(Milford)– This year marks the 150th anniversary for the storefront of The Three Sons in Milford. Emil Richter tells KUOO news the building was constructed in 1874 as a telegraph station for the Milwaukee Road Railroad, as it was building its tracks north from Spencer through the Iowa Great Lakes. After the telegraph station was removed, Richter says the building housed a farm machinery dealership until it pulled out in the late 1950’s. Richter says his father, Matt Richter, Sr., purchased the building in 1960…
“In 1958 and 1959 it set empty. Allis Chalmers was the last thing in here, sort of like John Deer, farm implements. Any how, I guess he thought he had to have it for some reason. The building was 22 feet wide, 142 feet long and there was a vacant lot the same size next to it. The whole thing when it was over with the cost of it was $2,000 for everything. What he wanted it for, nothing. He just bought it.”
Emil says shortly after that, the very first piece of merchandise was sold from the building…
“Behind Smith Furniture which was up on Highway 71, they had a Krohler couch and chair in the alley behind their building. For some reason, we carried that thing over here and put it on the east wall. We took a heavy rake that nobody uses any more, scraped the ice and snow off. A fellow from J.F. Hanson Lumber Yard over to the east of us happened to buy that thing for thirty dollars so he wanted it, he thought it was worthwhile and it probably was. Well, that was the first thing that ever went out of here. There was still no intent for it to be a store or anything like that.”
Emil says that quickly changed, though, after some trips to a retail outlet in Sioux City. Richter says he and his two other brothers came up with the idea to purchase merchandise and transported it to the Iowa Great Lakes and quickly sold it all. From there, the idea to open a retail store in the building blossomed and quickly grew. The building was then expanded to accommodate the additional merchandise. And while the structure is now 150 years old, Richter says they’ve made some improvements over the years to help ensure it’s future longevity…
“It’s still under warranty, I think. It’s in good shape. It is in real good shape. The whole thing is all heated and insulated; it’s all automatic fire sprinklers. A 10 inch main feeds the sprinkler system, so I’ve mentioned to people you’re not going to burn to death in here, you could drown, but that’s as good as it gets.”
The University of Okoboji is also housed in the historic structure. Herman Richter says they’re excited for another summer of events, such as the soccer, tennis, softball and other tournaments they put on each year, along with the big highlight, the University of Okoboji Homecoming. He thanks everyone who’s helped out with those over the years…
“The University of Okoboji is where fun in life is your degree. Well, part of having that fun are all of the events, and man that isn’t going to happen without all the volunteers. It’s just a big hat’s off and thank you to all the people that every event man, what can I do, what can I do to help, and it’s made it successful. Gee, 47, 48 years of soccer and all the different tournaments and events. It’s helped make the University of Okoboji and of course the Iowa Great Lakes the campus of the University of Okoboji what it is today, and we’re looking forward to the future.”
The 47th annual University of Okoboji Soccer Classic is coming up June 8th and 9th.
