The Skally Line brings the old stories of Minnesota to life with rip-roaring energy and passion!
Join us Monday, April 10th at 6:30 p.m. for a unique time of music and stories from the history of Minnesota. We will meet at the Slayton Senior Citizen Center for this free performance.
The Skally Line was a passenger rail started by the St. Paul and Duluth Railroad. While the ownership changed over the year, the line ran from 1877 to 19667 connecting the Twin Cities with Duluth for nearly 100 years. But the Skally Line connected older roads. It paralleled the Government Road, a corduroy road finished in 1861 from Point Douglas to Superior. That road followed still older trails up the St. Croix River used by Dakota, Ojibwe, and older peoples going back thousands of years. There are a number of stories about how it got its name but the one that sticks is that Swedish people, looking to travel north to meet relatives, would go to the ticket booth and say “Jag skille ga till Duluth”, which means “I would go to Duluth”.
Over the years it connected Minnesota’s mines and woods with its farmlands, it connected the Great Lakes with the Mississippi River, and it brought widely scattered towns and people a little closer together. Isolated communities suddenly had access to goods, services, and ideas from all over and city folks from far and wide learned the enchantment of the lakes, rivers and wilderness. People stayed in touch with distant friends and family for the price of a ticket.
The Skally Line steams its way around the curves and bends of early American music: Stringband Blues, Appalachian Ballads, Fiddle Tunes, Early County and Bluegrass, and Tin Pan Alley music. Along the way, we tell you forgotten stories about old Minnesota, play original music rooted in that history, and have a rip-roaring good time.
We are a band dedicated to creating an experience through old-time music and song with a focus on Minnesota history and story. We do what we love and we love what we do and we’re confident you’ll want to climb on board for the ride.
The Skally Line’s main line-up is Fred Keller on mandolin and Bill Cagley on guitar, banjo and limberjack.
For further information go to: www.deepnorthmn.com or plumcreeklibrary.org/ events/ This program is provided by the Plum Creek Library System through funding from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
