In 1893, Court Avenue in Bellefontaine, Ohio became the first American street paved with concrete. George Bartholemew is still celebrated for his “artificial stone” pavement. Bartholemew convinced the Bellefontaine City Council to try it around the Logan County Court House by posting a bond that guaranteed the pavement would last at least five years. The […]
Thomas H. Girling was born in Nottingham, England in 1865. He came to America with his parents in 1872. Thirty years later he opened a small printing business and began publishing a weekly called Picturesque Robbinsdale. In 1894, Girling was elected to the Village Council. During his time in office, he took the lead in […]
Decades before Holiday Station Stores, Pump and Munch, Super America an British Petroleum came up over the horizon, South Minneapolis was littered with tiny independently owned service stations. Many of these little building are still standing. Some have been repurposed as law offices, flowers shops, permaculture cafes and acupuncture clinics. Their parking lots and driveways […]
Meet the Author!Where: Barnes and Noble at Calhoun Village Shopping CenterWhen: July 19, 2014 from 5-7 p.m. The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s library is Robbinsdale by local author Pete Richie. The pictorial history book, set to release July 7, 2014, uses black and white photographs to showcase Robbinsdale’s compelling history. You can pre-order on bn.com or get […]
In 1958 Minnehaha Park expanded after the Minneapolis Park Board acquired 26 acres of old Fort Snelling from the federal government. The board continued to lobby Congress to donate most of Fort Snelling to the park in hopes of continuing West River Parkway all the way to the Minnesota River. It seemed like […]
The Lower Bridge used to cross the Mississippi between 10th Avenue in Minneapolis and 2nd Avenue in old Saint Anthony. The bridge was built in 1874 as part of the Minneapolis and Saint Anthony merger agreement. This iron truss structure had a 17-foot roadway and sidewalks on both sides. Construction on a new 10th Avenue […]
Since it was built in 1890 the old building at 1101 West Broadway has been home to a YWCA, a Piggly Wiggly, a Chinese restaurant called the Moy Cafe, a candy store,cigar store, dentists and doctors’ offices and a building contractors’ offices. Heenepin County took over the building when it was abandoned after a […]
Nestled into a metropolitan area with suburbs like Golden Valley, Richfield and Eden Prairie most people think Robbinsdale was named for a bird. They are wrong. Robbinsdale was named for man, a b-i-i-i-i-g man! A Civil War veteran, politician, entrepreneur was he… Andrew B. Robbins carved the village of Robbinsdale out of the surrounding […]
Contrary to popular belief Nina Street is not named for Saint Paul infamous, 19th century madam, Nina Clifford. The street was named by the group of developers that platted Dayton and Irvine’s addition in 1854. Clifford’s real name was Hannah Crow. Chances are she named herself after the street. Construction of the Cathedral of […]