Ely City Hall

The Ely City Hall was built in 1930 for $150,000. When it was dedicated in December of that year, over 5000 people attended the open house. Tours took place from 9:00 a.m. until late into the night. There was a dedication at 4:30 then a banquet and speeches followed by a dance held at the Washington School. 

The three-story building contains Ely’s fire department, police department and city offices. Initially and until 2005, there was a courtroom on the top floor where Municipal Court was held. The court room now houses the Council Chamber and meeting room. The building is open to the public on weekdays. 

The current Ely City Hall replaced an earlier 2 ½ story Victorian structure that was built on this site in 1899 under the direction of Thomas A. Jury. That building was considered one of the show cases of the Iron Range. However, after thirty years, the growing city required more administrative space. The Victorian was demolished, and this building constructed in its place. 

The community did not support a bonding bill for the project, so the city leaders developed a building fund which dedicated money to the project over several years. In 1930, it was determined that by January 1931 the fund would have the $150,000 needed and they began the project. Elwin H. Berg of Eveleth was selected as the architect. The Pfeffer Construction Company of Duluth was awarded the contract for general construction. And local businessman, E.L. Rautio, was awarded the contract for heating, ventilating, and plumbing.

The Ely Miner reported that ‘The new and modern American style of architecture is not a fad but is here to remain, as it is very practical and at the same time beautiful to behold.’

The building has a clean art deco design. Notice the low-relief geometric molding on the walls. There is a marble entry space, and oak trim and furnishings throughout. The stunning council chamber with its massive windows and floor to ceiling wood panels is also significant. This is a jewel from the WPA public building era. The chamber is open to the public when not otherwise in use. 

Pictures of past Ely mayors, line the second-floor hallways outside of the chamber and information regarding the more colorful mayors is available from the city clerk. There is also a display case with historic artifacts for visitors to enjoy. It includes early firefighting and police equipment as well as items from Ely’s history. 

Note the large painting in the second-floor lobby. This piece was done by Carl Gawboy, a local artist of Finnish and native American descent who is known for his work focusing on the local native American community and on Ely. This picture is of the Ely Railroad Depot, still standing at Central Avenue and Camp Street. You will see other work by Mr. Gawboy on this tour. 

In the lower level, there is a large vault that houses among other things, newspapers from the early days of Ely. The Ely Miner wrote, ‘The Ely Miner is also indebted to the city council for placing a series of shelves at our disposal upon which the files of this paper will be placed in a fireproof environment and in a position to be preserved… These books will come in handy one of these days when someone writes the history of Ely.’

In 2013, the Ely City council approved a $2.4 million project to upgrade this historic building. The sleek Black addition on the east side, houses an elevator and wide stairs, allowing easy access to all floors. Major heating and electrical upgrades were also completed at that time. The project was completed in 2015.

A memorial dedicated to Ely servicemen killed in the World Wars and in Viet Nam and Korea is located on the front lawn. In World War II, the City of Ely provided over 1600 soldiers, more than 25% of its population to the United States Armed Forces, a national per capita record.

Ely welcomes you to its historic City Hall. 

The Anniversary Committee (author), Centennial Roaring Stoney Days – In Commemoration of Ely’s 70the Birthday 1888-1958; Edition Second Edition October 30, 1982, Ely Minnesota; Ely-Winton Historical Society, 1958 (publisher)

Brownell, Lee. Pioneer Life in Ely, Ely Minnesota; Lee Brownell and the Iron Range Historical Society, copyright 1981 (publisher)

Ely Miner Newspaper, December 19, 1930