Town Days Tour 2013 Gaylord

GAYLORD DAY — History

– The City of Gaylord was founded in 1876.

– Elections were held and the village of Gaylord was incorporated in 1883.

– Gaylord is the county seat of Sibley County. It is located on Highways 19 and 22.

– Lake Titloe is in Gaylord. A smaller lake, Mud Lake, is just out of town.

– Gaylord was originally an early Indian settlement. It became a railroad town after the 1st white settlers came to the area in 1860. The town was founded in 1876.

– A commonly-used trail to the Dakota Territory passed through the future site of Gaylord in the 1850s.

– The surveyors named the site after E.W. Gaylord after determining that the name Maasville, after Alfred Maas was too long.

– At one time, Gaylord and Henderson were at odds over which city would become the county seat. Gaylord won.

 

GAYLORD DAY — Businesses

– Gaylord shares a school district with the communities of Arlington and Green Isle to form Sibley East. Their mascot is the Wolverine. The elementary school is in Gaylord.

– The City of Gaylord has a very food-based manufacturing sector. Some of the major companies in Gaylord that deal with food products include: Michaels Foods, which deals mostly with eggs. The company is one of the leading US producers of shell eggs and value-added egg products (frozen, liquid, pre-cooked, dried). It has other operations, but eggs account for 70% of its sales.

– The City of Gaylord is also home to Wakefield Pork, a successful pork production business. Wakefield Pork was named a Pork Powerhouse, they were number 15 out of the 20 largest pork producers in the U.S. (total sows).

– The largest employer in Gaylord is MG Walbaum, a division of Crystal Foods. They deal in eggs like many other Gaylord businesses.

– Gaylord is also home to Uni-Door Manufacturing.

 

GAYLORD DAY — Festivals & Events

– Every summer, the residents of Gaylord celebrate the egg. “EGGSTRAVAGANZA” is the annual 3-day celebration of the food product that means so much to Gaylord’s economy. The festival features numerous events, including games, music, food and drink, and the crowing of Miss Gaylord. There are eggs as well. Eggstravaganza takes place the 2nd weekend of August every year.

 

GAYLORD DAY — People

– The City of Gaylord has a population of approximately 2,300 people. The Mayor is Don Boeder.

– A few years ago the residents of Gaylord approved a referendum to build a new Aquatic Center by a 2-1 margin. The Gaylord Area Aquatic Center includes a wading pool and lap pool with a slide and diving boards as well as a bathhouse with locker rooms and other amenities.

– The Gaylord City Park was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. The park has hosted special events since around the turn of the 20th Century, when it was known as “The Grove.” It now includes a pavilion, a dance hall built in 1916, a 1940 band shell, picnic shelters, civic monuments, a WPA-era bridge and culvert, a Veterans Memorial that was erected in 2000, a baseball park, and the many trees that have been planted over the years.

– The City of Gaylord received a $7,000 grant for a historic context study of the city in 2012. The Historical and Cultural Heritage Grant was funded by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment.

– A paved trail was constructed on the east end of Gaylord in 2012. The $375,000 trail loops around the city’s stormwater pond and travels along Lincoln Avenue. A grant covered approximately 80% of the construction costs.

– During its first year of operation in 2011, the Gaylord Aquatic Center had a total of nearly 32,000 admissions over the course of its 90-day season. Aquatic Center revenues in 2011 totaled more than $160,000 – or nearly $69,000 more than expected.

– A Gaylord native was living in Milford, Delaware in October of 2012 when the hurricane that became known as “Superstorm Sandy” devastated the East Coast. Eljer Peterson said that their preparations for the storm included being ready to go without power and water.

 

 

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