This week in state history

Historic Minnesota events with anniversaries this coming week.

Dec. 30

1977 Legendary sports broadcaster Halsey Hall dies in his Minneapolis home at age seventy-nine. Known for his cigar-smoking, whiskey-drinking style, Hall was broadcaster of Twins games for many years and the first to use the phrase “holy cow” during a broadcast. He also coined the adjective “golden” to describe the University of Minnesota’s sports teams.

Jan. 1

1893 Workers nail the final spike in the 818 miles of track stretching from Pacific Junction, Montana, to Everett, Washington, completing the Great Northern Railroad and connecting St. Paul to the Pacific Ocean.

1969 The Coast Guard closes Split Rock Lighthouse after fifty-nine years of service. Its grounds become a state park the following year.

Jan. 2

1890 Hjalmar Petersen is born in Eskildstrup on the island of Fyn in Denmark. A veteran newspaper editor in Askov, he would serve as the state’s governor for four months in 1936 and 1937 (the shortest gubernatorial term in Minnesota history), following the death in office of Floyd B. Olson. HE declined to run for governor himself in the November general election, opting instead to launch a successful bid for Railroad and Warehouse Commissioner, a position he assumed after leaving the governship on January 4, 1937. He later ran for governor in 1940 and 1942, losing both times to Harold Stassen. Petersen died March 29, 1968.

This column is derived from MNopedia, an online project at mnopedia.org. and developed by the Minnesota Historical Society and its partners.