Bell and Wheel Naval Artifacts will return to Minneapolis

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Bell and Wheel Naval Artifacts will return to Minneapolis

Agreement between Park Board and American Legion Minneapolis Post 1 will return Wheel from USS Minneapolis, Bell from USS Minnesota to Minneapolis by Sept. 1, 2021

 

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) and American Legion Minneapolis Post 1 have come to an agreement to return two naval artifacts – the Wheel from USS Minneapolis and Bell from USS Minnesota – to the Minneapolis park system.

 

The American Legion gifted the Bell of the USS Minneapolis to the MPRB in 1928 and the Wheel from the USS Minnesota in 1932. The Navy Memorial at the northeast corner of Bde Maka Ska displayed these naval artifacts for decades, where annual Memorial Day services were also held.

 

As years passed, the Navy Memorial site did not receive the care and attention that the American Legion deemed appropriate, so the American Legion asked Minnetonka Public Schools to provide a safe place for the artifacts until the American Legion requested their return. The Navy Memorial at Bde Maka Ska was improved in 2017 and the MPRB has expressed a strong desire to see the artifacts return to Minneapolis.

 

“I appreciate the care the American Legion and Minnetonka Schools has taken in maintaining the Bell and Wheel that had for so long resided on the shores of Bde Maka Ska, and am excited for its return,” said MPRB President Jono Cowgill. “Thank you to the people of Minneapolis and the many students and parents who reached out on this issue. The Board is committed to honoring these items for generations to come.”

 

According to MPRB Superintendent Al Bangoura, both items will be back in the park system by this fall.

 

“We’ve been working on a plan for returning the Bell and Wheel to Minneapolis and we are excited to move forward with this plan. We appreciate everyone’s support,” said Bangoura.

 

 By Sept. 1, 2021, the Bell will return to the Navy Memorial at Bde Maka Ska. MPRB staff will travel to Minnetonka High School to measure the Bell and work with a structural engineer to attempt to match its previous installation. MPRB staff will also create and install a plaque with information about the Bell at the Navy Memorial.

 

The tentative plan is to temporarily display the Wheel at the Mary Merrill MPRB Headquarters until it can be displayed at the lake. By Sept. 1, 2021, MPRB staff will review the Wheel’s installation at Minnetonka High School and work with a structural engineer to mount the Wheel behind the Customer Service desk in the atrium, along with a large graphic or image of the USS Minneapolis and plaque with information about the Wheel. Permanent display would be at Bde Maka Ska, most likely in a location within the new refectory site, near the Navy Memorial.

 

“The significant effort of Minnetonka Public Schools to preserve, secure, refurbish and hold these artifacts in a place of honor for the last 13 years cannot be overstated and I would like to especially thank Superintendent Dr. Dennis Peterson and the staff at Minnetonka,” said Dick Ward, Past Commander with American Legion Minneapolis Post 1. “The American Legion and the city of Minneapolis have a robust relationship dating back more than 100 years and we look forward to the next 100 years as partners in supporting our Veterans.”

 

The agreement approved by MPRB Commissioners yesterday details collaborative actions between the American Legion and MPRB to ensure these naval artifacts are given the proper reverence, respect and care deserving of their role in the history of Minnesota and the service of veterans to the country.