-
The Empire Builder: James J. Hill be not forgotten
Amy Goetzman begins her recent story “James J. Hill and the day the railroads roiled Wall Street” in Minnpost this way: James J. Hill was responsible, perhaps more than any other one person, for the rise of Minnesota industry and agriculture, and its lasting international impact. His robust railroad empire drew the state’s arterial maps,…
-
No hope on the Iron Range, but for hope we create
To drive the Iron Range spine of Highway 169 is to see a sleeping giant not unlike the region’s namesake, Missabe — the Dakota and Ojibwe “big man” resting on the divide between all that is north and south. Missabe’s body is not like that of a man. Its fluids are water. Its bones are timbers.…
-
Duluth’s sister city Petrozavodsk elects young reformist mayor Galina Shirshina
Barton Sutter, a Duluth, Minnesota, writer and an influential teacher of mine, described Duluth’s sister city this way: “a city in Russia that sounds like a brand of vodka made out of diesel fuel, Petrozavodsk.” Well, Petrozavodsk just elected a new mayor of some interest. Galina Shirshina, 34, is a journalist who is the first woman to…
-
Ira Glass brings tour to Northland this weekend
LaReesa Sandretsky scored the “public radio nerd” coup of the week by getting this Aug. 29 Duluth News Tribune interview with Ira Glass of NPR’s “This American Life.” Glass will be appearing at Big Top Chautauqua this Saturday, Aug. 31, in Bayfield, Wisconsin, the Lake Superior tourist town where the live tent radio show of…
-
Hot debate over cold Farmers Almanac forecast
OK, so like I said it’s really hot in northern Minnesota today, something that might amuse people from many of the states where the governors wear tank tops to their inaugurations (or will … in the future). We had intermittent air conditioning at the college today, cool in my office but sauna-like in the classrooms…
-
Hot mess go time
Minnesota is not a place where the weather matches the arbitrary progression of the Roman Calendar. That’s why I am about to teach my first day of classes for the Fall Semester on a day where the heat index exceeds an average human’s IQ. Yesterday was the same. I mowed the lawn, which might not…
-
The lazy heat of summer’s last act
The lazy heat of summer’s last act By Aaron J. Brown In the pioneer days of Minnesota, sod huts overflowing with Scandinavian stoicism, summer was a time of endless work. From sunup to sundown men and women toiled to complete tasks necessary for the family to survive the long, coming winter. I imagine some of…
-
Iron ore price dip a cause for (measured) concern
BusinessNorth‘s Ron Brochu has a fascinating story on the recent downturn in iron ore prices. Though no major production slowdowns are currently slated for the iron mines here in northern Minnesota, several future projects are facing some serious headwind, according to this story. I wrote about the slow progress at Essar Steel in Nashwauk earlier…
-
The myth of the universal iPad utopia
My wife and I, both tech-savvy, blog-writing, Apple product fans, have nevertheless had a spirited debate about this Hibbing Daily Tribune story. The Hibbing School Board recently voted on a set of policies related to 700 new iPads purchased for 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th graders in this central Iron Range district. Now, iPads in…
-
Everclear to headline Merritt Days in Mt. Iron
This week I learned that Everclear, the multi-platinum alt-rock sensation of about 15 years ago, will headline Merritt Days in the Mesabi Iron Range’s “first city” of Mountain Iron. The music event will be Saturday, Aug. 10, with the Shack Shakers at *about* 6:30 p.m. and Everclear at *about* 9:30 p.m. Times are contingent on…
-
The last day of school
Ned Horton, Creative Commons license The last day of school is that giddy feeling in your gut, warmed over by sunlight felt even through the clouds where your head goes until you see mom or dad and you realize that this is still the world, a sad fact that is not so sad when you…
-
Magnetation secures $325 million for Mesabi Range, Indiana expansions
Though it’s an area that prides itself on its public works, the Iron Range tends to do better economically when private equity moves around. That’s why Magnetation’s announcement yesterday of a $325 million investment in their new concentration plant by Coleraine and pellet plant in Indiana is potentially the sleeper story of the year on…
-
Hill Annex Mine State Park faces uncertain future
Hill Annex Mine State Park in Calumet is the only one of only two Minnesota state parks that honor mining history. If you haven’t seen it yet, I’d recommend you check it out this summer. You should anyway, but this might be the last summer the park is open. Buried in the park’s charter is…
-
Session shifts state priorities, creates opportunity for northern MN
The Minnesota state legislature adjourned late last night, passing the last of its necessary budget bills — all of which will be signed by Gov. Mark Dayton (D-MN). This is the first time in more than 20 years that our state’s Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party has held the House, Senate and governor’s mansion at the same time.…
-
Stonich takes interesting new novel on northern MN tour
Minnesota author Sarah Stonich kicks off a tour of the state’s great northern environs this Monday for her new book “Vacationland.” The tour puts her in most of the libraries of the Arrowhead Library System. May 13: Duluth, 6 p.m., main libraryMay 14: Hibbing, noon; Buhl, 3 p.m.; Aurora 6 p.m.May 15: Gilbert, 10:30 a.m.;…