Police officer John Trachemowicz stands in front of the James O. Anderson Drug Store wearing his badge on a fur coat. In 1934 James O. Anderson's store was at 5709 Grand Avenue, prior location was 5719 Grand Avenue.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
This view of the west side of Central Avenue facing north shows the Alhambra Theatre at 321 North Central Avenue in the center of the image. Other businesses include W.B. Getchell Real Estate, Olson and Beck Shoes, Swanstrom and Ericson Clothing.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The back of this photograph reads "Albert Olsen Grocery, Coates Street, about 1915." Coates Street, below Grand Avenue, ran from Thirty Fourth Avenue West to Thirty Seventh Avenue West.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Former Minnesota Vikings player Karl Kassulke, resident manager Brian Johnsen, and others celebrate following the ribbon cutting ceremony at the Meridian Apartments. The 39-unit Meridian Apartments, developed by United Cerebral Palsy, opened in Duluth in 1978 and offered barrier-free living for people with disabilities.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The circular plaza feature of the Duluth Public Library is at the left of the open site where the building will stand. On Michigan Street is the St. Louis County Heritage and Arts Center and the 1977 Depot Theater at the far right. The Flame restaurant is at the top left.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
View from the top of the Aerial Lift Bridge looking over Canal Park toward Duluth's hillside taking in a vista to Leif Erikson Park. Pedestrians could ride on the lift span of the Aerial Bridge for a short time in the late 1960s for fifty cents. There was an enclosure to stand within. In 1966, the City Council approved a resolution to permit club members to have free rides on the bridge during 1966 and 1967. To be a club member you had to contribute at least one dollar to the fund to floodlight the bridge. Contributors received a membership card. Between September 13 and 16 the fund gained three thousand dollars. The cost to floodlight was twenty-one thousand dollars. The floodlights were first lit on November 17, 1966. Minnesota's U.S. Representative John A. Blatnik pulled the switch to light the bridge. Chief bridge operator Alfred L. Hass said in 1960 that the longest the bridge remained open (span up) was an hour and 27 minutes one night in 1937 when a fog on the lake lifted and 13 ships entered and departed in quick succession. The greatest number of ships to pass under the span in one day was 80, requiring 36 lifts, on April 19, 1937. The building in the shadow of the bridge is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Building constructed in 1906. The new bridge is owned and operated by the City of Duluth on permit authorized by Congress. The Ship Canal and grounds are under the authority of the Lake Superior Area Office of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Unidentified vessel and crew leave the Duluth harbor. They will pass under the raised lift span of the bridge in calm water. Minnesota Point is at the right with homes visible on Minnesota Avenue. The 6-foot tall lighthouse at the right is 107-years old. It was offered for sale in August 2008 by the federal government with limitations. Its formal name is South Breakwater Inner Light Tower and was owned by the federal government. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The towers light was first lit in 1901. It was bought in December 2008 by Steve Sola and Matt Kampf of Duluth. Their winning bid was more than $31,000. Mr. Sola grew up on Park Point, Kamps in Hibbing, but lived many years on Cape Cod before moving to Duluth. In an interview the men said they didn't know what they were going to do with it. The federal authorities will not allow the structure to be relocated.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
View from First Street in downtown Duluth. The 1910 Soo Line depot is at the far right at Sixth Avenue West and Superior Street. The newspaper announced in 1971, plans for a 13-story apartment building for the middle-income elderly on the site of the Soo Line Depot which was razed in August of 1972. The 1892 Union Depot at 506 West Michigan Street becomes the St. Louis County Heritage and Arts Center. A January 11, 1973, newspaper article announced the St. Louis County Board received $201,250 for historical preservation and restoration of Duluth's Union Depot. The Depot was purchased from Burlington Northern for $137,500. The county serves as landlord, which averts tax problems. On March 19, 1973, Don Shank turned the first shovel of dirt for Lake Superior Museum of Transportation and Industry known by locals as the Train Museum.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Two unidentified men hold a copy of a national magazine whose cover features the Aerial Bridge. These men are probably with the Chamber of Commerce. The June 14, 1947, Saturday Evening Post cover of Duluth Aerial Bridge with boat is by John Atherton. John Carlton Atherton was born in Brainerd, Minnesota, on June 7, 1900. Atherton would eventually illustrate over forty covers for Saturday Evening Post, starting with his December 1942 design, Patient Dog. In the late 1940s, Albert Dorne, fellow Saturday Evening Post illustrator, founded the Famous Artists School, an institution to teach the art of correspondence illustration. John Atherton was among the famous artists such as Al Parker, Jon Witcomb, and Norman Rockwell, who contributed to the program. Atherton eventually moved to Arlington, Vermont. The famous illustrator and artist died at age fifty-two (in 1952) in a drowning accident while fly-fishing in New Brunswick, Canada. He was survived by his wife, Maxine Breeze.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
