THOMAS BARLOW WALKER
By Bob Reiss, From the Re-Echo, Fall 2004

Thomas Barlow Walker was born in Ohio in 1840.  When his father died in 1849, he was forced to go to work to support his family and finance his education.  He got a job with the Minneapolis company Fletcher Hulet and traveled all over the Northwest selling grindstones.  In 1863 he married Hulet's daughter and they moved to Minneapolis.

In Minneapolis he was employed as a surveyor, and he learned the value of the pine tree stands in Northern Minnesota.  With his knowledge and money from Minneapolis businessmen, the firm of Butler, Wells, and Walker was formed to invest in the pine forests.  With various partners, he became the largest lumber operator in Minnesota.  Eventually the Walker family interests were consolidated in the Red River Lumber Company.  Lumbering, sale of depleted ore lands, and real estate deals made Walker a millionaire many times over.

One of T.B. Walker's real estate deals was St. Louis Park.  He was president of the Minneapolis Land and Investment Company.  This company was formed in 1886 with a plan to build an industrial village.  Walker publicly stated that the company has no philanthropic objectives and was being established to make a profit for the investors.

Many outlying sites were considered.  Walker favored St. Louis Park because he thought that the railroads would help in the development of industry.  The plan was to make the Village a factory-owned suburb.  It was to be modeled after Pullman, Illinois.  In Pullman, the Pullman Motor Coach  Company owned homes, stores, schools, etc. to provide all the necessities for the plant workers.

In 1890, a surveyor was employed to replat St. Louis Park to provide the three zoning regulations for a self-sufficient village.  The new plat had a provision for deeding the streets, roads, and parks to the Village while reserving to the Minneapolis Land and Investment Company the right to lay gas, water, underground conduit and mains and the right to operate a street railroad system.  Once the plat was approved by the village council, T.B. Walker and the Minneapolis Land and Investment Company started grading roads and buying up lots.

Next, they had to find industries for the industrial suburb.  The Monitor Manufacturing Company, a producer of grain drills, was persuaded to move to St. Louis Park.  Its incentives were free land on which to build the factory and a financial incentive paid for every 25 jobs.  The Monitor was the largest employer in St. Louis Park until it burned in the 1930s.  Other industries that were enticed to the Park were the Minneapolis Jarless Spring Carriage Co., the Malleable Iron Col., the Shaft-Pierce Shoe Co. and the Minneapolis Esterly Harvester Co.  Gilbert Walker, a son of T.B., ran several of these companies.

Although Walker's interests were not to be philanthropic, his concept of the industrial village made it necessary for his company to provide the Village with a great deal of financial help.  It donated land for schools and built a streetcar line from Minneapolis.  Together with Monitor Drill, the company built about 100 new homes, store buildings (the brick block), and three hotels.

The depression of 1893 to 1898 brought development to a standstill.  Monitor Drill shut down for a year and caused the failure of the Esterly Co. T.B. Walker reduced or canceled rents for his tenants.  He took over the Esterly Company at some financial loss to himself.  He and his wife delivered baskets of groceries to hard pressed workers.

Early in the 20th Century, Walker withdrew from business and devoted his time to civic and philanthropic enterprises, in particular his growing art collection.  He was proud of his collection and had a special room in his home open to the public.

Subsequent additions to his home became the Walker Art Gallery.  He then moved his home from downtown Minneapolis to the current Hennepin Ave. location of the Walker Art Center.  He established the Walker Foundation in 1925 to administer the gallery and collections.  Two years later, he gave the foundation a substantial permanent endowment.

Walker actively supported the YMCA, the Methodist Episcopal Church, and other philanthropic enterprises.  He helped found and financially supported the Minneapolis Public Library system, which named a branch after him.

Thomas Barlow Walker died in 1928, and was survived by five sons and a daughter.  He left his mark on Minneapolis and St. Louis Park.




 

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This information comes from a variety of sources: newspapers, books, yearbooks, phone directories, interviews, etc. Given the varied sources, we cannot guarantee that all of this information is correct, and welcome any additions and corrections. Please contact us with your contributions and comments.