A Century Ago, Minneapolis Was Home to Major Curling Clubhouse

By Kathleen Kullberg, historian

There are a number of curlers from Minnesota competiting in this year's Winter Olympics. Curler John Schuster, from Chisholm, will be a flag bearer for Friday's Opening Ceremony. But our local ties to curling go way back. One hundred years ago in Minneapolis, a curling clubhouse was built for its champions.

When traveling south on Portland Avenue, have you ever taken the time to look around at the old buildings to the east? Take, for example, the building at Portland Ave. S. and 29th St., just after crossing the Midtown Greenway bridge. A two-story stucco building lies prominently close to the sidewalk. It seems so out of place - an odd mix of residence and warehouse. There is a faint French European aura with front-facing red brick chimney, dormer and clipped gable ends. Clearly visible are telltale signs of a much different purpose when it was originally built. It is now a factory for modern industrial steel products. There is a feeling that something once grand happened here.

The Minneapolis Curling Club building in 2022

In its heyday, this building was the home of the Minneapolis Curling Club. In 1921 the elegant but now faded facade was designed by the local firm of Brown and Frazer and built by a local builder, and curling club member, Fred R. Comb. This wasn’t the first Minneapolis curling clubhouse or rink built for the club. Before the curlers built their clubhouse on Portland Ave. S, they had a facility at 29th and Pillsbury. Part of the building collapsed and injured curler George Labatt. The building was sold to the Modern Milk Company. That lot is now part of the Carmel Mall.

The two-story wooden clubhouse on Portland Ave. S. had an attached covered shed over four sheets of ice and a second floor with large clubrooms and a private parlor to watch the curlers from. The building was the talk of the town. The site was chosen for its proximity to the Lake Street streetcar lines and easy access between the St. Paul and Minneapolis teams. When the building opened, the Minneapolis Curling Club was at the height of its glory having won the 1918 State Curling Championship, the Twin City title, and several other well-known cups from Duluth and Canada.

In March 1907, after being in use for only a few months, the roof suddenly collapsed under the weight of winter snow, injuring several star players including John McLeod and George Labatt, who were laid up for several weeks. The rest of that season was cancelled.

Early Minneapolis Curling History

According to the Minneapolis Tribune, curling arrived in Minneapolis in the 1870s along with Scottish immigrants. The Minneapolis Curling Club formed in 1895. The club was later convened under the auspices of the well-heeled society members of the Minneapolis Athletic Club. By the 1900s, curling was a booming winter sport that men of all ages could participate in. In late 1906, the club reorganized with the goal to build a permanent clubhouse like no other “ever attempted in this city,” according to the Minneapolis Journal.

In the early years, the curling games and tournaments, known as bonspiels, were held outdoors at various lakes and carefully prepared lots. Those venues included the corner of Nicollet Ave. and Lake Street, Loring Park, Athletic Park, and the corner of 2nd Ave. N. and 5th Street.

What is curling?

A curling team, or rink, consists of 4 players. Each player has two stones to play. The goal is to get your team’s stones as close to the goal area, the tee, as possible. The stones closest receive points. The sheet of ice is 42 yards of level smooth ice with a 12-foot diameter tee area. The stones are fitted with a top handle and today weigh about 40 pounds with granite imported from Scotland. It is the duty of the captain of the team, known as the skip, to determine the game plays and how to knock the other team’s stones off the tee. Players alternate until all 16 stones are played to the tee end. When not delivering their stones, players use brooms to “soop the ice” and control the direction of movement in front of the stones as they curl toward the tee. The average number of rounds, or “ends,” played is 16.

The building history

A larger, state-of-the-art clubhouse was on the perpetual wish list for the Minneapolis curlers. In 1920, the Minneapolis Curlers unanimously voted to design and fund a new building at 29th St. and Portland Ave. S. Club member. The club increased its membership limit to 300 to raise money for the new building.

The building cost around $100,000, which greatly exceeded the estimated cost of $25,000. In 1922, the biggest bonspiel, the Northwestern Bonspiel, was held within its walls.

The Minneapolis Curling Club on 29th St. and Portland Ave. S. in 1932. HCLIB archives

For the rest of the 1920s, play at the clubhouse continued in grand fashion, but by the end of the 1930s, the sport in Minneapolis had declined considerably. The clubhouse started hosting other types of events, including church services throughout the year. The Minneapolis Skating Club used the ice for skating sessions, lessons and ice dancing. In 1941, the Minneapolis Star reported that the Minneapolis Curling Club was all but dead. Throughout the state curling was mostly a distant memory.

In the mid-1940s, the building was sold and further changes were made in 1948 to alter the interior. In 1959, a loading dock was added and in 1973, a one-story warehouse was added on the side. As of 1994, the once state-of-the-art curling clubhouse became home to Brown-Campbell, a steel products company. The remnants of the six sheets of ice are visible in the long loading bays.

Curling in Minnesota today

The thrill of sliding a 40-pound granite stone down an icy rink is finding a resurgence. New curling centers are springing up all over Minnesota, including Chaska. There are currently more than 30 curling clubs throughout the state.

Thanks to the many years of dedication of players from Duluth, White Bear and St. Paul, curling is now a much anticipated winter Olympic sport. Two teams from Minnesota are participating in the 2022 Winter Olympics. Minnesotans will cheer on the men’s team, Team Shuster, and the women’s team, Team Peterson, as they compete. Most of the USA team is either from Minnesota or Wisconsin and one one player is from Alaska.

Perhaps it is time for Minneapolis to build its own new state-of-the-art curling club again. A modern curling center at 29th and Nicollet on the old K-Mart site might be just the venue to attract new generations and diversity to the sport. Or perhaps historians might consider restoring the faded clubhouse on Portland Ave. S. to bring this delightful sport full circle again.