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Unsolved: Killing of Chisago County mother, 7 children in fire
The Johnson family’s remains were all found in a burned-down farmhouse in 1933, except for Albin Johnson, who was never seen again.
HARRIS, Minn. — About an hour north of the Twin Cities is a small, Lutheran cemetery where a mother and her seven children are buried.
Their remains were all found in their Chisago County farmhouse that burned down 90 years ago on April 11, 1933.
But who killed them is a mystery that still divides Harris all these years later.
The small town is known as much for its café, full of friendly faces and home-cooking, as it is for the murders Brian Johnson knows about all too well.
“When I was a kid, I always thought it was a terrible, tragic accident,” said Johnson. “It wasn’t until I got older that I became more and more curious about it.”
Back then, Brian and his family would often visit the nearby cemetery to pay their respects at the graveside of his grandmother’s sister, Alvira Lundeen Johnson, and her seven children, who are all buried together in one casket.
“It was a great shock to the community, as you might expect, and so it was a very sensitive topic,” said Johnson.
Alvira was just 29 years old and a dedicated mother during what was the Great Depression. She was married to a man named Albin Johnson, who had fallen on such hard times that their family would be evicted by her own father-in-law.
Albin’s remains were the only ones that have never been found.
“I believe he did it — I believe Albin did it,” said Johnson. “It was a very desperate time, of course, and he was a very, very desperate man and felt like there was no way out and that he somehow got away.”
Johnson thinks Albin escaped to Canada where he once worked as a logger.
The news even made headlines there — and across the country. After a months-long manhunt turned up nothing, a grand jury eventually indicted Albin in the deaths.
But former Chisago County Sheriff Floyd Pinotti will tell you that Albin isn’t to blame. Rather, he thinks Albin’s own brothers killed him, fighting over their land and then burying him beneath a hill on the old property where a new house now stands.
Pinotti points out what little evidence investigators had back then, including a kerosene can left at the scene, fresh automobile tracks and reports the field was being farmed only hours after the fire was first reported.
“The brothers and the family were at odds over that (the land),” said Pinotti. “Which leads you to wonder at a time like this, at that time in the morning, is that something normal people would do?”
Pinotti still lives across the street from the scene and would go on to be friends with one of the Johnson brothers, who eventually took over the farm.
Pinotti, admittedly, also says he was a suspect in the crime that has long gone cold, 90 years later. Now in 2023, files relating to the case no longer exist.
“It’s hard for me to imagine he was involved because he was so nice,” said Pinotti about the one Johnson brother. “It could be a repentance, a repentance on his part.”
As for Brian Johnson, who isn’t related to Albin, he’s left to look back on all the pictures he has of his family, gone too soon.
Even the wanted poster for Albin continues to hang in the Harris café, a reminder there’s still a search for answers and that those who died will never be forgotten.
“I feel like he robbed us of getting the opportunity of knowing Alvira and those kids,” said Johnson. “If anyone has any information that would shed more light on this case, I would love for them to come forward.”
In 2019, Johnson wrote a book about the murders. It’s available on Amazon.
Unsolved: Chisago County mother, 7 children killed in 1930s farmhouse fire
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The child was taken to a nearby hospital to be treated for scratches and bite wounds to the head, face and legs.
BREMERTON, Wash. — A child and their mother were attacked by a river otter at the Bremerton Marina Thursday morning.
According to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), a woman and her young child were walking on a dock around 9:30 a.m. when the river otter pulled the child into the water. The woman said the child was underwater for a few moments before resurfacing.
WDFW officials say the otter kept attacking the woman while she pulled the child out of the water.
The child was treated at a hospital in Silverdale for scratches and bite wounds to the head, face and legs. The woman was bit on the arm.
“We are grateful the victim only sustained minor injuries due to the mother’s quick actions and child’s resiliency,” said WDFW Sergeant Ken Balazs said in a prepared statement. “We would also like to thank the Port of Bremerton for their quick coordination and communication to their marina tenants.”
According to WDFW, the otters in the marina will be “trapped and lethally removed” by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services, then tested for rabies.
River otter attacks are rare, and WDFW officials advise against instigating any close encounters. There have been six documented human-river otter incidents in Washington state in the last decade.
“When we do see this on the rare occasion that it does occur, it’s for territoriality or protecting its pups. If it’s a female, protecting its pups,” said Matt Blankenship with the WDFW.
And while many think of them as cute, curious creatures. They can cause serious injuries.
Jen Royce, who lives in Bozeman, Montana, was attacked by a river otter last summer. The damage was extensive.
“I had really large bite wounds on each cheek. A really big gash on this left side of my eye here.. luckily it didn’t get my eye.. it bit through my nose,” Royce said.
She wants to urge others to be cautious around the animal.
“My main goal is to spread awareness. I don’t want people to go out and kill otters. That’s not what this is about. It’s about trying to be more prepared in nature,” Royce said. “Not to let your guard down and hopefully, if someone learns something from my story. I feel like that’s why I’m still here.”
