small diary. “A couple things I read from 1905 were that Arthur was 5 feet 4 inches and weighed 111 pounds. He carried 5 cents in his mitten for streetcar fare,” Raymond noted. “He wrote that ‘pa went to New Orleans for a merchant’s convention. He is going to bring me an alligator.’” Jonas W. Fillebrown owned a wholesale fruit and produce company in downtown St. Paul. Arthur also talked a lot about sailing and built his first canoe
ST. PAUL — As promised, bills requesting augmentation money from bonding funds were introduced March 17. The amount of the request to the state Legislature, however, is still blank. The Senate bill, SF 2917, was co-authored by Sen. Chuck Wiger and Sen. David Senjem, who is ranking minority member. It was referred to the capital investment committee chaired by Sen. LeRoy Stumpf with Vice Chair Sen. Bev Scalze. Scalze, who represents District 42, went on record at a March 2 Vadnais Heights City Council workshop as not being in favor of the multimillion-dollar project. Rep. Matt Dean’s companion bill in the House, HF 3314, was co-authored by Reps. Peter Fischer, Denny McNamara, Leon Lillie, Rod Hamilton, Dennis Smith and Joe Schomacker. The House bill for water level restoration funding was referred to the environment and natural resources policy and finance committee. The White Bear Lake City Council discussed status of the legislation at its March 22 meeting, pointing out the missing number behind the dollar sign. SEE AUGMENTATION, PAGE 9A
SUBMITTED | WBLAHS
A young man in a boat. Arthur Fillebrown built his own watercraft, including this canoe.
Bottle collectors are a different kind of ‘head’ hunter BY JACKIE BUSSJAEGER STAFF WRITER
EAU CLAIRE — With winter easing off, Mark Youngblood is beginning another season of digging for valuable artifacts buried in the most unusual of places—turn-of-the-century privy sites. Once you get over that “yuck” reaction, most people recognize that his unique excavation operation serves an educational and historical purpose—and it’s totally sanitary, thanks to approximately a century of natural decomposition. Youngblood collects, trades and sells bottles and other artifacts he has uncovered, items that were often tossed into the pits when broken or emptied by former residents. He has conducted digs all SUBMITTED | WBLAHS
SEE FILLEBROWN, PAGE 8A
Sailing was a favorite pastime of the Fillebrowns.
SEE OUTHOUSE ARCHEOLOGY, PAGE 9A
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