In 1872 this family immigrated from Falkowice, a small village in Silesia, southwest Poland. They settled on farmland south of Bowlus near the Stearns County line. Sometime in 1898, Peter Stodolka moved east to land 2 miles south of Royalton. The others remained near Bowlus. In 1905, at the age of 16, Peter’s oldest son John, left the farm and moved to St. Paul, Minnesota. He worked for the Great Northern Railroad and became an engineer of steam engines including the William Crooks. The William Crooks was a special locomotive that hauled dignitaries such as James J Hill and it now resides in the Duluth Railroad Museum. John’s brothers, Cyril and Ed, remained in Royalton and designed an aircraft in 1914 that actually flew. Another attempt at a helicopter, however, never got off the ground. This relic resides in the Royalton Museum.
Following World War 1 in 1918, Cyril and Ed refurbished an army surplus Curtis Jenny biplane. After several engine modifications to the plane that were perfected in their Royalton Auto Repair shop, they flew this aircraft at carnivals and special events across Central Minnesota. A young lad from Little Falls saw their efforts and rode his motor bike down to an airstrip the Stodolkas had built just southwest of Royalton. This young man was Charles Lindbergh. He got his first plane ride with the Stodolkas and became quite interested in their work. A Stodolka cousin, Tony Kalis from Royalton, joined the act by wing-walking and parachuting from 1919-1924. After a crash in 1924, Cyril walked away unhurt and never seriously flew again.
By Michael Stodolka
Guest Writer