The social news or gossip columns in the old newspapers are always fascinating to read. A special section in the newspaper was devoted to the social media of the day. The whereabouts of local people and events were often featured in these columns. Here are a few from The News Messenger of Lyon County on June 12, 1903:

O.C. Gregg, superintendent of the states farmers’ institutes, was down from the state farm at Lynd on Wednesday, and greeted numerous Marshall friends.

J.W. Humphrey, city recorder, made a business trip to Ortonville on Monday, and while there inspected the city clerk’s methods with the municipal lighting and water works plant of that city.

A party of ten, mostly Marshallites, spent the first of the week at Green Lake fishing. In the party were Fred Healy, Wm. Rogers, Ernest Shepard, H.G. Hoffman, J.W. Pike, Frank Brantner and John Hollo, Isaac Elliot, F.P. Willard of Russell, and J.C. Brown, now of Long Lake.

Mayor Mathews got a hard fall from his horse on Monday, which shook him up considerably and injured his head. The mayor has been ill for a couple of weeks, but on Monday concluded to try horseback exercise. His horse was lively, and when endeavoring to mount in front of his office the mayor, with all of his usual determination but without his usual strength, had difficulty in getting seated, and the animal starting to run threw him, the mayor falling heavily on his shoulders and head on the hard street. For a few moments bystanders thought he was seriously hurt, but after being assisted to rise he walked home, a trifle dazed, however. The horse, as soon as it had unseated its rider, stopped short in its run and turned and looked at its prostrate master as if realizing it had done something wrong. The mayor contemplates an eastern trip, over the great lakes and to Montreal, for recuperation and vacation from his law business, and will probably go next week.

Frank Griffiths and Bertha Martins were married on Wednesday, by Rev. B.C. Gillis, at the Methodist parsonage.

Gene Goodwin, the Tracy jeweler and watchmaker, spent a day in Marshall this week, calling on his parents and sisters.

A Washington dispatch announced that authority has been granted for the organization of the Farmers’ and Merchants’ National Bank of Minneota, this county.

Miss Mary Anderson returned this week from St. Cloud. Miss Anderson was a Marshall high school graduate, and has just graduated from the St. Cloud Normal. She has secured a position as teacher in the Renville schools.

The Carnegie library building is practically under way. The library board has been advised that Carnegie’s $10,000 donation to Marshall is now in the hands of a New York trust company, and available in $2,000 and $3,000 amounts as needed. The board at a meeting last Saturday evening decided to advertise for plans and specifications of the building, and will receive and examine plans on June 26th. The advertisement is published in the local papers this week.

The photograph featured this week from the Lyon County Museum’s collection is a real photo postcard of the Carnegie Library in Marshall. The Carnegie Library, at the corner of 3rd and West Lyon Streets served as the city of Marshall’s library until it was demolished prior to building a new library building in 1967. The new Marshall-Lyon County Library was built on the same location in 1967 and served as the library for over 40 years before the present building was built at 201 C Street. The former library at 301 West Lyon Street has been the home of the Lyon County Museum since 2012.