Historical Reflections



Down Memory Lane



10 Years AgoFeb. 6, 2004 The Grand Marais City Council agreed in principle to approve the downtown streetscape renovation project designed at a working session Tuesday night. The project will cost $500,000. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has awarded the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa grants totaling more than $188,000 for fish and wildlife conservation projects on […]

Lutsen needs write-in candidates for town board



One of the first items of business at the Lutsen town meeting on Tuesday, January 21 was the announcement that no one had filed to run for election to the town board. Incumbent Supervisor Marland Hansen said that neither he nor Clerk Silviya Duclos had filed for re-election. “We need someone to launch a write-in campaign or the town board […]

Schroeder Township talks history, tables and taxes



Linda Lamb came before the Schroeder Town Board on January 14 with an update on plans for the Cross River Heritage Center for 2014. The center will open Friday, May 23 with an exhibit called Ojibwe Faces and Stories, said Lamb. Noted painter Eastman Johnson traveled throughout the northland, including to Grand Portage, in the 1850s and did large portraits […]

Summer reservations going fast for Grand Marais Municipal Park



Early reservations are up for the Grand Marais Municipal Campground, Park Manager Dave Tersteeg told the park board at its Tuesday, February 4 meeting, the first meeting of the New Year. The January meeting was cancelled due to bad weather. “There was a surprising amount of people [25] that braved the 20 below F and showed up in person on […]

City council moves forward with two ordinance revisions



Grand Marais City Council moved forward Jan. 29, 2014 with the revision of two ordinances. First up was approval of the second reading of Ordinance 2014-01, amending downtown zoning by adding a definition for retail uses that will allow light manufacturing in combination with retail (such as a winery, brewery or coffee roaster). The planning commission recommended the change Jan. […]

Cold weather affects city water lines, power usage sets record



Several downtown locations have experienced frozen water lines during the last week, said Grand Marais Water & Waste Water Superintendent Tom Nelson. Nelson came before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) on Wednesday, February 5, 2014, and said his crew has been working hard to correct the problems. “We have 6½ feet of frost,” said Nelson when he described what his […]

Cook County Pursuit Invite draws top competition



Nine boys’ teams and seven girls’ teams competed in the Cook County Freestyle/Classic Pursuit Nordic Ski meet held on Pincushion Mountain cross country ski trails on Friday, January 31. Skiers competed in cold clear weather at the start of the meet, but as racing continued it turned cloudy and snow fell, slowing times down. Both Duluth East’s girls’ and boys’ […]

“Share Your Story” with Cook County Historical Society



All are invited to participate and to “Share Your Story” on the new Cook County Historical Society website. Periodically topics are chosen and residents are invited to make history by telling stories they remember. Current topics are buildings in Cook County that have been moved from one place to another; and stories of the Sawtooth Mountain Ski Hill that was […]

Grand Marais Area Tourism Association offers marketing grants



How does a small community like Grand Marais manage to have so many great events? When you think about all the bonspiels, bike races, ski races, sled dog races, tennis tournaments, dragon boat races, classic car show, wooden boat show, art fair, parades, fireworks, music festival weekends, pageants and puppet shows, and yeah, that big picnic in August, it makes […]