Anoka County history by Ryan Dawson

I’ll have to admit, I did not volunteer for the Anoka County Historical Society because I am an expert on Anoka County history. 

Rather, I have only recently become intrigued by it after spending some time at the History Center in Anoka. 

It didn’t take long before I was completely drawn in by the events that shaped Anoka County and once I became more involved, there was one name that came up again and again. Charlie Sell.

Charlie was born in Anoka in 1931 and lived there for his entire life, other than when he served in the Navy during the Korean War.

He worked for Federal Cartridge for 38 years and fulfilled various roles with many different organizations. 

Charlie was post commander for the Anoka American Legion, city council member, a founding member of the Anoka Heritage Preservation Commission and was even elected mayor on a write-in vote. 

Charlie also volunteered for the ACHS for more than a decade until he passed away in September 2008. 

Executive Director Todd Mahon recalled, “He really had an affinity for the historical society. He would come in one day a week and catalogue photographs.  He had such a great memory for stuff and had a great recall for names and dates.”

One of Charlie’s biggest contributions is a photo collection called “Then and Now.” He first started off with pictures of Main Street businesses and residences, and then expanded the project to a second volume.  The collection can be viewed at the Anoka County History Center.

“What was so great about it was that he was so well connected with everything in the community, he could just go and get photographs, so our photograph collection benefited immensely from his time,” Mahon said. 

“Everybody knew him and he knew everybody, so that’s how the book got started.”

Throughout his lifetime, Charlie saw a great deal of change in the downtown area, due to commercial developments outside of town. 

During an oral history interview with Randy Getchell in 2001, Sell expressed his concerns.

“You just hate to see the stores go out of business, because they were all local people, and they employed people, but you can’t stop progress and you don’t really want to,” he said.

Despite the growing pains, Charlie remained optimistic. “The town itself has good industry - good employment,” he said.

“There’s an awful lot of people that don’t live in Anoka who have enjoyed a good lifestyle because of Anoka - they’ve worked here.”

Charlie Sell is a man who will be missed by many.

Mahon remarked, “He was a guy that you could tell cared, and when he cared about something, it was important, and he would help to make sure it happened. 

“When he was involved with something, you know that he was going to see it through to be as successful as it could be.”

Editor’s note: Ryan Dawson is a an Anoka County Historical Society volunteer.