Navarre’s Grace Baptist Church Then and Now
Grace Baptist Church in Navarre was razed in 2000 to make way for this Snyder Drug that closed last spring. Read More
Swamp of the Day
A wide spot in the Minnehaha creek between Edina and St. Louis Park. This photo is take from a trail that nobody ever uses on the south side. You can get there from Todd Park. Read More
Mound High Then and Now
1945 Mound’s high school buildings were built in 1917 and 1938. A hexagonal pod section was added in 1964. At the top of the picture you can see the holder for the lone incandescent light bulb that used to light up this intersection originally. Later more modern incandescent lamps were mounted on horizontal extenders from poles. Modern metal poles with mercury lights came... Read More
The Orono Hill School Then and Now
2010 The Hill School building, which gets its name from James J. Hill, was built in 1892 for use as a school house and community gathering space. The building has served as a public school, a library and the original building for the Minnetonka Center for the Arts, which has since moved next door to a new building. I think the building is empty at the moment. A small private school... Read More
Highway 100
The original construction of Highway 100 started in 1935, as a New Deal project. The project was a cooperative venture between the Works Progress Administration and the Minnesota Highway Department, and was the largest WPA project in the state. The demand for the highway came out of growing pains in the Twin Cities during the 1920s, when Minneapolis city streets were congested... Read More
Swamp of The Day
I’ve been calling this thick flowering plant “Grunkle” for years now, but I think it may actually be “Jewel Weed”. I’ve been making up names for plants for so long the real ones just confuse me. Either way I just found a great link for all those who feign interest in the things that grow out in the wild wetlands of the western suburbs. The USGS... Read More
By the Waters of Minnetonka
“By the Waters of Minnetonka” was inspired by a Sioux Love Song recorded by Thurlow Lieurance in October, 1911, on the Crow Reservation in Montana. A large number of versions and arrangements were published, and many recordings were released between 1913 and the 1950s. There are uncertainties about the exact date of composition of the piece, but the tune was... Read More
Seven Corners Now and Then