Reprinted from Sept. 6, 2001, Tri-County News. Kimball was shaken Friday morning, Dec. 24, 1954, about 11:30 when a large boiler at the Kimball Creamery and milk drying plant exploded and shot into the air, landing in the driveway between the creamery and the drug store. The force of the explosion tore the roof from the rear of the building, crumbled the walls, and a fire was started. At the moment of the explosion only two men employees were within the building. Tony Pelzer received wounds in the abdomen, and burns and lacerations about his face and arms. He was taken by Granite City Ambulance to the St. Cloud Hospital where he had surgery to determine the extent of the abdominal injury. His condition proved to be not serious, and it was thought he might be released by Wednesday. Oswald Hemple received injuries to his back and he received X-rays here at the doctor’s office. Pete Borman also suffered a injury to his back and was X-rayed. Fire departments from Watkins, Annandale, Maple Lake, Litchfield and St. Cloud responded to the call for help. The rapid, efficient action of the local department served to start checking the fire, and helped to avoid it spreading to other buildings. Steps were taken at once to make arrangements for the disposal of the milk until it could be again taken care of locally. In a surprisedly short time a temporary boiler was installed in the driveway between the drug store and the creamery. The work of clearing the wreckage and restoring as much as possible the operation of the creamery is moving at a remarkable pace. Large crowds have been in town daily to view the wreckage. ********** How well I remember the creamery boiler explosion. I had been unsure of the date until your recent article. The microfilm record of the Kimball newspapers does not include the issue in which the explosion was written up and so I have never seen any information. My father and I had been in Annandale early that day for an appointment with Dr. Bendix. As we were returning to Kimball, we noticed a large column of black smoke that seemed to be coming from Kimball and at the time my dad was wondering if there was a problem at the school. We drove into town and saw that the creamery was involved. Since this occurred during Christmas vacation, I was able to spend time downtown looking at the damage. Even at that early age, I was most interested in steam engines and boilers and was fascinated by the damage that had been done. The boiler that exploded was of the “locomotive” type that had an enclosed firebox and one pass of flues. The water level in the boiler had dropped below the level of the top of the firebox and so this metal had overheated. It was thought that the water supply pump had then turned on and had flooded water over the red hot steel in the firebox and that this had caused a tremendous increase in boiler pressure which could not be relieved by the safety valve. I remember that the longitudinal seam of the boiler barrel had ripped open and that as a result the boiler acted like a rocket-propelled device. The boiler could have gone a few more feet to the south and then would have caused lots of damage to Abbott’s drug store. At the time of the explosion, our good friend Gilbert Ahlstrand from Cyrus, Minn., had at least part ownership of the creamery. Later operations of the creamery were moved to the Paynesville creamery. I don’t remember when the creamery was closed in Kimball. I do remember very well watching the butter maker take butter out of the large churns and form it into blocks. Our home in Kimball had two garages and for a time the single garage was used to store products while rebuilding was taking place downtown. If I was closer to Kimball I would attend (Kimball Area Historical Society) meetings but I do anxiously await the issues of the paper that carry articles you prepare. Your work is very important! Dr. Gerald Gysler Parker Casselton, N.D. ********** “WE CAN ONLY IMAGINE” that Christmas Eve 53 years ago. Many who were here still live in Kimball, and others living elsewhere now may recall the creamery explosion or hearing the story from family members and “old timers.” We featured this story several years ago in this very column. And, if you read Dr. Parker’s “Letter to the Editor,” you’ll realize as we do how meaningful it is when folks respond and share their memories of an event or subject from our columns. Like many of you, Dr. Parker is a member of Kimball’s Historical Society, and a faithful supporter, though living in North Dakota. His dad was Kimball’s school superintendent in the 1940s and 1950s. That information may bring back some memories of your own. ********** “UPCOMING EVENTS” for your to calendar will be ready here soon. Meanwhile, we invite you to new or renewed membership, donate history and photos from your family or event, remember the Maine Prairie History Booklet and other area souvenirs make great gifts for yourself or others. We can be reached at The Kimball Area Historical Society, Box 100, Kimball MN 55353, or by phone at (320) 398-5743, (320) 398-5250 or (800) 252-2521. We do appreciate hearing from you. Data collecting, or “indexing” will resume at 9 a.m. Monday, Sept. 10. *********** Kimball Days Historical Society door prize winners were: Gary Anders of Litchfield, quilt; Mari-lynn Sterling of Kimball, Mary Jane Arens of Kimball, Bev Spies of Kimball, Lori Groines of South Haven, Betty Hendrickson of Kingston and Joan Nystrom of Kimball, doilies; Betty Mackereth of Kimball, coffee cup; Audrey Marquardt of Kimball, history booklet; Dorothy Jensen of Kimball, trivet; Sarah Gohman of Kimball, cookbook; Mona Almgren of Kimball, one-year membership; Patricia Peterson of Kimball, note cards; and Ed Borman of Kimball, collector coin. ********** “Memories are forever.”
