HISTORY OF THE VICTORIAN:
We’ve traced the history of the Victorian back to Hans and Karen Olson who lived there in the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s. The above picture is of the home in the 1800’s with the family enjoying the front porch and garden. Hans was a shoemaker in town. Their daughter Tilla became a talented millener (hat maker) in town and ran her shop from the first floor of the Victorian. Her hats are displayed at the Cambridge Historic Museum just around the corner from the Victorian.
Tilla never married and was known as Aunt Tilla to everyone. Her shop was called Aunt Tilla’s Hat House. Aunt Tilla sold her beautiful hand made creations to ladies in the village from her first floor shop. Her hats were displayed and enjoyed from the large picture window facing Main Street.
She ran a boarding house on the second floor. One of the "famous" residents was Les Punzel who was a Cambridge State Bank executive. A street bearing the Punzel name is located in neighboring Rockdale.
Aunt Tilla served one meal a day to her guests as there were no restaurants in the village at that time. Her cousin stayed with her for a while and helped create the beautiful backyard garden.
Aunt Tilla held a festive holiday party during the annual Bavarian Christmas celebration in Cambridge. The finest Cambridge families came to enjoy the party including the Amundsen family. The Amundsens are an important part of Cambridge history. The building housing the Village Hall, library and police station around the corner from The Victorian bears the Amundsen name.
We hope you enjoy your stay at the Victorian and wish you great fun in creating your own history
here.
Learn more about the history of Cambridge with a visit to the Cambridge Historic Museum located around the corner from the Victorian at the Middle School.