Duluth Herald
Last issue of the Duluth Herald
Forty years ago today — July 30, 1982 — the Duluth Herald newspaper was published for the last time. The first issue was published April 9, 1883, and its cover appeared as artwork on the final edition. (more…)
Fatal plane crash near Moorhead, 1941
A random Duluth Herald front page from 80 years ago today, Oct. 30, 1941. (more…)
An Elaborate Contrivance for Suicide
One hundred years ago a delusional Superior man hung himself in his home in front of a wall painted with a crucifix. The June 19, 1921 suicide was reported in the Duluth Herald on June 20. (more…)
June of ’71: UMD’s medical school gets initial accreditation
The University of Minnesota Duluth’s medical school took its first step toward academic accreditation 50 years ago. The June 30, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that Dr. Robert E. Carter, medical school dean, announced a letter of “reasonable assurance of academic accreditation” had been received from the Joint Liaison Committee on Accreditation of the American Medical Association Council on Education and the American Association of Medical Colleges. (more…)
June of ’71: Sheriff wants upgrades to county jail
The St. Louis County Board was asked by Sheriff Greg Sertich to extensively remodel the county jail 50 years ago. The June 29, 1971 Duluth Herald reported the proposed project included jail office and roof work; providing remote control televisions, air conditioning and security lighting; installing a metal detector in the lobby and other items such as plumbing and electrical upgrades. (more…)
June of ’71: Leo Spooner wins Reidar Lund golf tourney
Fifty years ago Duluth’s Leo Spooner won his third Reidar Lund Skyline Memorial Golf Tournament at Enger Park. The victory came on June 27, 1971, and was reported in the June 28 issue of the Duluth Herald. (more…)
June of ’71: Ports-Range Expressway nearly done
The final four-way segment on Highway 53 between Duluth and Virginia was nearing the end of construction 50 years ago. The June 25, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that “full expressway travel” between the two cities was “10 years in the making. The 12-mile segment between Pike Lake and Independence was expected to open in September. Reconstruction and resurfacing of the 73-mile highway began in 1961. (more…)
June of ’71: Election Day liquor sales coming to Duluth
Off-sale liquor stores in Duluth were closed on Memorial Day and on election days 50 years ago, but things were about to change. The June 23, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that the city’s alcoholic beverage board voted in favor of letting the stores open, leaving it up to the city council to follow the recommendation. The action was authorized by a March 15 action of the state legislature. (more…)
June of ’71: Last Duluth “Gooney Bird” retired
The last C-47 “Gooney Bird” military transport aircraft based in Duluth was retired 50 years ago. The June 23, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that the C-47 left the Duluth Air Force Base to join other obsolete aircraft in the Air Force Logistics Command’s Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Center in Arizona. The “Gooney Bird” was a 1944 model that was used in World War II. (more…)
June of ’71: Gravel pit site to become Chester Grove Apartments
An old city gravel pit on College Street near the University of Minnesota Duluth was sold to a Duluth construction firm 50 years ago. The June 22, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that Johnson Builders had plans to build “a student-faculty apartment complex worth nearly $700,000.” (more…)
June of ’71: Concert Under the Sun
A rock concert staged on a farm field about 20 miles south of Duluth was in the news 50 years ago. The June 21, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that “about 300 young people” attended what was called the Concert Under the Sun, “along with 30 sheriff’s deputies, reserve offices, rescue squad personnel and state game wardens.” (more…)
June of ’71: Foster homes needed in Duluth
Duluth’s 290 licensed foster homes were falling short of meeting the need 50 years ago. The June 18, 1971 Duluth Herald reported “a crucial situation,” in which “good kids” wound up in detention centers for lack of foster homes. (more…)
June of ’71: Kenwood 1 & 2 movie theaters open
Kenwood 1 & 2, a twin movie complex in Duluth, opened 50 years ago. The June 17, 1971 Duluth Herald reported work was being rushed for the formal opening on June 18. The two theaters, situated in the Kenwood Shopping Center, had seating capacities of 520 and 280. The opening films were the science-fiction thriller The Andromeda Strain and a reissue of Lawrence of Arabia. (more…)
Summer of ’71: Model City, Model Residents
