By BSU Alumni & Foundation
Published 10:00 am on October 1, 2025
Travel back in time with us as we remember some of the momentous moments of Bemidji State history from the month of October.
Oct. 2, 1954: Bemidji State product Wes Westrum won the World Series with the New York Giants, catching every inning of the series to highlight his 11-year MLB career that spanned 919 games. The Clearbrook native hit .273 in the World Series (3-for-11) with three RBIs as the Giants swept Cleveland 4-0. Three days prior, during Game 1 on Sept. 29, Westrum witnessed teammate Willie Mays make "The Catch" out in center field.
Oct. 3, 2019: Bemidji State officials buried a new time capsule on campus as part of its centennial celebration. The box, buried just north of the lower Hobson Memorial Union, was filled with items ranging from a newspaper to a hockey puck to a flash drive with photos and videos from KBSU-TV, the university's student-run TV station. The same day, a recently-unearthed time capsule from 1918, which had been placed in the Deputy Hall cornerstone, was showcased to the public for the first time.
Oct. 14, 1995: The Bemidji State football team started an incredible campus tradition with the first Homecoming lake jump. The Beavers beat defending conference champion Winona State 25-14. Off went the helmets, and into Lake Bemidji went the players and coaches. Everything went in – shoes, equipment, jerseys and all. A tradition was born.
Oct. 19, 1934: A newly-formed male quartet made a hit as the main feature of a musical program, which was enthusiastically received at the second student assembly of the year. With Roland Olson presiding at the assembly, the quartet – composed of Ervin Butler, John Larson, Jonathan Peters and Dick Edwards – opened the entertainment with a clever number, "Tackle It," dedicated to the football team. Thunderously applauded, the men sang "Old King Cole" as an encore. Then Dick Edwards, assisted by George LaMont at the piano, acted as master of ceremonies of the community singing, which followed and received the enthusiastic support of students and faculty. With the quartet leading in "Juanita," "Old Zip Coon," "Long, Long Trail," "Pack Up Your Troubles" and other old favorites, the singers made the walls of the old assembly ring as they have not done in many a day. Harold Hoganson, William McNelly and Stan Oksness, with the aid of the music department, arranged the program.
Oct. 25, 2000: The rock wall at Bemidji State's Gillett Wellness Center (then called the Gillett Recreation-Fitness Center) held a grand opening ceremony. Different organizations on campus held a competition to see who could get the most "vertical feet climbed" by climbing the wall as many times as possible throughout the day. The rock wall was built by Nicros Inc. of St. Paul during the summer of 2000 and opened on the first day of school in the fall of 2000.
Oct. 30, 2014: The 2014 U.S. Capitol Christmas tree arrived at Bemidji State University to be prepped for its 2,000-mile, 30-city tour en route to Washington, D.C., where it was placed on the west lawn of the U.S. Capitol Building. The White Spruce — measuring 88 feet tall and some 13,000 pounds, was cut down from the Chippewa National Forest the day before.
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