Kyle Orla – “Worried Blues”
Duluth’s Kyle Orla performs “Worried Blues” at the edge of Lake Superior on the last “warm” day in December 2024.
Regional partnerships inviting proposals for community projects
The University of Minnesota Extension Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships are seeking proposals for projects related to sustainable agriculture and food systems, clean energy, natural resources and resilient communities.
I’m on the board for these proposals, and many of your neighbors throughout the region are, too. You don’t need to be a nonprofit — local businesses with community impact and individual citizens can apply, too! (more…)
Lessons from Scribes and Vibes and a Minnesota writers class
Last semester, I taught a class in the writing major at the University of Minnesota Duluth called Minnesota Writers. It was a survey of a few “greatest hits” (Laura Ingalls Wilder and Wanda Gag; Upton Sinclair and F. Scott Fitzgerald; Tim O’Brien), but mostly, it was a tour through some of the writers alive and well and shaping Minnesota culture (Margi Preus, Chris Monroe, Julie Gard, Emily August, Michael Fedo, Lucie Amundsen, Kelly Florence, Meg Hafdahl, and contributors to the Pride Zine). (more…)
“Opiate War” by CMP IN©
“Opiate War”
Copyright 2025 Container Music Publishing
iPhone, Take One (more…)
Boxcar – “Here I Am”
The third video release from Duluth band Boxcar‘s new album, For Madmen Only, is directed by Lance Lindahl and edited by Adam Jones, with photography directed by Austin Hilgenberg.
Living Chess (The Vintage Duluth blog is back)
The Vintage Duluth Blog at the Duluth Public Library is back.
JamesG’s Best Heely Tricks of 2024
Coast Guard vs. Illegal Fishing Shelter
The Duluth-based YouTube channel Vibe with Mike has the story. Spoiler alert: Coast Guard wins.
PDD Geoguessr #33: Walking Shortcuts
This Duluth avenue is unlikely to be open to car traffic any time soon. (Photo by Matthew James)
Over the past 100 years, the increase in car use has changed the Duluth landscape. Downtown has fewer shoppers walking the streets and traffic is heavy on the roads to the big box stores at the top of the hill. Whole neighborhoods have been torn down to make room for highways. But the particular geography of Duluth has resulted in a number of urban routes open only to people walking (and, for some, also biking). This post takes a closer look at a few of those locations and concludes with a Geoguessr game testing your knowledge of travel routes in Duluth closed to cars. (more…)
Carl Holmstrom jumped 110 feet at Chester Bowl in 1925
Carl Holmstrom had the longest ski-jump at Chester Park during the opening event of the 1925 season, held on Jan. 4, 100 years ago today. The newspaper clip above is from the previous day’s edition of the Duluth Herald. Below is the report of the race from the Jan. 5 Herald. (more…)
Feodor von Luerzer’s Lake Superior oil painting
Duluthian Feodor von Luerzer presumably painted this image 125 years ago; an auction listing on invaluable.com notes it is “signed and dated 1900.” The listing, however, renders the name as “Frederick von Luerzer” and lists the artist’s year of death as 1917. Feodor von Luerzer died in 1913. The landscape painter lived in Duluth from 1889 to 1909.
For more on Von Luerzer visit the zenithcity.com archive on archive.org.
Perfect Duluth Day’s Best Videos of 2024
As always, there were a lot to choose from, but here is our handful of picks for the top videos that appeared on PDD in 2024. Lots of music videos, videos about music, some history, a cartoon, and pizza rolls! (more…)
How Minnesota shaped the ‘freewheelin’ Bob Dylan
This installment of the WCCO radio program A Closer Look with Laura Oakes delves into Bob Dylan’s Minnesota roots. It aired Dec. 19. Duluth comes up.
2024: The Year in Duluth Gig Posters
As we reach the end of another year of rawk and/or roll, Perfect Duluth Day once again looks back at the posters that pimped the gigs. (more…)
Postcards from Shorewood Terrace
Sherwood Terrace operated as a seasonal restaurant during the middle of the 20th century. Arthur and Ada Neeb were the proprietors. The location was either “on London Road” or “near Knife River,” depending on which old newspaper article is referenced. (more…)
PDD Quiz: 2024 in Review
Look back on the stories that made headlines in 2024 with this year-in-review quiz.
The first quiz of the new year, previewing 2025’s coming attractions, skis your way on Jan. 12. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at alisonlinnaemoffat@gmail.com by Jan. 8. (more…)
The Most Read Saturday Essays of 2024
For the fourth year in a row, Jim Richardson has dominated the top of the charts. He has authored four of the five most read Saturday Essays of 2024. (more…)
Ashtrays of Duluth
In celebration of the nasty habits of smoking and advertising, collected here are various Duluth-branded ashtrays representing a variety of establishments. (more…)
The Real Bob Dylan: An Intimate Look with Louie Kemp
Recorded in 2019 at the Duluth Armory, this previously unreleased PBS North interview with Bob Dylan’s lifelong friend Louis Kemp offers insights into the life of the famous musician born in Duluth.
Selective Focus: The Elf on the Shelf
The Christmas-themed Elf on the Shelf doll is the protagonist character of a 2005 children’s book with the same name. Since its emergence to mainstream popularity, the decorative figurine has inspired parody photographs in which the Elf is staged in a wide range of holiday scenes causing chaos, or referenced in memes.
Below are some elves spotted and submitted by Duluthians, as well as some local art inspired by this internet trend. (more…)
Postcard from Good Shepherd Church and School in West Duluth
This undated postcard, published by Gallagher’s Studio, shows the Good Shephard Church and School at 5901 Raleigh St. in West Duluth. The building was completed in 1959 and the first mass was celebrated on Christmas Eve, 65 years ago. (more…)
New restaurants brought a fresh wave of flavors in 2024
The Pali Platter from Falastin
If 2024 has a Twin Ports restaurant trend, it’s cultural cuisine. Two of the restaurants most anticipated by area foodies, Alto Pino and Falastin, brought unparalleled culinary options to Duluth this year. (more…)
Black Water Lounge, Chalet among 2024 restaurant closures
The Black Water Lounge featured live music in a classy atmosphere. The restaurant closed in July after a 15-year run in Greysolon Plaza. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
Downtown Duluth suffered blows to its dining scene over the past year with two restaurants leaving prominent, historic buildings while Hermantown will lose a landmark establishment at the end of the month. (more…)
PDD Geoguessr #32: The 1984 Duluth City Directory
The 1984 Duluth City Directory (Photo by Matthew James)
As 2024 comes to a close, this post takes a look at Duluth 40 years ago using the 1984 Polk Directory of Duluth as an example for examining the history and use of city directories. This post includes ads from the directory for five businesses that have since left Duluth and five that still remain. It then concludes with two Geogeussr challenges featuring the historical locations of these ten businesses. (more…)
Jessie’s Duluth Drone Adventure
In this recent installment of “Jessie’s Drone Adventures,” Arizona-based video storyteller Jessie Nino dips into a little Duluth harbor history before heading up the shore to Palisade Head.