Congregational Church / Memorial Hall / Afton Historical Museum

Tour Site #1

3165 St Croix Trl S. | Google Maps

Constructed in 1868 by the Congregational Church Society, then used by a variety of groups, the building was moved to its present location in 1926 after a mudslide. The Village of Afton purchased it for $600 with the mortgage issued to the Afton Memorial Hall Association in 1928. It served as a meeting place for local village government and was also a community center hosting school plays, concerts, and guest speakers.

After the Village of Afton and Afton Township merged into the City of Afton in 1971, the city constructed a new City Hall which was completed in 1983. The Afton Historical Society (AHS) had been organized in 1979 with a nine-member Board of Directors. Gloria Haslund was elected President and served from 1980 to 1997. She worked tirelessly to acquire the building as a permanent home for Afton historical artifacts and cultural events. Haslund also oversaw major renovations and acquisitions as well as a series of educational events. Meetings were held monthly and open to the public. Current AHS President Stan Ross has served since 2006. With the aid of State of Minnesota Legacy grants, artifacts were organized, cataloged and protected with a fire suppression system. Additional projects funded by the state include a multi-year Interpretive Plan and ADA compliant building upgrades.

See a copy of the 99-year lease, AHS newsletters detailing 20th century annual events, and Board of Director documents, 1980-2010, in the museum.

Mondale Family Voting in 1980 Election for Jimmy Carter / Walter Mondale at the Afton Village Hall

Mondale Family Haircuts, Afton Township, 1983 Mondale Presidential Campaign Announcement

Cynthia Blomquist Gustavson, author of A Mischief of Mice, a personal memoir about mid-twentieth century life in Afton Township, detailed an event in 1983 about Walter Mondale's presidential campaign. The night before Mondale announced he would run for President of the U.S., his mother-in-law and Afton resident, Mrs. Adams, called Gustavson’s mother who ran a hair salon in the basement of her home. Gustavson recalled how her mother trimmed the hair for many of the Mondales because the “country beauty shop was isolated in the Valley [on Stagecoach Trail, Valley Creek, Afton Township], so they could come at odd hours and keep their privacy.” When Mondale’s mother-in-law Mrs. Adams arrived with her grandson, Ted Mondale, she apologized for the late midnight phone call. She exclaimed that “by tomorrow morning the press will be all over this family” due to the presidential campaign announcement. Reportedly teenage Ted muttered “And guess who has to look ‘presentable’?” Rather than just a trim, Ted's "long golden locks" were cut considerably shorter (Cynthia Blomquist Gustavson, A Mischief of Mice: Secrets, Lies, and Love in the Sand Hills of Minnesota, NY: Blooming Twig, 2023, pp. 353-54).