Peanuts, Popcorn, and Preemies: Wonderland Park and the Infantorium

Name: Peanuts, Popcorn, and Preemies: Wonderland Park and the Infantorium
Start: 2024-01-27T19:00:00+00:00
End: 2024-01-27T21:00:00+00:00
Location: Shoreview Library

Organizer: Susan Hunter Weir

Date: Jan 27, 2024

Time: 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Location: Shoreview Library
4560 Victoria St N
Shoreview, MN 55126

It was 1905 and Americans were in love with electricity. More than 400 trolley car parks sprang up around the country. But only a handful had an Infantorium, a hospital (of sorts) that treated premature babies. For the price of admission, guests could watch performers like Daredevil Dash and Nervo the Human Comet. There were trained ant-eaters and bears on bicycles. There were rides, peanuts and cotton candy—all at 31^st Avenue and Lake Street in South Minneapolis.

Biography: Susan Hunter Weir has lived in South Minneapolis all of her live. She has spent the last 25 or so years researching the residents of Minneapolis Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery, the oldest existing cemetery in Minneapolis. Before she retired, she was Coordinator of Advising for students in the visual and performing arts at the University of Minnesota. She served on Minneapolis’ Heritage Preservation Commission for nine years.