The legacy of Paul Bunyan Land

BY THERESA BOURKE Brainerd Dispatch

BRAINERD — Siblings

Al Rademacher and Lois Moon never planned on owning an amusement park.

But now it’s their fulltime job.

When Rademacher heard Paul Bunyan Land was for sale in 2003, he spoke with then-owner Don McFarland about purchasing a train on the property and a building for his dad’s pioneer village.

What he came away with was an entire amusement park.

“When I walked out of there that day, it was like I pretty much bought the whole thing,” Rademacher said.

And then he roped his sister in with him.

“It happened so quick, honestly,” Moon said.

In what felt like the blink of an eye, the siblings were co-owners of Paul Bunyan Land, a well-known amusement park then located in Baxter, where Kohl’s department store now stands. They didn’t quite know what they were getting into, but they did it anyway.

“I always quote my dad saying we were never told that we can’t do something,” Moon said. “Our first question is always, ‘How are we going to do it?’”

When McFarland decided to sell Paul Bunyan Land, all the various pieces were set to go in different directions, including the iconic Paul Bunyan statue and his trusty blue ox, Babe.

“Part of it was saving it for the area,” Moon said. “Literally, Paul was going somewhere, Babe was going somewhere, the rides were getting split up. And that was very close to happening.”

Changes are coming on many fronts for the Brainerd lakes area

BY RENEE RICHARDSON Brainerd Dispatch

BRAINERD — “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” It was true for the titular character in a 1986 movie classic, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” and it is true of most years in the Brainerd lakes area. With this Progress edition, once again it’s time to take stock of what just happened and what is coming down the pike.

2024 is bringing a mix of new businesses and big names, it is revitalizing closed storefronts, witnessing an expansion of manufacturing and celebrating longstanding business success with notable employers. And it’s all happening with the speed of a Minnesota summer. This spring and summer, two major additions were announced for Baxter. As one of the most inquired about projects, Kwik Trip, announced it was planning to construct a multi-million dollar 24-hour store at the corner of Edgewood Drive and Novotny Road

OVERVIEW: H5

The 26-foot-tall animatronic Paul Bunyan has welcomed generations to the Brainerd lakes area. It’s a summer tradition, watching those mouths fall open with shock and squeals of delight — or occasionally dismay — when the low voice of that giant lumberjack greets kids by name.

Instead of seeing Paul and his various amusement park amenities split up and shipped out all over the place, Rademacher and Moon moved everything to their family’s property east of Brainerd on County Road 18, merging it with This Old Farm. Thus began Chapter 2 in the park’s history. Paul and the amusement side of the business date back to 1950, but for the past 20 years, visitors have been able to glimpse items much, much older.

This Old Farm Pioneer Village

A separate venture started by their father, Dick Rademacher, This Old Farm is an assortment of old buildings, combined with Dick’s penchant for collecting. Today, it’s known as the Pioneer Village at Paul Bunyan Land and boasts 40 old-fashioned buildings housing Dick’s vast amount of collectibles. Locales include a post office, school house, newspaper office, saloon, sawmill and a church where family weddings have taken place. Paul’s

Petting Barn attracts the animal-lovers, with goats, ducks, chickens and other animals to feed and pet.

There’s even a few standout buildings, including the depot from 1994 Disney movie “Iron Will,” along with the oldest homestead in Brainerd, that used to stand where the Brainerd Family YMCA now sits.

The original barn and farmhouse sit on the property, too, and future plans include revamping the barn into a space to host dances or other events.

More buildings are added to the Pioneer Village every year to accommodate the growing collection of items.

A walk through the village will transport visitors through time and space, as they see what it might have been like to sit in a doctor’s office, drink at the saloon, deposit their money or attend class in a one-room schoolhouse as their ancestors did centuries ago.

Rad’s Groceries — Lunches — Confectionary still stands in the original building and with the original sign as when Ralph and Minnie Rademacher ran it as a business in the 1930s near where The Harbor on Crescent Bay sits today off South Long Lake. After learning the building was going to be torn down, Rademacher and Moon arranged for it to be moved to their Pioneer Village, not wanting to part