luverne

The historic Palace Theatre in Luverne once had exterior doors to protect the decorative tile, ticket booth and lobby entrance from the elements.  A project this fall will return exterior glass and doors and recreate a vestibule in order to keep snow, ice and cold out of the current entry way.  “This is a project that has been needed for a long time,” Luverne Mayor Pat Baustian said at a recent…

Tiny houses at the Luverne Campground are popular lodging options for travelers and locals alike.  Owners-operators Mike and Traci Davis built the nine houses on their property at the east end of The Lake in southwest Luverne.  “We started building them in 2019 and are just about done with them now,” Traci said.  “We designed and built them ourselves, did everything except the plumbing and…

The Luverne Jr. American Legion baseball team took third place in the 2023 Division II State Tournament Sunday, Aug. 6, in Granite Falls. At the state competition, Luverne beat Le Sueur 9-0 Friday, Aug. 4, lost to an undefeated Montevideo team 13-2 Saturday, Aug. 5, and beat Granite Falls 7-5 to take third place in the tournament. Luverne finished the season with a record of 17-7 under first-…

The Luverne Redbirds beat Hadley 5-2 on Aug. 2 and 13-2 on Aug. 7 to move on to the Region 13C championship. Luverne will play Jackson Aug. 9, 11 and 13 for the Region 13C championship. If the Redbirds win that series, they’ll have a first-round bye in the state tournament The Redbirds and the Bulls will play Game 1 of three at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 9, at Redbird Field. Game 2 will be at 7…

Kids are getting a kick out of fall soccer in Luverne with more than 200 players on 16 co-ed teams from Luverne, Hills-Beaver Creek and Edgerton. Organizer Michelle Raddle DeKam started the fall program four years ago when she noticed a local need.  “I was traveling with my son outside of town to have him play, so I decided to reach out to the Optimist Club for help in getting something started…

Luverne took the Region 13C playoff series against Heron Lake 2-0. The Redbirds beat Heron Lake 15-0 at home July 26 and finished the Lakers on the road 3-0 July 29. The Luverne Redbirds move on to the Final Four against the Hadley Buttermakers in a best-of-three series while qualifing for the state tournament. Luverne’s first game against Hadley will be at Redbird Field at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday…

The Redbirds swooped in and knocked Heron Lake out of the Region 13C playoffs, beating the Lakers 15-0 Wednesday, July 26, and 3-0 Saturday, July 29 in a best-of-three series. Here is a recap of other Region 13C baseball playoff action. Game 1 Wednesday July 26 Windom 6,  Hadley 3 Fairmont 10, Lakefield 0   Jackson 17, Milroy 0  Game 2 Friday July 28 Fairmont 10, Lakefield 0 - Martins win…

Following are racing results for local drivers competing in Luverne, Rock Rapids, Hartford, Slayton, Worthington and Brandon for the week of July 25-31.   Rock County Speedway July 29 Luverne, MN Rock County Fair Enduro Race Class A 1st-#46 Stacey Krohnberg, 200 laps 2nd-#78 Trey Anderson, 194 laps  3rd-#16 Scott Jones 189 laps 4th-#79 Carter Anderson, 185 laps 5th-#36 Andy Krohnberg,…

This past week two local race car drivers were honored for their careers in the sport. Jeremy Smith was inducted into the Murray County Speedway Hall of Fame on July 15. Smith has been racing since he was 17 years old. He started out in the sportsmen class and worked his way through hobby stock, B-Mod and eventually A-Mods where he has been racing for the past seven years. Some of the races…

Luverne is heading to the Division II American Legion State Baseball Tournament Aug. 4, 5 and 6. Their first game will be at 11 a.m. Friday, Aug. 4, in Granite Falls against a team yet to be determined. “Any time you make it to a state tournament, the competition is always tough, but we are going to go into every game expecting to win no matter who we are playing,” said head coach Jake Haugen.…

Luverne Blaze fastpitch softball team sent two teams on to state competition this past week. The Blaze 14U team traveled to Rochester July 22-23 and took home second place in the Minnesota State Championship. The 14U team played three games Saturday, July 22. The Blaze won the first game against New Ulm Blue 11-1, then lost to Redwood 2-1, and finished the day beating Hutchinson 13-5. On Sunday…

The Luverne Redbirds qualified for the Region 13C tournament, finishing the regular season with a 19-1 record overall and capturing the Gopher League Championship with a 14-1 record. The Redbirds received a bye in the 13C playoffs, winning the Gopher League, along with the runner-up Milroy Irish. The Fairmont Martins also got a bye, winning the First Nite League, along with the runner-up Windom…

The Redbirds hosted the Tea Steam Wednesday, July 19, winning 16-3 in 6 1/2 innings. The Steam was Luverne’s last game of the regular season this year. In the top of the first inning, Tea scored one run on a fly ball to left field that dropped just in front of Phil Paquette scoring a runner on third base. The Redbirds tied the game in the bottom of the first when Ben Serie stole home on an…

Arla M. Bakken, age 98, of rural Luverne, Minnesota, died peacefully on Saturday, July 8, 2023, at Sanford Luverne Hospice Cottage. Visitation will be Wednesday, July 12, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Hartquist Funeral Home in Luverne. Funeral service will be Thursday, July 13, at 10:30 a.m. at Grace Lutheran Church in Luverne.  Burial will follow at Maplewood Cemetery in Luverne. To view Arla’s…

The Redbirds posted six homeruns in two games this past week, beating Hadley 10-1 at home July 12 and Ruthton 17-1 on the road July 16. The win against Hadley clinched Luverne’s Gopher League regular season championship. The Redbirds will play their last regular season game against the Tea Steam Wednesday, July 19, at home.   Redbirds 10, Hadley 1 The Redbirds beat the Buttermakers 10-1 at…

The following article is part of the Diamond Club Member group that began in the January 7, 1943, issue of the Rock County Star Herald. Members of this group consist of persons of age 75 and older. The following appeared in The Rock County Herald on Nov. 4, 1943.          One of Luverne’s oldest residents, Thor Berg, who will be 90 years of age next January 3, is the only Diamond Club member thus…