The Duluth Model City Administration issued a directive 50 years ago to local contractors requiring them to hire more neighborhood residents. The June 16, 1971 Duluth Herald reports that “contractors who bid for work funded at least in part by Model City monies must agree that Model Neighborhood residents be given a certain number of jobs in all construction, rehabilitation, alteration and repair contracts.” (more…)
June of ’71: Ground broken on Tri-Towers
Ground was broken 50 years ago today for the Tri-Towers apartment complex at 222 N. Second Ave. E. in Duluth’s Central Hillside. The June 15, 1971 Duluth Herald reported that the Duluth Housing and Redevelopment Authority planned 290 units of housing for low-income elderly people. The total construction cost was expected to be $4.2 million. Monthly rents were estimated to range between $35 and $45 per month including utilities. (more…)
June of ’71: Drunkenness no longer a crime
Among the news 50 years ago today, as reported in the June 14, 1971 issue of the Duluth Herald:
- Drunkenness will no longer be a crime in Minnesota after July 1. The state legislature felt the social problem of abusing alcohol should be taken out of the courts and into treatment agencies. In 1970, “1,502 persons were in Duluth Municipal Court on drunk charges — more than were charged with any other offense, except traffic violations,” the Herald reported. But in 1971 Duluth lacked programs to handle alcohol abuse. H. Leonard Boche, director of the Governor’s Commission on Drug Abuse and Alcoholic Problems, told the paper a detoxification center could be developed out of the Arrowhead Center for Problem Drinking. (more…)
June of ’71: Grain ban lifted, Grease Band coming
Tops in the local news 50 years ago was the potential for increased grain shipments through the Twin Ports resulting from President Richard Nixon lifting restrictions on trade with Communist countries. The June 11, 1971 Duluth Herald reported the president’s action ended a 21-year-old embargo on selling most consumer goods to Red China. (more…)
June of ’71: Death, Taxes and Vandalism
Among the news items in the June 10, 1971 edition of the Duluth Herald:
- Longtime labor and civic leader Morgan J. Blankush died at the age of 57. He had been a machinist at U.S. Steel Duluth Works since 1936.
- Duluth industrialist Jeno Paulucci defended his recommendation for a hike from 11-1/2 cents to 50 cents per ton for the taconite production tax. Area steelworkers lent their support to his proposal. (more…)
June of ’71: Twin Ports to ship ore, coal from western states
At the top of the news fifty years ago was a growing mining industry in the west potentially feeding Duluth-Superior harbor traffic. The June 9, 1971 Duluth Herald reported “at least one, and possibly two, new bulk commodities” mined in Wyoming, Montana and North Dakota “appear likely to be hauled to Duluth by rail to be loaded on board lake and ocean-going vessels.” (more…)
June of ’71: Boo gets his $4k, Chateau de Ville coming soon
Previously denied half of a proposed $4,000 annual pay increase, Duluth Mayor Ben Boo got the full hike two weeks later when one city councilor changed his vote. The meeting was reported on the next day in the June 8, 1971 Duluth Herald. (more…)
June of ’71: Duluth Police file suit against Mayor Boo
The Duluth Police Union accused Mayor Ben Boo of breach of contract 50 years ago. The June 7, 1971 Duluth Herald reports the union took issue with Boo’s administrative order prohibiting police officers from selling used cars, dispensing liquor or operating a taxi business during off-duty hours. (more…)
June of ’71: Duluth sewers failing, Voyageurs Park bill signed
Sewer system malfunctions were on the rise in Duluth 50 years ago. The June 4, 1971 Duluth Herald reported 48 claims had been filed against the city through June 3, an amount that nearly doubled the rate of 1970, when 51 claims were made in the full year. (more…)
June of ’71: Anderson Furniture completes remodeling project
Wilbur Anderson and Dean Reese of Anderson Furniture announced the completion of an extensive remodeling project at their Anderson Furniture Co. store fifty years ago. The Duluth Herald of June 3, 1971 provides the details of the work done at 2032 W. Superior St., also noting the remodeling was planned to fit in with a proposed new mall across the street. Of course, Miller Hill Mall would open instead, two years later. (more…)
June of ’71: Council debates Mayor Boo’s pay raise
Duluth Mayor Ben Boo was on the verge of a pay increase 50 years ago, but several city councilors planned to amend the measure and cut the raise in half. That was the top local story in the June 2, 1971 Duluth Herald. (more…)
June of ’71: Western Union workers strike
A national walkout of Western Union workers in 1971 included 12 employees in Duluth and about 13 more from around the region. According to the Duluth Herald of June 1, the United Telegraph Workers and the Communications Workers of America had walked off the job over wage and job security issues. The average CWA wage at the time was $3.47 per hour. (more…)