It’s sort of a case of history making history in the City of Jenkins. Over a hundred years of settlement, livelihood and transportation history has been and continues to be collected from interested residents who have direct memories and/or family ties to the stories. 

Donna and Steve Stricker have spearheaded the history collection meetings with an eye toward highlighting the memories as the vehicle through which to tell the story of the beginning of Jenkins from a simple fur trading post, through the ups and downs of the ensuing decades, to the growing Byway community it is today.

The City of Jenkins has partnered with the Paul Bunyan Scenic Byway Association to develop an interpretive panel, complete with photo renditions and an historical map.  The Byway Association’s Panel Partners program offers cities, organizations and groups, annually rented space at some of their fourteen kiosk sites to display their stories. Additionally, the PBSBA offers the services needed to work with the groups on panel design, production and fabrication.

In the summer of 2006, the Paul Bunyan Scenic Byway Association installed fourteen interpretive panel kiosks throughout the 54 miles of the Byway route. Local writer, Dave Skyberg, developed the ‘truth and lore’ style panel stories to highlight the significance of each location. The Panel Partners program was developed a few years later and has been offered to all fourteen Byway jurisdictions as well as several area organizations. 

The panel being developed to highlight the history of the City of Jenkins will be the first installation as a part of the Panel Partners program. So, the City is again making history simply by featuring their history in this unique manner.

The Jenkins panel will be installed at the Gateway Gazebo before winter and will face Crow Wing County Road 16.

Find out more about Jenkins history.