On the morning of May 3, 1959, crowds along the north pier of the Duluth Ship Canal salute the arrival of the British-registered merchant vessel Ramon de Larrinaga, the first upbound ship to traverse the newly opened St. Lawrence Seaway. The ship loaded grain at the Peavey and Cargill elevators before departing for Montreal and a voyage across the North Atlantic.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
View of the Aerial Lift Bridge with lift span raised to allow the William B. Schiller to leave the harbor. Built in 1910, the Schiller was laid up in 1974 and sold for scrap in 1978.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
This post card caption says D-88 Showing the new $6,5000,000.00 Duluth Arena-Auditorium on Harbor Drive. The Arena Auditorium opened to great fanfare in August 1966. It was renamed the DECC or Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center August 31, 1987. It was expanded and opened with celebrations on June 18, 1990. The Harbor Side Convention Center and Parking Ramp additions were opened January 31, 2001.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The counterweight is visible through the north tower's structural elements. Two counterweights move in opposition to the bridge. The bridge span weights about 1,000 tons. The two counterweights weigh about 500 tons each. When the bridge span goes up the counterweights go down.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
No. 502 People have always watched the aerial bridge. Engineer C.A.P. Turner, of the Gillette-Herzog Manufacturing Company of Minneapolis, designed the Ferry Bridge with Suspended Car Transfer in February 1901, meeting federal specifications. Bids were opened March 25, 1901, but only one was received. The Duluth Canal Bridge Company was awarded the contract but abandoned the work. In February 1904, the Modern Steel Structural Company of Waukesha, Wisconsin was issued a contract. Work began July 20, 1904. On February 23, 1905, with a full complement of local dignitaries at hand, the bridge was first operated. Regular service began the next day according to newspaper accounts. The city engineer's report for 1905 stated that the bridge was "completed and commenced operation on May 5, 1905, and a few problems were corrected in running the bridge over the next few days." This post card was mailed in 1914.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Small post card of the aerial lift bridge with the span up and an outbound lake vessel in the canal. On Monday, July 1, 1929, the suspended car made its last trip across the canal. The bridge's modification to operate with a lift span began on April 8, 1929, with a low bid of $448,000 by the Kansas City Bridge Company. The Aerial Lift Bridge was first operated on March 19, 1930. During the shipping season it makes about 25 lifts a day.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
View of the lift span taken from the southeast corner of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers building (1906). The canal's piers have walkways, and there are benches for visitors to linger to watch the ships enter and exit the harbor. The Aerial Lift Bridge is the largest tourist attraction in the state of Minnesota. The enclosed portion on the lift span is the operator's house or the power house of the bridge. On one side of the operator is Lake Superior and the other side is Superior Bay and the Duluth Harbor Basin. Leonard P. Green was the bridge operator for 36 years (died September 16, 1944). He was supervisor when the Aerial bridge was altered to become the lift bridge. In 1932, Mr. Green's seven operators worked in eight-hour shifts, two operators to a shift.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
On Monday, July 1, 1929, the suspended car made its last trip across the canal. The bridge's modification to operate with a lift span began on April 8, 1929, with a low bid of $448,000 by the Kansas City Bridge Company. The Aerial Lift Bridge was first operated on March 19, 1930. The bridge has a clearance of 138 feet when the lift section is completely up and when down it is 16.5 feet above the water. The length of the span is 386 feet and weighs 900 tons. The distance from the water to the lower edge of the truss is 172 feet 7 inches; to the top of the truss it is 227 feet. During the shipping season it makes about 25 lifts a day. The new bridge is owned and operated by the City of Duluth on permit authorized by Congress. The Ship Canal and grounds are under the authority of the Lake Superior Area Office of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The caption for this post card says The famous Aerial Lift Bridge, at the entrance to the Duluth -Superior harbor, is the largest of its kind in the world. The 900-ton span, lifted by electrical energy stored in batteries, rises 120 feet in 50 seconds each time a boat approaches the harbor.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
