Area historians resurrect sign from old ballroom

It would be easy to say Terry Prokopec and Lloyd Kaplan literally have a nose for history.
Something caught their eye as they drove by Bixby a few years back when they were making several trips to Blooming Prairie for another history project. They saw a sign lying in the weeds. Upon investigating a little further, they discovered it was a sign for Zeiner’s Ballroom, which had been a booming hub for dancing for many decades.
The sign once had hung on a pole in front of the ballroom.
Prokopec and Kaplan approached the owners, Ted and Shelly Janning, about the sign. The Jannings donated it to the local historians. LeRoy Sommers showed up with his trailer and hauled it away to his place for about seven years before he moved off the farm. It was then moved to Bill Hartle’s place for another four years.
The large sign has finally found a permanent home at the Steele County History Center in Owatonna where it’s currently on display for the music exhibit, which runs throughout the year.
“I’m glad we salvaged it,” said Kaplan while looking at the sign all spiffed up and lit up just like old days. “I’m sure it would have eventually been destroyed, bull dozed.”
Kaplan recalled the condition of the sign when they discovered it. “Dirty,” he said, noting it had green moss all over it. “We power washed it with a washer, and the metal for as old as it is cleaned up good,” he added.
The trio of historians was surprised to find the sign was mostly intact with only a couple chips in the corners of the plexiglass, which had fallen inside and were able to be retrieved and repaired. Prokopec said they found it hard to believe the sign didn’t crack or shatter.
They were also excited to find that all the bulbs inside the sign still worked allowing it to be lit up brightly.
“With the conditions it sat in, you would think it would be shot,” Kaplan said. “It was a find.”
Prokopec said they thought the sign would be a “good piece” for the history center. They did not know what the sign would be utilized for at the time they took possession of it. “It’s finding its home now,” he said, adding it goes right along with the current music exhibit.
Kaplan said it will be up to the history center what to do with the sign after the music exhibit is over. He would like it to eventually be displayed in the service bay being considered for Gus’ Station in the Village of Yesteryear. However, there are no funds available yet for the addition to Gus’ Station.
“They’re not going to get rid of it,” Kaplan said of the sign.
Asked what Zeiner’s Ballroom meant to Steele County, Kaplan replied: “It was party time. Anybody and everybody went there. It was packed.”
Prokopec had his wedding dance at Zeiner’s in 1970. “It was a hopping place back then when everyone had dances,” Prokopec said. “Everyone had their spots with the booths,” he said, adding the ballroom sold mixes and beer while customers brought their own alcohol.
The ballroom, which was built in 1938, held up to 300 people. The last dance took place around 2000 before it was demolished in 2007. “You sure bumped into a lot of people when you were dancing,” Kaplan recalled.
Among the many memories, they recalled “Grandma Zeiner” (Josephine Haberman Zeiner), who usually took tickets at the door. “If you didn’t have a ticket, you would just give her a swig of your bottle,” Kaplan said.
As for the sign, the history buffs are thrilled to have saved it.
“This is preserving history,” Prokopec said. “You know the younger generation never heard of Zeiner’s.”
Added Kaplan, “When we see something that is from our time, we want to preserve it. We’re preserving history of the county so it isn’t forgotten.”