PHOTO OF THE DAY: THAT 1970s VIBE

This fleet of service trucks, as pictured 45 years ago, reflects one of Freeman’s three-generation family businesses, Kleinsasser Heating and Cooling. The photo appeared in a special Freeman Centennial section of the May 30, 1979 Freeman Courier.

Calvin Kleinsasser founded Kleinsasser Plumbing and Heating in a 24×24 horse barn at 412 East Sixth Street in Freeman in 1950. “Freeman Facts, Freeman Fiction,” published in 1979, notes that he began with one employee and a 1948 Studebaker pickup. In 1960, he built a 54×42 Quonset over the existing building; that’s the familiar building in the photo and that we know today. In 1975, he expanded with a 40×60 foot addition. By 1978, the operation included seven Ford service trucks and 13 employees. The company had approximately 3,000 customers in its service area, which had grown to include Mitchell and Sioux Falls with shops at the I29-Tea exit and in Mitchell.

Calvin semi-retired in 1991 and turned the business to his son, Collin, but continued to work until 1998; he died in 1998. Collin – who had joined the business immediately after graduating from Freeman High School in 1975 – and his wife, Jane, continued the family business until his death in 2009. Their sons, Morgan and Mitchell, have continued as the third generation of the business that continues the family name and remains in its landmark location on Sixth Street, 74 years after it was established.

We piece together details about businesses like this from sources in our archives, including photos, books, issues of the Courier, and obituaries that we collect and keep as part of the historical record.

Preserving and sharing the historical record is central to our mission. Both our archives and exhibit halls are open for research and touring. We’re open Mondays through Saturdays through September. We switch to weekday afternoons from noon to 4 from October through May. For more information call 605-925-7545 or go to https://heritagehallmuseum.com.