People & Stories
Is It Larger Than a Bread Box?
by Patty (Stutzman) Paulus | May 2024Photos: Patty (Stutzman) PaulusDo you remember playing certain games and asking one another, “Is it larger than a bread box?” Do you have a bread box in your home now? Bread boxes were very necessary in farmhouses for a variety of...
Calling Cards: A Forgotten Art
by Patty (Stutzman) Paulus | Nov 2024The calling cards, seen above, were used in the early 1900s to develop friendship. Nowadays, business cards serve a similar, yet professional, purpose. Photo: Patty (Stutzman) PaulusIn the early 1900s, the exchange of calling cards...
Discover the Heritage House’s Heirloom Garden
by Patty (Stutzman) Paulus | Nov 2024Photo: Margaret WachholzA perfect complement to Woodbury’s Heritage House is the garden just outside the front door. This was part of the European tradition the settlers brought with them. Much of Woodbury’s history revolved around...
Fruit Pie: A Taste of Home
by Patty (Stutzman) Paulus | Nov 2024Photo: Patty (Stutzman) PaulusThere are times when I try to imagine what life was like for my sweet, hardworking German grandmother, Laura Schilling Stutzman, in the early 1900s in Woodbury. Along with all the other chores that...
Christmas Eve Memories From 1955
by Patty (Stutzman) Paulus | Nov 2024Photo: Patty (Stutzman) PaulusIt was a memorable Christmas Eve in 1955 for the little 5-year old blond-haired girl in the checked dress. My uncle Roy, his well-dressed wife, Vivian, and their daughter had just traveled to Woodbury...
Meet One Of Woodbury’s Early Settlers
William’s father, James, with Eliza, Margaret and Jane Middleton. Photo: Woodbury Heritage SocietyWritten by Mathias BadenWhat would Woodbury’s first European settlers think of us now? I think they would be proud of what they started. For example, let’s take one boy’s...
Electricity Comes to Woodbury
On June 13, 1918, at a meeting held in a granary, sixteen farmers organized a company to bring electricity to Woodbury. They elected officers and a motion was made and carried that each member put in $50. They named themselves Woodbury Light and Power. They moved...
Eight Century Farms Recognized for Having Farmed for Over 100 Years
Eight farms in Woodbury are recognized as Century Farms by the Minnesota Farm Bureau and Minnesota State Fair. These eight families owned their farms for at least one hundred years and were still farming at the time of the award: Bielenberg ( 1876) Fredin (...
Fire Due to Weather
Fire struck terror in the hearts of our early settlers. Lightning storms were dreaded. Usually as soon as the worst of the storm was over, the family went from window to window scanning the sky for the red glow which meant someone’s building had been hit. It was...
A Time Capsule…
A Time Capsule... Warren Stutzman stored a lucky 2 cent penny in the Woodbury Heritage House in approximately 1925. Warren is the father of our Board Director, Patty Stutzman-Paulus. All in the family... The Heritage House was located on the Stutzman family farm at...
Woodbury’s First Post Office Building
Woodbury’s First Post Office BuildingFor years, the tiny building that was Woodbury’s first Post Office has stood on property where Woodbury’s first residents, the McHattie brothers, settled. Current owners, Roxanne and Joe Kielbasa havegenerously offered to donate...
Who is Cruisin’ in Style?
Who is Cruisin’ in Style?Members Pat and Dick Raths are featured on the cover of Woodbury Magazine for July. Dick is a classic car buff and has been restoring these vintage automobiles since 1987. His first car was a 1955 Ford Victoria. The same model he drove around...
Remembering Dick Bielenberg
Remembering Dick BielenbergAge 73, of Eagan, passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday, April 1st, 2020. A beloved son, brother and uncle, Dick was dedicated to his family, friends and community. His open heart and generosity of spirit touched many lives. Dick grew up...
A Glance to the Past
A Glance to the Past“Excerpt taken from the book, Woodbury - A Past To Remember by the Woodbury Heritage Committee” submitted by Joyce Flynn, WHS Board of DirectorsLife in Woodbury, 1884 The topography of Woodbury is varied and scenic. The southwestern portion is...
Laura’s Story
Laura Berglund is a former Afton resident who writes post-depression stories of her childhood living in rural southern Minnesota. Her husband, Harold (other than two years in the army), has spent his entire life in the St. Croix Valley/Afton area, never living more than 12 miles from his birthplace.
Woodbury Timeline
The following diagram contains important milestones in the history of Woodbury, MN.
Woodbury Street Name History
There is a story behind many of Woodbury’s street names. In 2007, a Woodbury Senior Girl Scout, Lisa Clinton, documented the history of the street names of Woodbury for her Girl Scout Gold Award project.
Burr Oak
2009 saw the completion of an important long-term project for the Woodbury Heritage Society. We installed and dedicated at City Hall a permanent exhibit detailing the history of one of Woodbury’s oldest trees (estimated to have first sprouted from an acorn around 1738!).