This interview took place on March 8, 1974 in the kitchen of the Gruben homestead on Lake Vermilion, Tower, Minnesota. Ike Gruben was 94 years old at the time. His younger brother Paul, age 75, was also present. I ended up owning this property for 15 years. Ike Gruben came with his parents from Norway as a child to settle on Lake Vermilion. Here are first hand stories of the 1800s.
I'd like to thank the audio restoration engineer Richard Hess for his technical expertise in recovering the original cassette tapes and converting them to permanent digital media. For me it was a miracle.