Historical Museum
Imagine a time when a community would get together and have a large feast resembling something from the renaissance era. This happened for several years in Granada up until about 1920. The hunt supper was a very popular festival type of gathering in the Granada area.
It is not known when the first Hunt Supper took place but the first record of it was on October 29, 1908. That contest was declared a draw. There were three parties hunting together from different teams. This was not against the rules but naturally a problem arose when they could not agree as to who shot what. Had they divided the game equally, Eli Boudrye’s team would have won by 70 points.
During the 1908 contest, Eli Boudrye only shot two blackbirds. They were worth two points, not something you want to be remembered by. W.E. Teskey was the first to get his prize by 6:30 a.m. and he managed to get two boots full. At this time the wild game was worth the following points: Mallards – 50, Blackbirds – 1, Wild Geese – 200, Teal Duck – 25, Golden Plover – 20, Canvas Back Duck – 100, Red Hens – 75, Jacksnipe – 25, Prairie Chicken – 75, Gray Rabbit – 10, Jack Rabbit – 30, Quail – 15, Game Duck not listed – 15.
Eli Boudrye’s team won the contest several years in a row but in 1916 his team finally lost. That year the banquet was held at Chipman & Hill’s Garage at Eli Boudrye’s team expense. The losing team had to host the banquet and each member of the team had to pay 50 cents for this expense. B.A. Burton’s team had 3,235 points and Eli’s team had 2,830 point. You had to be careful as nothing was safe, even a “tin lizzy” was shot that year.
The Big Game Hunt came to an end about 1920. On this last supper several men were a little too ambitious in hunting. Some men started hunting a few days early and naturally the game got a little ripe. The meat was prepared and served. As can be expected, most everyone got food poisoning. Of course there were several people that had to visit the outhouse several times. This spelled the end of the Hunt Supper.
Comments, additions, or corrections are most welcome; please send to the Granada Historical Museum, PO Box 115, Granada, MN 56039.