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.
Duluth’s Parks and Recreation division announced today that performer applications are being accepted for the 2024 Music in the Park concert series. Formerly known as the Chester Creek Concert Series, the Tuesday-night shows will be held at Chester Park from June 18 to July 16, then at Lincoln Park from July 23 to Aug. 13.
Co-written with Allen Richardson
The Duluth Inside Duluth
In 1963, on 14th Avenue East overlooking Chester Creek, seven houses installed their own sewer rather than hook up to the city system. To do so, they took advantage of the experimentation sweeping the nation regarding public services. New forms of neighborhood government had emerged as housing associations. These seven houses applied for a federal grant as an independent municipal corporation. Technically they seceded from Duluth and became an autonomous township inside the city limits.
A democratic sub-society, the citizen-residents named the township “Duluth” by unanimous vote. After all, they felt they should not have to change the name of where they lived; in fact they were the real Duluth. Their right to name themselves was blessed by an appellate court ruling in 1968, hence “the Duluth inside Duluth.”
“This book is offered in the form of a poetry chrysalis to encourage us to think about how we are a part of nature and how our actions cause change,” Wildwood wrote on the note. (Photo by Rob Wildwood via Facebook)
Picking a new summer book just got easier. Duluth writer Robert Wildwood has taken the free library idea to new heights, offering up copies of his latest book of poetry to the public in a novel way. This month, chrysalides of poetry appeared in Chester Park trees, and they are a gift for you.
The ski scaffold in this postcard should not be confused with “Big Chester,” the jump that stood in Chester Park from 1924 to 2014. The postmark on this card is March 8, 1912.
As I struggled to get down into and then out of the Chester Park ravine during a walk, I recalled this short video interview I made with Philip Jones in 2017. Enjoy Philip’s thoughts on stairways, community, and the fact that the Hillside was built for trolleys, not for thousands of cars!
Quiz regarding the location of the Northeast Passage to follow!
Sadly, the ski jumps at Chester Bowl were demolished in 2014, but the memories live on in this coloring exercise.
Use the link below for a printable PDF for your coloring and drawing pleasure.
Duluth You & Me: Chester Bowl Ski Jump
Follow the Duluth You & Me subject tag to see additional pages. For background on the book see the original post on the topic.
Shot in Chester Park with a GoPro Max 360 using the Reframe effect.
On Feb. 1, 2000, Duluth businessman Monnie Goldfine recorded a voiceover track for his family films, most of which he shot himself between 1939 and 1946. Perfect Duluth Day has divided the footage into three segments:
A celebration of the weasel family (mustelids) inspired by an encounter I had with a least weasel in the deep woods portions of Chester Park Ravine, which led to a re-reading of Annie Dillard’s essay, “Living Like Weasels.”
This 1897 issue of Duluth’s Labor World shows the waterfall and cauldron of “the Glen” in Chester Park. From 1894 to 1902 the area was named Garfield Park.
Duluth’s Parks and Recreation Division is requesting public comment on the Lower Chester Park Mini-Master Plan draft until Jan. 31. There is also a supplementary survey for the plan that members of the public are encouraged to complete.
Following the public comment period, a final draft of the plan will be reviewed and voted on by the Duluth Parks Commission on Feb. 14 at 5 p.m. in Duluth City Hall, Council Chambers. For more information about the plans, visit the Parks Planning webpage at duluthmn.gov.
One of Duluth’s first four parks, Chester Park spans approximately 131 acres between 13th and 15th avenues east and stretches from Kenwood Avenue to Fourth Street, where Chester Creek runs under the street and, a few blocks later, disappears underground before emerging near Leif Erikson Park, where it empties into Lake Superior. Lower Chester Park, specifically, is located at 15th Avenue East and East Fifth Street and is about two acres in size.
Despite a little drizzle, Fall Fest is happening today as scheduled, Saturday, Sept. 16, at Chester Bowl Park, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Join us in the PDD tent, located between the playground and the stage. You can hang with us in our photo booth and listen to Woodblind, Ingeborg von Agassiz and Mama’s Stolen Horses perform throughout the day. Keep up with happenings via #pddfallfest.
This afternoon I went running in Chester Park for the first time in a while. I parked at the Chalet and immediately noticed this posting on a light pole:
Apparently the city and the Soil and Water Conservation District will be removing the old dams at the foot of the ski hill, revegetating the stream banks, and building a pedestrian footbridge. My first reaction to this was, “Cool! It’ll be great to have a restored stream habitat.” But as I thought about it a little more, I started wondering what it was exactly that needs restoring here.
