New Ulm in Brown County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Gänseviertel (Goosetown)

Photographed By Tim Haag, August 14, 2012

1. Gänseviertel (Goosetown) Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

Goosetown began forming around the flour mills, brewery, and railroad tracks circa 1870. Settlers were largely German-Bohemian Catholics of peasant stock who farmed and worked in nearby industries. Inhabitants kept geese which were free to roam, thus the name "Goosetown." Two room houses were common. Cottage industries including gathering clam shells for buttons from the river, and handmaking Klöppel lace developed. Water was secured from a spring-house near the corner of 8th South and Front Streets. Indoor plumbing, sewer, curbs and gutters, and paved streets arrived in the 1930s. Fezz Fritsche's nationally known old-time Goosetown Band got it's start here in the 1940s. Today only a few of the early structures survive, but the close knit neighborhood lives on.

Erected 2006 by Junior Pioneers of New Ulm and Vicinity; German-Bohemian Heritage Society; New Ulm Area Foundation; and Brown County Historical Society.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1870.

Location. 44° 18.839′ N, 94°

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27.094′ W. Marker is in New Ulm, Minnesota, in Brown County. Marker is at the intersection of South Front Street and 2nd South Street, on the right when traveling north on South Front Street. Located in Riverside Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: New Ulm MN 56073, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Upper Minnesota River Transportation (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Flandrau's Charge (approx. 0.3 miles away); City Meat Market (approx. 0.4 miles away); Brown County Bank (approx. 0.4 miles away); Boesch, Hummel, and Maltzahn Block (approx. 0.4 miles away); Herman’s Footprint (approx. 0.4 miles away); The George Kuhlman House (approx. 0.4 miles away); German–Bohemian Immigrants Monument (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in New Ulm.

Photographed By K. Linzmeier, June 20, 2013

2. Gänseviertel (Goosetown) Marker

east side of marker with duplicate text

Photographed By K. Linzmeier, June 20, 2013

3. Gänseviertel (Goosetown) Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on August 14, 2012, by Tim Haag of New Ulm, Minnesota. This page has been viewed 533 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on August 14, 2012, by Tim Haag of New Ulm, Minnesota. 2, 3. submitted on June 28, 2013, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.