Chris Ewald emigrated from Denmark in the early 1900’s. Ewald got his start on rented land near Lake Hiawatha in South Minneapolis. After the Minneapolis Park Board acquired the land he was renting, Ewald purchased the 607 acre McNair Farm. On March 11, 1911 Chris and his son herded his cows through Minneapolis some 12 miles to Golden Valley. The property straddled the municipal boundries of Minneapolis, Golden Valley and Robbinsdale from 19th Avenue North all the way up to Lowry Avneue. They built one barn for 50 – 60 cows and another for horses. The farmhouse was located near Xerxes Avenue. The horses pulled the wagons that delivered milk to customers north to Robbinsdale and Anoka, west to Golden Valley and Wayzata and south to St. Louis Park and Bloomington.
After World War I, the Ewald Brothers purchased five acres and built a dairy pasteurizing plant at Xerxes and 19th Avenue North. After the Ewald Family left the McNair farm in 1923, most of the property was sold off for residential lots and developed as Robbinsdale’s McNair Manor neighborhood. The Ewald pasteurizing plant on Xerxes and 19th Avenue was torn down in the 1980’s and the land was divided for a cluster of new homes built by Habitat for Humanity.
William D. Ewald was raised in Golden Valley, Minnesota, the home of the Ewald Bros. Dairy. William has bachelor’s degrees in management and marketing. He is among the foremost authorities on the history of the dairy business in Minnesota, often speaking at historical societies. Images for this work were compiled primarily from family albums and company archives, in addition to contributions from the families of employees and residents. He’s also the great-grandson of Chris Ewald, founder of the Ewald Brothers Dairy and will be with us to present a the story of the Ewald Dairy and family at our next membership meeting, Tuesday, May 28th at 1:00pm.
All are welcome to attend our membership meetings, held six times a year. Each meeting features an interesting speaker and/or presentation focused on “sharing your past and building our future.” Meetings take place on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 1:00 pm in March, April, May, September, October, and November.
Membership is open to anyone interested in the past, present, and future of Robbinsdale. Dues are currently $15 annually or $100 for a lifetime membership. Please join us, and help us continue to tell our town’s story.