Afton Town Square Park

Tour Site #7

St. Croix Trail and 34th Street | Google Maps
City of Afton Designated Historic Site

Included in the original 1855 Village of Afton map, the park has long been the center of community events and activities. In the past, it had a dance hall and a merry-go-round. The merry-go-round had galloping horses, carriages, and a “lover’s tub.” It was operated by a steam engine and tickets cost 5 cents each. Today, the park is the site of many city celebrations, including Strawberry Fest, Art in the Park, and a tree for the Holiday Village.

Park and Dance Hall Locations

Fight in Afton’s Dance Hall

Afton resident Phyllis Rosenquist Frederickson was interviewed in 1976. When the interviewer asked about the dance hall in the park, Phyllis replied “We had marvelous dances there. … Well, if you think young people are terrible now, believe you had them in those days. And they had what you called gangs. And of course there would be a gang around here and the one I’m thinking of is from the east side of St Paul. They came over to take care of the gang over here on a Saturday night when there was a big dance. And they wore brass knuckles, and they broke jaws, they broke chair legs, and completely wrecked the interior of the dance hall and that was the end of the dance hall. But we had beautiful big-name bands, Red Wing, you name it, the admission was twenty-five cents” (“Oral History Project, 1976, Phyllis Rosenquist Frederickson,” IF Box 65, 2017.01.340, Afton Historical Museum).

No news articles have been found to confirm this fight, but the location of the dance hall in the park is shown in the drawing.

Read more about the early 20th century St. Paul gangsters.