Lund-Hoel House

The Most Famous House in Town!

Stone headers and entrance gate to the historic lund-hoel house.

John E Qualley

John E Qualley, "Bud"

May 15, 1925 - March 20, 2011

The idea may have come from his daughter, Kay, but the Lund-Hoel House Museum was realized from Bud's determination and his endless devotion of time and effort necessary to save, renovate, and restore a very big project.

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John Elmer Qualley passed away on March 20, 2011 at Sanford Canby Medical Center, Canby, Minnesota at age 85, from long-standing health complications and pneumonia. 


John was born in Hammer Township, Yellow Medicine County, Minnesota on May 15, 1925 to Clarence G. and Mary Louisa (Babe Hanning) Qualley. The family originally farmed in the Hills/Beaver Creek area of Minnesota and later moved to Canby. "Bud" was baptized and confirmed at the First Presbyterian Church in Canby, Minnesota.


Bud had a very colorful childhood with three (eventually 4) sisters and one brother. He worked as a painter, cleaner, entrepreneur, spike pitcher, road crew worker and general store retailer in high school.  


John was proud to have graduated as class valedictorian from Canby High School in 1943 and he entered WWII in the U.S. Naval Service on May 14, 1943 in Montevideo, Minnesota. After testing well on a special entrance exam, he attended Texas A&M College (a military school at the time). Bud graduated from Radar Repair School and then spent time in San Francisco before deployment, working in the shipyards by night and the Navy by day. He had the rank of Electronics Mate Technician Is Class and served aboard the USS Springfield (a light cruiser) which escorted President Roosevelt to Malta through the North Atlantic. Later the Springfield saw action during the liberation of the Philippines during the Battle of Layte Gulf and they saw the Treaty with Japan signed in Tokyo Harbor. His last service assignment was near Shanghai, China. Bud was discharged from the Navy on March 21, 1946 in San Pedro, California. He qualified for the Asiatic Pacific, American Area, Philippine Liberation and the World War II Victory medals.


After serving his duty in WWII, Bud finished college with a Bachelor of Science in Law and completed law school (Doctor of Jurisprudence), both from the University of Minnesota. When he received his law degree, Bud applied to the FBI in Washington D.C. and was offered a position there by a letter from J. Edgar Hoover. He didn't think the FBI was right for him and he returned to Canby and established a small private law practice, eventually joining Severson & Severson.  


In 1952 he married Ruth Opal Vance and had two children, Kay and Philip.  


The family moved to Phoenix, Arizona from 1961-64 for John's health. He accepted a job at Phoenix Title and Trust and worked in real estate law. He moved his family back to Canby in 1964, re-joining Paul Severson to create the law firm Severson and Qualley (later Severson, Qualley & Boulton). Bud was Canby City Attorney for 25 years.


On December 26, 1992, he was happily re-married to Mavis M.(Mohn) Christianson. He enjoyed spending time with Mavis' three daughters and their families.  


Bud's favorite hobby was golfing, and he enjoyed Men's Night at the Canby Golf Club regularly. He was a charter member of the Canby Golf Club Board of Directors. In later years, he loved to ride the golf cart and watch his grandson Adam golf! He also enjoyed the computer, buying and selling things on E-Bay.


John and Mavis were able to enjoy semi-retirement at their winter home in the Phoenix (Mesa) area for many years. He worked in downtown Phoenix during the winter months, volunteering free legal services for seniors who could not afford representation working through the Arizona Senior Citizens Law Project. Bud continued to practice law until his retirement on October 1, 2004 after 53 years. He was a member of both Minnesota and District Bar Associations for 53 years and the Arizona Bar Association for 43 years.


He traveled extensively in the U.S., Europe and North Africa throughout his lifetime and continued planning getaways and visiting relatives, including attending his sister Jackie and brother-in-law Dwayne's 50th wedding anniversary in Indiana and the recent Qualley family reunion at the Helgeson farm in Hills, MN.  


He was recently honored to be selected as a member of a great group of men to go on the Honor Flight Network, which gave WWII veterans a chance to tour the memorials in the Washington D.C. area and to visit the newly established WWII memorial. This trip meant so much to Bud.  


Bud enjoyed being active in the community and his achievements included being a founder and charter member of the Lund-Hoel House Board of Directors (Museum Encompassing Canby Community Area), continuing as Board president there for 30 years. Bud was a member of Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in Canby. He was active in many civic organizations such as: Canby Rotary Club (Past-President, Past-Secretary), a charter member of the Canby Senior Haven Board of Directors, Veterans Organizations (American Legion-member for 63 continuous years and VFW Canby Post adjutant for many years), as well as school fundraising committees through the Blue and Gold Educational Foundation (charter member). Fraternal memberships included the Canby Masonic Lodge 147, Knights Templar, Royal Arch Masons, Shriner-Zurah Temple and the Canby area Shrine Club. He was part of a team that helped to facilitate "The Connection", a youth center, in Canby, Minnesota.  


John's dry sense of humor helped him through many situations including aiding in weathering the health challenges of the last two years.  


He loved his hometown of Canby and was proud to be a member of the community.















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Site last modified:  01/17/2024