Presenting Perfect Duluth Day’s annual rundown of books by Duluth-area writers and/or about Duluth-area topics that are new to bookstores and e-commerce sites. It’s early in the year, so this list will grow as 2025 continues.
The drama. The action. The suspense. Yes, it’s a Great Lakes shipping highlight reel, featuring 2025 scenes from Duluth, Superior, Two Harbors, Silver Bay and Marquette.
This undated postcard, perhaps circa the 1960s, offers a view of the Aerial Lift Bridge from across the Duluth Harbor. The card was published by the H.C. Wick Company and features an Ektachrome photo by Rod Peterson.
Duluth’s Ian Alexy nabs footage from the century-old film Don Juan for his latest music video. The track “Don’t Hesitate” is on Alexy’s new album The Tao of Ian.
If this footage looks familiar, it might be because Perfect Duluth Day previously featured a condensed version of this film. The 16mm Time Machine YouTube channel offers the version above, which has an additional four minutes of content.
Musician and poster artist Misisipi Mike Wolf shares the story of the journey that took him from the music-filled porches of the Gulf Coast to the creative community of Duluth.
Making it Up North is a PBS North series that explores stories of creative artists, artisans and entrepreneurs engaged in honing their skills, following their passion and realizing their dreams.
The latest from Rich Mattson and the Northstars, “Rendezvous With a Star,” is from the band’s album Wake Up Songs, due out later this month.
Austin Castle and friends perform “Something Real” at Lagom Builders Supply in Duluth. Castle released a new album, Timeless, in January.
I’ve seen two (kind-of) stepchildren attend Harbor City. The school makes good things happen on a tiny budget. It is celebrating recognition as an ESEA Distinguished School.
A Black man, left, crosses Superior Street circa 1908. (Source: Library of Congress)
In 1904, more than 50 years before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus, Henry Richardson fought against the common practice in Duluth restaurants to refuse service to people of color. When a waitress at a Superior Street restaurant would not take his order, he took the restaurant owner to court. This Duluth Deep Dive recounts the events and their aftermath.
I saw ice houses out there so I got my skates.
I’ve become an old man who putters around in the garage. Or the basement — the garage is really cold right now. I built a guitar out of garage stuff.
Northern Waters Smokehaus founder Eric Goerdt shares the journey of turning a lifelong passion for food preservation into a cornerstone of the Duluth community. From the early days of an “honor system” cooler and a coffee can for cash to employing more than 75 people today, Goerdt discusses his obsession with detail, his “northern spin” on the traditional deli, and why sustaining people is just as important as sustaining the land.
Making it Up North is a PBS North series that explores stories of creative artists, artisans and entrepreneurs engaged in honing their skills, following their passion and realizing their dreams.
The Duluth Photo Engraving Company published a “souvenir folder” in the early 1920s featuring images previously published by the company as postcards.
