Monroe Town Hall
moved to the Museum site on May 2, 2022
In 1902 this building was located just 1/2 mile West of Tracy. Following a fire, which destroyed School House District #33, it was moved two miles further West to replace the school. District #33 was often referred to as the Muedeking School, as it was located on the farm owned by George and Emelia Muedeking. We received financial aid for moving the Town Hall from: Mr. & Mrs. Sander A. Ludeman Sr., Mr. & Mrs. Chauncey Muedeking, Mr. & Mrs. Donald Muedeking and Don Muedeking Hill (grandsons of
George Muedeking.) In 1954 most country schools were closed and children were taken in to the system in Tracy.
The school board Lester Morgan, Wayne Williams and William DeBlieck sold the building to Monroe Township to be used as the basic grassroots government building.
Here were housed the tools and implements used by the supervisors to keep the township roads, bridges and ditches in good order. Here is where the residents went to vote, to conduct business and to interact with the elected officials.
In 2001 the State Highway Department mandated the building be moved as it was impediment to the sight line determined by MNDOT for the particular intersection. After much deliberation, the supervisors called upon the museum to see if the building could be salvaged. The museum board agreed not only to accept but also financial the move. It was also decided that the Town Hall would remain a public building and would continue to function as such because the museum was located in the legal boundaries of the township.
The township board had not anticipated the salvage efforts and had not levied for such a move, so were dependent on the museum to provide funding for the move. Thanks to the generosity of local people who wanted to preserve and not destroy a local historic building, even if it needed to be moved to do so. This Town Hall now can be an excellent example of people working together for the common good.
The museum board decided to use the two cloakrooms as galleries from our collection of pioneer family pictures and elected officials who helped establish not only the Monroe Township but also Custer, Amiret, Sodus, and the City of Tracy.