Perfect Duluth Day - Duluth, MN Events, News, Blog

Mystery Photo: Guns, Booze and Cards

Cowboy outfits featuring furry chaps were a favorite costume of photo subjects at G. E. Sackett’s Owl Studio in Duluth during the early 1900s. Several Mystery Photos on Perfect Duluth Day feature unnamed dudes dressed as buckaroos. This is the first time we’ve seen a lawman in one of these old postcards, however.

Selective Focus: Chosen Family & Mutual Aid with Carolyn Olson

Centering on themes of mutual aid, chosen family, snapshots of the home and community spaces, Carolyn Olson works with gouache, pastel and oil to create narrative paintings. Her work has included scenes from laundromats, overnight parking areas, community gardens and food distribution locations. The subjects in her work are often presented with unrealistic body proportions to bring out different energies in the characters or accentuate the task at hand.

Webber Hospital under construction in West Duluth in 1926

One hundred years ago today — May 8, 1926 — the Duluth Herald reported on construction of a new hospital in West Duluth. Webber Hospital opened at 5601 Grand Ave. in March 1927.

West Duluth Snake Orgy

These garter snakes on the edge of Waabizheshikana Trail in West Duluth have formed a “mating ball,” with the males competing for a little time with the female, who is releasing irresistible pheromones.

Making it Up North: Scott Murphy

Local painter Scott Murphy shares the raw, honest truth about his creative journey. From the high-pressure world of painting 17 years of billboards to the surreal hallucinations of a coma following a major accident, his work is a reflection of a life lived in “low gear” but high intensity.

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.

Writers Speak Out: Power to the People

Writers Speak Out: People Have the Power was held at Wussow’s Concert Cafe on April 21.

Palomino: Trampled by Turtles Live at First Avenue

Trampled by Turtles has released to YouTube a 2020 documentary featuring the band performing all the tracks from the 2010 album Palomino, with commentary on the process of writing the songs.

The documentary is directed and edited by Charlie Berg.

Selective Focus: Homegrown 2026 (The Weekend)

Select images via Instagram from the final three days of the Homegrown Music Festival.

Superior Street, Sept. 11, 1907, Part 2: The Windsor Hotel and Surrounding Businesses

This ten part series takes a detailed look at life on Superior Street on the afternoon of Wednesday, Sept. 11, 1907 based on a single photograph. The first part of the series provided background details on the photograph itself. Part two focuses on the bottom right corner of the photograph, relating to the contentious history between the city and the owner of the Windsor Hotel and telling the stories of the surrounding businesses.

Rollers earn kickball win in dramatic 10th inning

Coach Kaylee Matuszak celebrates with her team at Wheeler Athletic Complex after the Rollers defeated the Rawkers in extra innings to win the 2026 Homegrown Kickball Classic. (Photo by Seth Roeser)

Despite two controversial calls pushing the game into extra innings, Matuszak’s Rollers finally bested Rohrbaugh’s Rawkers in the 2026 Homegrown Kickball Classic at Wheeler Athletic Complex Field 2. The final score was 6-2.

A full story will appear here after the intrepid reporter recovers from the festival.

El Karnwie-Tuah steps into a big kick early in the game. (Photo by Seth Roeser)

Infielder Israel Malachi lets one slip between his hands late in the game. (Photo by Seth Roeser)

Rawkers pitcher Chad Lyons was back on the mound despite announcing his retirement from kickball in 2025. (Photo by Seth Roeser)

Umpire Jason Beckman (center) hears both sides of the debate from Rollers coach Kaylee Matuszak (left) and and Rawkers player Ryan Nelson (right). (Photo by Seth Roeser)

During the “7th Inning Sip,” Zach Kerola opts for a different vice., (Photo by Set Roeser)

Camren Eidenschink-Ziebol straps on the Most Valuable Player belt while being congratulated by Coach Matuszak. (Photo by Seth Roeser)

Postcard from Somebody’s House

This undated postcard shows Somebody’s House, a restaurant at Duluth’s Mt. Royal Shopping Center operated by noted cookbook author Beatrice Ojakangas. It opened in February 1966.

Making it Up North: Lenore Lampi

Ceramicist Lenore Lampi discusses the transition from being an art teacher to a full-time artist, the inspiration behind her “Scrolls Interrupted” series, and the unique techniques she uses to bring her sculptures to life — including the use of furniture gilding wax and birch-inspired motifs.

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.

Selective Focus: Homegrown 2026 (The First Five Days)

Select images via Instagram from the first five days of the Homegrown Music Festival.

First footage ever of a cougar with kittens in Minnesota

For the first time in more than 100 years, evidence of cougars reproducing in Minnesota was documented in video captured by the University of Minnesota’s Voyageurs Wolf Project. The clips show a female cougar with three large kittens.

So Many Pelicans

Adam “The Frozen Photog” Jagunich took a trip to Chambers Grove Park, along the St. Louis River in Duluth’s Fond du Lac neighborhood, to capture scenes of migrating pelicans.