Our quaint village is disappearing



I arrived in Grand Marais in 1930. I have always been proud to call Grand Marais my “hometown.” It was during the Depression and everyone here was poor, but we didn’t know it. It was a small community with an abundance of fish and wildlife and we essentially lived off the land. We were close-knit. Everyone looked after everyone. People […]

My Dad



I grew up on the heels of the generation that saw many of the nation’s fathers head off to World War II; the deadliest military conflict in history in terms of total casualties. As Tom Brokaw so aptly depicts in his book, The Greatest Generation: “At a time in their lives when their days and nights should have been filled […]

Dockside set to open under new management



“Not much is going to change at Dockside Fish Market,” said Steve Frank, which will be music to the ears of Dockside’s many patrons. Steve and his wife Ellen Frank of Brainerd have signed a multiple year lease with North House Folk School to keep the popular eatery open. Previous owner Shele Toftey has agreed to stay on and work […]

Weekly Weather



When November disrupts April



Yes, the weather has been a whole lot more November than April recently! At the Hovland Dock when a gale meant waves and large sections of ice flowing over and under the dock, it seemed November. It was mid- April, but with thick blowing snowfall, felt November. In one day’s snow tracks of deer, rabbit, wolf, and humans appeared. The […]

Lloyd Bertel Berglund



Lloyd Bertel Berglund, 85, of Cannon Falls and formerly of Hovland, Grand Marais, and Stillwater, passed away Wednesday, April 11, 2018 at Three Links Reflections in Northfield surrounded by his family after a courageous journey with cancer. Lloyd was born on September 4, 1932 in Hovland, the son of Swedish immigrants Gustav and Karin Berglund. He graduated from Cook County […]

Brad Ranning



Brad Ranning, 68, of Grand Marais, died March 27, 2018, at North Shore Health. Brad was born in Minneapolis to Gene and Laura (Larsen) Ranning. He spent many summers at his Uncle Henry and Aunt Evelyn’s in Grand Marais. Brad and his brother worked for their uncle in the woods. He decided then that he wanted to live here someday. […]

Patty says goodbye!



April has been a busy month. Not much springlike weather but the Elders attending the Wisdom Steps conference in June are busy walking, exercising and earning their points for the contest they are participating in. The five teams are made up of four Elders each and they are having fun. Team 4 is in the lead currently. They have a […]

Historical Reflections



Down Memory Lane



10 YEARS AGOAPRIL 18, 2008 Two weeks after rejecting a park board proposal to reconfigure the city’s marina and increase the number of slips from 13 to 25, council approved a revised plan that will result in 17 seasonal slips. The city has been looking for ways to make better use of the available space in the three-acre basin, in […]