Maple Lake Library Archives
Our mission is to create, collect, store and preserve the history of Maple Lake and its surrounding townships. The Maple Lake Library Archives provides information for community members to research their family history or town history.
Circa 1889 - Maple Ave.
Above photo shared by Kobe Mendelson
MAPLE LAKE 1946
Enjoy the photos but visit the library to see many more photos of Maple Lake in 1946!
Ruffs Food Market now part of the Library
Leahy Hardway and Weismanns Home Brand Foods
Now home of Wright County Community Action
Click the button below "1946" to read the article compliments of the Maple Lake Messenger about Maple Lake 1946, Dr. James R. Jude.
Dr. James R. Jude took photos of Maple Lake In 1946. Displayed are over 55 photos from his scrap book on our archival walls. Plus information on Dr. James R. Jude and his scrapbook are displayed.
James R. Jude (June 7, 1928 – July 28, 2015) was an American thoracic surgeon who was one of the developers of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
Maple Lake Public School. Now empty lot.
Berg's Hotel now the American Legion
Maple Lake Library Archival Area
Our archival area has a reference bookcase that contains:
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books on Maple Lake and Wright County History
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a collection of Maple Lake yearbooks
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plat maps
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local recipe books
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local authors’ books
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family histories
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a collection of articles on Maple Lake’s history prior to 1950
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photo albums donated from the elementary school
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obituaries and marriage announcements
We are able to print copies of photos from our collections.
Archival Computer
Our archival computer is a research tool that houses over 32,000 entries. Entries are hyperlinked on this computer, which enables you to search for topics easily. The archival index contains articles on business, family, church, sports, recreation, organizations, and school news. The Maple Lake Messenger's articles have been scanned from 1950 to current issues and are located on this computer. There is also a collection of birth and death records indexed and scanned from Maple Lake Village and Albion Township.
As of May 2024, the library has cataloged over 7,495 obituaries, 1,734 marriage announcements, and 8,400 photos. The library archivist, Sue Sylvester will be glad to answer any questions you might have and help you with your research. She also requests the community’s help in the following:
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​We would like to expand our collection of photos.
History is what happened yesterday. Photos of families, organizations, businesses, farms, town celebrations etc. They should be labeled and dated.
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Businesses
We are currently looking for photos of inside or outside of businesses from 1900's to 1980's.
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Maple Lake Messenger
We have no copies of the Maple Messenger before May of 1950. If you have news articles of interest, family obituaries, or marriage announcements before 1950, we would love to include them in our archives.
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Family History
If you have completed a family history and would be willing to share, we can copy it and put in the archives.
Small items that should be preserved.
Example: St. Patrick's Day buttons, business premiums, or post cards that feature Maple Lake.
You hold the key to hidden treasures. By housing your family history, photos and items at the library, you will ensure future generations access to this valuable information! You can contact Sue by calling the library at 320-963-2009 and leave you name and message and she will return you call.