139-D The caption of this post card says The unique Aerial Lift Bridge and Ship Canal Entrance to Duluth-Superior Harbor is an outstanding attraction of this popular summer vacation city. Total bridge load lifted is 900 tons. Only 55 seconds are required to lift the span 135 feet. The Harbor is second only to that of New York City in shipping tonnage and through it passes about 60 per cent of America's iron ore production, from the great iron ore ranges just north of Duluth. Another fact, not included in the caption is that John H. Darling (1847-1942), U.S. Engineer for Duluth-Superior Harbor, oversaw replacement of the original wooden canal piers with concrete piers in 1897. The piers have been maintained and repaired with a major remodeling/rehabilitation in 1985-1986.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
John H. Darling (1847-1942), U.S. Engineer for Duluth-Superior Harbor, oversaw replacement of the original wooden canal piers with concrete piers in 1897. The piers have been maintained and repaired with a major remodeling/rehabilitation in 1985-1986.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Whaleback is an unusual ship design with steel hulls (body of the vessel) and rounded decks (boat, hurricane, main -which is the lowest full-length deck in a ship's hull, and spar are all decks at different levels) which was introduced by the inventor Captain Alexander McDougall of Duluth in 1888. It was a very stable vessel. American Steel Barge Company, a New York corporation engaged in shipbuilding and transportation on the Great Lakes as well as on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, purchased all of the patents for McDougalls whaleback vessels for $25,000. The only remaining whaleback is the Meteor, which is now a museum at Barker's Island in Superior, Wisconsin.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
This photograph may have been shot from Seventh Street and about Lake Avenue. The bright narrow strip in the lower middle of the image is Lake Avenue leading to the Aerial Bridge. The rectangle and three dots parallel to the piers of the canal are the remnants of the Whitney rock crushing enterprise. The Whitney Brothers, of Superior, Wisconsin, had a sand and gravel processing business that was functioning in 1919. The concrete form that is still in the water was the dredging/crushing building. A tunnel ran from the building to the Point. There was a conveyor belt and railroad spur adjacent to the concrete building. Sand from the Apostle Islands and gravel from Grand Marais were carried to Duluth on a small vessel named Limit. The business also used a tug the William A. Whitney. The Limit was secured to the concrete building and the load of sand or gravel was unloaded into the steel hopper using a jaw-like clam shell, steam powered device. The belt conveyed the materials to shore and it dropped into a tunnel where trucks were ready. On Federal lake charts it is referred to as cribs. Telephone lines are in this photograph. In 1880, the first telephones were installed in Duluth by Walter Van Brunt for C. H. Graves and Company. In 1881, the Duluth Telephone Company was incorporated with $10,000 capital. In 1882, the first telephone directory was issued for 30 subscribers. In 1898, long distance lines between Duluth, Cloquet and Carlton were strung. In 1899, Duluth had 794 telephones. In 1900, the Zenith telephone Company (independent) started operations in competition with Duluth Telephone Company. The tower is the Central High School clock tower. The 1892 school has been the Central Administration Building for ISD 709 since the late 1970s.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Ore boat leaving Duluth. Detroit Publishing Co. was a prolific post card publisher, especially in the U.S. Their cards were published from 1898 to 1933. Using a color process called Phostint, their cards were considered to be very artistic. The hobby of collecting post cards is called deltiology. The first post card was issued by the Austrian government, America's first postcards came out in 1873. Picture postcards were introduced later. The golden age of postcards was supposed to date from 1907 through the first World War.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
Detailed drawing of four parts of the Aerial Bridge. The end view is a drawing of a tower; part side elevation is of half of the Aerial Bridge with the suspended car transfer. The third drawing is called Section A-A and depicts a tower without the cross structures drawn in. The last drawing is called Section B-B, which is a top down view of one of the towers resting on its footings. All of these drawings have dimensions. The part side elevation includes a very small drawing of the side of the gondola car. The end view includes the phrase "car approaches built by city." The finials are shown on three of the four drawings. Drawing H5421, Sheet 2.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
This drawing identifies wind forces and their effects on the physical structure. Notes are included on this drawing for example: "Stresses in lower sections of tension diagonals equal or smaller than top sections, but same riveting to be used in detail." The drawing includes a key for live load, dead load, impact, wind at 150 pounds per linear foot, wind stress due to traveler, equivalent to live load. The drawing shows top and bottom laterals. Total weight of the carrier and car is given as 240,000 pounds. The scale is given as 20 feet equaling one inch. Drawing H5421, Sheet 3.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