Medtronic’s latest Deep Brain Stimulation device allows Bruce Lunde to control his tremors remotely, with a cell phone, and that’s not all.
MERRIFIELD, Minn. — Bruce Lunde has never let his age stop him from staying active, so when Parkinson’s Disease threatened to slow him down at the age of 81, he decided to take action.
Lunde recently underwent surgery in order to become the first patient in the upper Midwest to receive Medtronic’s latest Deep Brain Stimulation device.
“Within seconds my tremor was gone,” Lunde said, recalling the moment doctors activated the device, which was implanted via surgery. “It’s amazing what they can do.”
A Very Active Octogenarian
After teaching in Edina for 35 years, Bruce and his wife, Gail Lunde, retired to the woods of central Minnesota, where they remain today.
“I enjoy cutting wood and I enjoy splitting wood,” said Lunde, who relies on a wood-burning stove to heat their home. “I like to have enough on hand to stay a year ahead, so I don’t sit around too much.”
Lunde is also active in his church choir and enjoys running and boxing, so it didn’t take long for his tremors to begin to impact his life.
“The tremor was bothering me more, particularly when I was singing,” he recalled. “I couldn’t hold my sheet music. I tried medication but I felt like my tremor didn’t improve.”
When doctors first diagnosed Bruce with Parkinson’s Disease a few years ago, they told him he might be a good candidate for deep brain stimulation.
“It’s changing the way that the brain networks work, enhancing the pathways that help you move,” said Dr. Robert McGovern, a neurosurgeon at M Health Fairview.
But brain surgery is required in order to make that possible.
“It’s one long kind of wire that gets sent into the brain,” Dr. McGovern said. “We implant two tiny electrodes and calibrate them. They are connected to that wire which then connects to the device.”
Though Brain Stimulation Devices have been around for many years, Dr. McGovern says early batteries often didn’t last beyond just 2-3 years and required additional surgeries to replace.
When Medtronic began introducing wireless charging capabilities in recent years, it was a game changer for many patients, including Bruce.
“It’s charging right now and I just sit like this,” Bruce said, showing off the charging pad draped over his shoulder that indicated that it was connected to the DBS device implanted in the upper part of his chest.
“I wasn’t interested in undergoing multiple surgeries,” he said. “This battery is expected to last more than 10 years.”
In addition to the wireless charging, Bruce can also calibrate his own device with nothing more than a few taps on a cell phone. That means he can consult his doctors from his home and dial in his treatment around his lifestyle.
“The tremor isn’t 100% gone,” he said. “But what a blessing it has been. I feel normal again.”
Dr. McGovern said the most exciting aspect of the device may be yet to come. It features Medtronic’s new BrainSense Technology.
Dr. McGovern: “One of the cool things about it is it actually records the brain signals on the device to individualize the therapy.”
Kent Erdahl: “So, in a sense, the device is getting smarter?”
Dr. McGovern: “Yeah. One, we can learn more about what’s happening in the brain throughout the course of the disease. Two, we know that it works already, but this is potentially a way to make it a lot better.”
Despite all of that promise, Dr. McGovern said he is grateful for Bruce’s courage to embrace the new technology at his age, something even Gail struggled with initially.
“It’s something I have a hard time thinking about,” Gail said, recalling the first time she learned about the surgery. “I didn’t want it to be done, but Bruce was ready for it. So we did it.”
They are both grateful they did.
“I don’t worry too much about it,” Bruce said. “I feel confident that I’m going to be able to function for a long time.”
“The memories are intense,” Beth Eilers, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 14, said.
APPLE VALLEY, Minn. — It’s been nearly seven months since two Burnsville police officers and a firefighter/paramedic were killed in the line of duty. Since then, grief has been hard to overcome for many in the departments.
“The memories are intense,” Beth Eilers, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge 14, said. “It will stick with them forever, it just get’s lighter, gets a little bit further back.”
Eilers says a potential source of closure will come as the names of those three – Adam Finseth, Paul Elmstrand and Matthew Ruge – are enshrined on national memorials in Washington, DC, next year. Getting there is expensive, though.
That’s why hundreds came to Bogart’s in Apple Valley Thursday for a fundraiser to get those departments there next year.
“This is dedicated to getting the whole force to Washington, DC, for the dedication,” Chris Loth, co-owner of Bogarts Entertainment Center, said. “It’s a way to honor those who risk their lives to take care of us, to keep us safe.”
Money raised from tickets to get in for a show by Good for Gary, along with a silent auction, will all go towards that goal. Amy and Tom Strese came from Farmington to show their support.
“Super important that they can honor their brothers that we lost,” Amy said.
“You can’t take back that engraving,” Tom added. “So when it gets engraved, and everybody can view it, that solidifies their sacrifice.”
While hearts were heavy inside Bogart’s Thursday night, Eilers knows that money will help.
“It’s a sad night that has a good ending,” she said.
Loth says they’d like to hold more events like this in the future.
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