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The Hamlet of St. Thomas, Le Sueur County, Minnesota

 

The Hamlet of St. Thomas, although of central importance to this narrative, is little more than a bend in the road. There is no Post Office and mail service is still by Rural Route Carrier. The RRC postal mecchasism was establishe by USPS in 1868, but the first route shown for Minnesota was for the town of Farmington, MN in 1897. That is well past the dates of Daniel's mail carring carreer of 28 years, 1863 to 1891. There is no mention of what entity was the the sponror of Daniel's route but is seemed to suggest that he was likely to have been the first holder of the position. The name "St. Thomas" in this region is predominantly associated with the University of St. Thomas which has two campus, one each in Minneapolis and St. Paul. Thus, an internet search for that name only tends to bring up structures related to the University.  At this point the Minnesota DNR becomes more helpful since the marshland adjacent to Hamlet is named the St. Thomas Lake Wildlife Management Area (WMA).  For the intrepid traveler seeking to tour the St. Thomas area, a search for directions to the St. Thomas WMA brings it right up.  Here, the site of Callahan's Tavern is used on the maps as a histiric anchoring location. Operationally, it no longer apperas to be in service, although county reords show that is still owned by a Callahan.

The map below shows the southward turn at Belle Plain. It is not well marked but it avoids going to the town of Le Sueur and backtracking. The Scott County Road #3 going south becomes Le Sueur County Road #11 and runs directly into the St. Thomas WMA.