Patrolman Don Ziesmer Killed Near Tofte
Donald B. Ziesmer of Grand Marais, formerly of the Braham area, was shot to death Monday afternoon, Oct. 15, while making a routine traffic inspection on U.S. 61 at Tofte. He was 46.
Services were held Friday afternoon, Oct. 19, at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Grand Marais, with the Rev. Robert Stoskoph and the Rev. Joyce Ranum officiating.
On Saturday, Oct. 20, visitation was held at Rock-Randall Funeral Home in Braham from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., followed by burial services at Rice Lake Cemetery in Braham, with the Rev. John Davis officiating.
Ziesmer was born Feb. 25, 1927, in St. Paul. He attended school in McGrath and graduated from Braham High School in 1945. Before graduation, he enlisted in the Navy and served until Dec. 1947. On Nov. 28, 1948, he married Barbara Harder in Braham and began operating a small garage. He was recalled into the Navy in March 1952 and served until July 1953.
The family lived on a farm in Braham until 1960, when he became a highway patrolman and moved to Grand Marais. He served as a patrolman for 13 years.
He is survived by his wife, Barbara, of Grand Marais; three daughters, Deborah of Denver, Colo., and JoAnn and Kendall at home; his mother, Mrs. Martha Ziesmer of Braham; five brothers, Homer of Minneapolis, Leo of Detroit, Mich., Kenneth and Floyd of Stanchfield, and Clyde of Braham; three sisters, Mrs. Leo Genz (Ethel) of McGrath, Mrs. Charles Brummer (Losi) of Minneapolis, and Mrs. Wayne Parson (Caryll) of Anoka; and other relatives.
He was preceded in death by his father, Alfred, and one daughter, Cathryne Louise, 20, in Nov. 1971.
More than 100 patrolmen attended the burial service in Braham on Saturday. Governor Wendell Anderson and other state officials attended the funeral.
Casket bearers were Harry Lamson, Stanley Suck, John Lyght, Harvey Genadek, Clarence Swanson, Al Golias, James Crawford, and Owen Borchert.
Trooper Donald Ziesmer and an Illinois man were found shot to death on Highway 61 in Tofte at about 2:40 p.m. A .22-caliber semi-automatic rifle was found at the scene.