In 1893, James J. Hill's Northern Steamship Company built 385-foot ocean style passenger steamers. In 1911, the peak year, 80,000 passengers traveled to Lake Superior. After 1920, the number of passenger cruise ships diminished with the advent of "motor-cars." Very few cruise ships were still in service after World War II. The Canadian steel steamer Huronic was constructed in Collingwood, Ontario, in 1902. She ran on the Northern Navigation Division of the Canadian Steamship Company, on cruise trips from Detroit to Duluth. In 1940, the Huronic was dismantled and made into a package freighter.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The information on this post card says Crowd leaving bridge; The Aerial Bridge; Miniature Train, White City. Joyland White City was the name of the amusement park at the end of Minnesota Point at Oatka Park. It was named White City based upon the buildings constructed at the recently experienced World's Fair where buildings were constructed using "white" building materials. There were rides and a pavilion for performances, dances and music. White City was short lived, about 1905-1911. The pavilion remained and the location reverted to the prior name of Oatka Park. The small train was moved to the Duluth zoo when the last features of the amusement park were dismantled in the 1950s. This post card was mailed in July 1907.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The caption of this post card says The Aerial Bridge, Span 393 feet 9 inches, 135 feet high from water line. Cost $100,000. Entrance to Duluth-Superior Harbor. The white building at the left is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Building constructed in 1906.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The post card caption says The Aerial Bridge, Span 393 feet 9 inches, 135 feet high from water line. Cost $100,000. This post card illustration is of a view from the Duluth harbor with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Building at the left and the South Breakwater Inner Light Tower at the right. Houses on Minnesota Point are at the far right. Engineer C.A.P. Turner, of the Gillette-Herzog Manufacturing Company of Minneapolis, designed the Ferry Bridge with Suspended Car Transfer in February 1901, meeting federal specifications. Bids were opened March 25, 1901, but only one was received. The Duluth Canal Bridge Company was awarded the contract but abandoned the work. In February, 1904, the Modern Steel Structural Company of Waukesha, Wisconsin was issued a contract. Work began July 20, 1904. The aerial bridge transporter or gondola or transfer car roadway was 17 feet by 50 feet with sidewalks seven feet by 50 feet; the cabins were 30 feet long.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
This post card was mailed in 1906, but the image is from an earlier year. In the 1890s commercial fishing on Lake Superior was feeding Duluth and the entire Midwest with major operators: A. Booth and Sons (whose sign is visible at the left), Lake Superior Fish Company, H. Christiansen and Sons.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The caption says The Aerial Bridge Span 393 feet 9 inches, 135 feet high from water line, cost $100,000 Duluth, Minn. A few more details that are not on this card are that the Aerial Bridge was completed in February, 1905. The Aerial Bridge transporter or gondola or transfer car roadway was 17 feet by 50 feet with sidewalks seven feet by 50 feet and the cabins were 30 feet long. This original bridge was modified with the lift span in 1929 and first operated March 19, 1930.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The post card caption says The Aerial Bridge, Span 393 feet 9 inches, 135 feet high from water line. Cost $100,000. This post card illustration is of a view from the waterfront. At the right is the South Breakwater Inner Light Tower. Houses on Minnesota Point are at the far right. Engineer C.A.P. Turner, of the Gillette-Herzog Manufacturing Company of Minneapolis, designed the Ferry Bridge with Suspended Car Transfer in February 1901, meeting federal specifications. Bids were opened March 25, 1901, but only one was received. The Duluth Canal Bridge Company was awarded the contract but abandoned the work. In February, 1904, the Modern Steel Structural Company of Waukesha, Wisconsin was issued a contract. Work began July 20, 1904.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The caption of this post card says Clear span, 400 feet; clear height, 136 feet; total height above water, 186 feet. This view shows the waterfront when it was warehouses and wharves, docks, railroad freight sheds and slips. This view is probably from Skyline boulevard which, at this time, would have been called Rogers' Boulevard. William Rogers was the first parks department commissioner. In December 1959 the Duluth City Council and Mayor E. Clifford Bork changed the name of Rogers parkway and Skyline Boulevard to Skyline Parkway.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
A Bryant elementary third grade classroom of boys and girls with their teacher. The children are seated at their desks, the unidentified woman teacher is standing at the rear of the room. Blinds are drawn, but sunlight is peeking in below the one near the teacher. The classroom is full of interesting items, but the drawing of the Aerial Bridge on the large blackboard is delightful. The day's schedule is on the back corner blackboard. Drawing is a twenty-minute slot after lunch and before geography. Jane, Rose, Edith, Grace and Irene are named Busy Workers and have stars by their names on the blackboard.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections
The suspended car transfer was replaced in 1929 with the Aerial Lift Bridge span. The building at the left is the wholesale grocer Gowan Lenning Twohy.
Contributing Institution:
University of Minnesota Duluth, Kathryn A. Martin Library, Northeast Minnesota Historical Collections