Mystery of North Shore ‘Devil’s Kettle’ solved

For generations, weekend hikers trekked into C.R. Magney State Park near Grand Marais, Minnesota, to see a genuine mystery. Upon the rocks of a waterfall along the Brule River, the river splits. Most flows down the falls, but another stream swirls into a cavern called the Devil’s Kettle. Where this second stream of water ended up, no… Read More →

Midnight in the Temple of Man (Toys)

Growing up on Northern Minnesota’s Iron Range, the occasional family trip to Duluth gave us a rare view of the chain stores and restaurants seen only on our television set. Every family member demanded a stop at their favorite destination. A second-hand clothing store for one sister. Designer clothes for the other. The big book store for mom… Read More →

Lake Superior shipping season ends today

As cold as it was last week, sailors and dock workers were still on the job in the harsh Lake Superior winds. While there will still be maintenance work to do, the ships are coming in off the water today. The locks at Sault Ste. Marie close today, marking the end of the shipping season on… Read More →

Don Ness to lead Ordean Foundation

Former Duluth Mayor Don Ness announced Tuesday he would be the next executive director of the Duluth-based Ordean Foundation. Just six months into a new gig in workforce development at Lake Superior College, Ness posted on social media that the opportunity to lead the Ordean Foundation was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Ness assumes the new job in January. Duluth… Read More →

Lee, Reyelts retirements to shake up Duluth TV news

Last month, longtime KBJR news director Barbara Reyelts and newscast anchor Michelle Lee both announced their impending retirement. Their departure reflects changes in the Duluth TV News market that began when WDIO’s legendary Dennis Anderson retired five years ago. Lee steps down Dec. 27. She has been doing TV news in Duluth since 1983 and has anchored the 6… Read More →

Great Northern Radio Show hits Zenith City

That second week in November was a doozy. It started with a wild election result that left the nation speechless (for a few minutes, anyway). Then the Great Northern Radio Show made its Duluth debut on Saturday, Nov. 12. You now have a chance to hear this broadcast again. Northern Community Radio will rebroadcast both… Read More →

Portable joy at Great Northern Radio Show in Duluth

This has been a hard week for a lot of Americans. Even if you were happy with how the election turned out it’s pretty evident the divisions in our country will endure long past balloting. Of course, slightly more people in this country are horrified with how the election turned out. So that’s how that goes. I’ve… Read More →

Great Northern Radio Show in Duluth

Come celebrate the 10 year anniversary of MinnesotaBrown.com with the Duluth debut of my Great Northern Radio Show on Saturday, Nov. 12. In 2011, the Great Northern Radio Show gave me the creative outlet I needed to be able to continue mining the depths of Northern Minnesota politics and economics here at the site. I… Read More →

Teeming masses for Duluth Tall Ships

On Friday, the family and I made the trek down to Duluth for the 2016 Tall Ships Festival, which runs through Sunday. I love history. I love ships. Good times. I won’t lie, this event was considerably more crowded than the previous Tall Ships events we had attended. In fact, we attended our first Tall Ships by mistake. We… Read More →

Help on the way for St. Louis County workers

County government is probably the most overlooked part of our democracy, and yet in Minnesota it’s the point of contact for the people who need the most help. This includes the messy work of law enforcement, child protection and family welfare, social services and the very apparatus of humane treatment of our citizens. When county government… Read More →