Iron Range Archives - Perfect Duluth Day

When Blossom went to Hibbing and got bad directions

Apr 25, 2022 No Comments

Actress and Jeopardy! host Mayim Bialik was a guest on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert on April 4. At about the 4:50 mark in the clip above she tells the story of traveling with her father to the Iron Range to visit their “personal Mecca, which is Hibbing, Minn., the birthplace of Robert Zimmerman — also known as Bob Dylan.”

Of course, the Jeopardy! question that would lead one to the place where Robert Zimmerman was born is “What is Duluth?” The Zimmerman family moved to Hibbing when Robert was 6 years old.

Videos Bob Dylan, Hibbing, Iron Range

Postcard from Third Avenue in Hibbing, 1921

Aug 06, 2021 No Comments

This postcard was mailed 100 years ago today — Aug. 6, 1921. The image shows Third Avenue in Hibbing looking north, including the Oliver Hotel at 422 Third Avenue. The card was published by T. C. Congdon.

Bob Dylan on Hibbing from 1966 Playboy interview

Jul 24, 2021 No Comments

Dude reads highlights from the 1966 Playboy interview. Dylan on Hibbing: @6:40-8:53.

Redhead Mountain Bike Park Overview

Aug 25, 2020 No Comments

Red Head Mountain Bike Park opened this summer on former Iron Range mineland near the Minnesota Discovery Center in Chisholm.

Postcard from the Spruce Mine at Eveleth

Jul 29, 2020 No Comments

The undated postcard shown here is a scene from the Spruce Mine in Eveleth, about 50 miles north of Duluth. The card was published by David Milavetz News Company of Virginia, Minn. and produced by E. C. Kropp Co. of Milwaukee, Wis.

The Slice: Red Head Mountain Bike Park

Jul 27, 2020 No Comments

The Slice follows the recreation group Mesabi Outdoor Adventures as members try out the new Red Head Mountain Bike Park, built on former Iron Range mineland near the Minnesota Discovery Center in Chisholm, about 60 miles northwest of Duluth.

In its series The Slice, WDSE-TV presents short “slices of life” that capture the events and experiences that bring people together and speak to what it means to live up north.

Outdoors, Videos Bicycling, Iron Range, The Slice, WDSE-TV

Postcard from Mesabi Open Pit Iron Mine in Virginia

May 14, 2020 No Comments

This undated postcard shows scenes from the Mesabi Iron Range, the largest of four iron ranges in northeast Minnesota. The card uses a spelling more often associated with a roadway in Duluth — Mesaba Avenue.

PDD Video Lab: Old Iron Range Footage

Apr 16, 2020 No Comments

In this edition of the PDD Video Lab we take a cruise through Virginia, Chisholm and Hibbing circa the 1960s with footage from Richter Home Movies set to the tune of Iron & Wine’s “Weary Memory” from the 2002 album The Creek Drank the Cradle.

History, Videos Iron Range, Video Archive, Video Lab

The Slice: Historic Hibbing Pipe Organ

Dec 11, 2019 No Comments

Victoria Lundberg Gornick shows off the 1,900+ pipe Barton organ in Hibbing High School’s auditorium.

In its series The Slice, WDSE-TV presents short “slices of life” that capture the events and experiences that bring people together and speak to what it means to live up north.

Music, Videos Iron Range, The Slice, WDSE-TV

Steve’s Overpopulated One-Man Band – “Iron Ore”

Dec 02, 2019 1 Comment

Steve Solkela shares the musical story of his great-great grandfather’s journey from Finland to Minnesota in search of a better life. “It was backbreaking work down in those Minnesotan mines,” Sorkela writes on the YouTube description. “Many were injured, and many died; but of course, many were successful in feeding their families countless times and watching them grow to live beautiful lives.”

The video was shot over the summer at various locations across northern Minnesota, and edited using a free iPhone app.

Music, Videos Iron Range, Mining, Steve Solkela

Taps are flowing at Rapids Brewing in Grand Rapids

Aug 09, 2019 No Comments

Executive Chef Erik Halverson, General Manager Bill Martinetto and Head Brewer Darin Jensen are ready to spread beard and beer culture in Grand Rapids.

The newest brewery on Minnesota’s Iron Range has begun serving up suds. Rapids Brewing Company opened Aug. 2 for its first “Summer Sneak Peak Weekend,” with limited beer and food options. General Manager Bill Marinetto said he expects the business to be open seven days a week before the end of the month, and his target is next weekend.

The Slice: Hull Rust Mine View

Jul 19, 2019 No Comments

The newly redesigned mine view in Hibbing offers expansive perspectives of the old Hull–Rust–Mahoning Open Pit Iron Mine and the active Hull Rust and Hibbing Taconite Open Pit Mine.

Perfect Iron Range Restaurant: Vi’s Pizza

Aug 15, 2018 1 Comment

Competition was stiff in the Perfect Iron Range Restaurant poll. After a 36-hour, tie-breaking vote we can officially declare Vi’s Pizza in Biwabik the champion.

In the final poll, Vi’s Pizza had 70 percent of the vote, while BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill in Eveleth had 30 percent.

Clearly, no ordinary pizza joint could beat the likes of top contenders like BoomTown and Gilbert’s famous Jamaican restaurant, the Whistling Bird. But Vi’s Pizza is a veritable Iron Range institution.

The original pizza recipe was handed down from owner Kim Mattson’s Italian grandmother. Viola “Vi” and her husband Frank Urick started selling takeout pizzas out of the back of their Biwabik home in 1959.

Tie-breaking Poll for Perfect Iron Range Restaurant

Aug 13, 2018 No Comments

The initial competition for Perfect Iron Range Restaurant was hot! The poll started with 25 nominees. With the help of your votes, we whittled it down to three contenders: BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill (Eveleth), Vi’s Pizza and the Whistling Bird.

BoomTown and Vi’s tied with 36 percent of the popular vote, while Whistling Bird was close behind at 28 percent.

Which brings us to the final poll to decide the winner.

This poll is now closed. The results were:

Vi’s Pizza, Biwabik – 70 percent
BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill, Eveleth – 30 percent

Polls, Restaurants Iron Range

Poll: Perfect Iron Range-area Restaurant

Aug 03, 2018 No Comments

We developed a list of contenders for the Perfect Iron Range-area Restaurant poll by using a carefully crafted methodology — we asked people to nominate their favorites.

We started with 25 nominees and whittled it down to the top three.

The poll is now closed. The results were:

BoomTown Woodfire Bar & Grill, Eveleth | 36 percent
Vi’s Pizza, Biwabik | 36 percent
The Whistling Bird, Gilbert | 28 percent

By virtue of the tie, there will be a new poll between BoomTown and Vi’s to determine a winner.