D.W. Meeker, of Moorhead, spent yesterday in Crookston, returning home last evening. Mr. Meeker is supervisor of the census for the Ninth congressional district and came up to take a cursory view of the situation. He has not received his detailed instructions as yet, but they may arrive any day, or it is possible that a meeting of the supervisors of the state may be held in ST. Paul, at which time a representative from the census bureau would be present from Washington to give explicit instructions to secure uniform results.
Mr. Meeker is very desirous of getting enumerators who will be accurate and active. He does not want a man, woman or child in the Ninth district overlooked. The census will be taken next April, thirty days being allowed for the rural districts and villages, while the cities of over 5,000 must be taken in ten days to avoid dupications.
Supervisor Meeker has a vast amount of preliminary work to arrange before the actual work of census taking starts, in fact, the bulk of his work is in getting the machinery oiled so that when the work starts it will proceed without a hitch and the results will be turned in promptly and accurately.
In this connection the Commercial Club of Crookston should at once begin the laying of plans to assist the enumerators in making a complete canvass. A special committee should be named in this connection and complete detailed plans for a systematic check, to the end that every resident of the city be counted. Other cities will take such action and Crookston will suffer in a population comparison unless such action is taken.
In naming his enumerators politics will have no weight whatever, the sole idea of Mr. Meeker being to select the men who will do the work in the most efficient manner.
Mr. Meeker is an old time newspaper man and was a welcome caller at the Times yesterday. He was given a drive about the city in an automobile and noted many improvements since his last visit to this city. He was much pleased with both the asphalt and macadam paving in Crookston, but stated that Moorhead was highly pleased with the creosoted block paving which is being laid there this summer. He said the city engineer who supervised the work had an eye like an eagle and was having the work done strictly according to the letter of the contract and that a good job was being done in consequence.
Source: Crookston Times, August 26, 1909
Submitter: Brenda G.
Updated 20 APR 2015, K. Kittleson