A History of Minnesota’s Highways Part One
Some of Minnesota’s roads predate statehood. First in a series looking at how our state went from dirt trails to 10-lane interstates.
Tag Archives: history
Remnants of Stonebridge
May 20, 2016 Macalester-Groveland, Desnoyer Park 10 Miles Stonebridge. Today, it’s little more than a two block long street in Macalester-Groveland. From the 1910s into the early ‘30s, however, Stonebridge was the grandest estate in Saint Paul. To this day, the mystique of Stonebridge remains fascinating to local historians because of estate’s size, extravagance and […]
Downtown West, Day 3
Leaving everything from Washington Avenue to the Mississippi River for a fourth day, I planned a nice, systematic route to finish off the rest of what I hadn’t walked on days one and two. And then reality happened. As a result of construction, the block of Nicollet Mall between Washington Avenue and 3rd Street was closed even to […]
A New Corner on Nicollet
Another day, another thought on Nicollet Ave S, I’m open to suggestions on what topics to cover, I have a dozen but I also like crowd sourced thoughts. To be honest, writing and photographing Nicollet Ave could be a forever project for me. It has been at least a self project for a while as […]
A Schoolhouse, A Parkview, A Lakeview
April 16, 2016 Highland Park, Hamline-Midway, Como, North End 17 Miles April rides can look gloomy no matter the temperature, with few signs of spring, and sandy grit still on many roads. No matter, that first ride of the spring is always exciting. The first stop on the first ride of 2016 was 2122 Highland […]
Below THE Summit
October 10, 2015 12 Miles; Summit-University, Crocus Hill This ride wasn’t long in terms of mileage but it covered substantial amounts of local history and altitude. The front of 744 Ashland, built as the Temple of Aaron Synagogue, and now apartments. This is the rather unusual entrance to the apartment building at 744 Ashland Avenue […]
A History of Bicycle Helmets and a Study of Bicycle Helmet use in Minnesota
Kids wear them most, then women, then men. Bicycle helmets go back to the 1880s, and they’re more common among recreational riders.
It Looks Like the Suburbs
September 25, 2015 Macalester-Groveland, Rondo (Lexington-Hamline), Frogtown 14.8 Miles I may be a bit of an anomaly as a bike rider because I am also a “car guy.” What I mean by that is I am fascinated by cars, and have been since I was a child. I still enjoy the introduction of new models, […]
Get on the Bus
The Riverview Corridor Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) recently dismissed the only transit options that were even slightly logical, and opted to continue forward with studying ways to construct the crowning achievement on a transit system that is backwards and self-defeating. Bill Lindeke recently opined on this site that the proposal is the “best…project in the […]
Victoria Park: A Short History of Intentions
The vigorous and spirited debate about the future of the Ford Plant site in Highland Park got me thinking about another large, polluted, previously industrial site in Saint Paul. The history of development of Victoria Park, which is bounded by West 7th Street, Otto Avenue, and Shepard Road, offers a lesson in plans changing over […]