Two Harbors, Minnesota » Two Harbors

Downtown Two Harbors

admin — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:48:26 +0000

The condition of downtown Two Harbors has been a topic of discussion for many years. Businesses have come and gone. The local economy has come and gone. Generations of us have mostly gone. Mel Sando, the newly annointed Executive Director of the Lake County Historical Society has been making some noise (in a positive way) about our community over the last couple of months. Mel wrote a nice guest editorial in the Lake County News Chronicle (4-15-2010). There is also a Two Harbors Planning Commission that we don’t hear alot about. It would sure be nice if the ideas about improving our community would gain a little traction.

We hear about Grand Marais as a comparison to Two Harbors. The two communities are different in the way they are oriented on their respective pieces of lake shore. Two Harbors won’t be Grand Marais. Something I do notice when I visit Grand Marais though . . . . . the whole downtown area seems clean, neat and inviting. We could use some of that in our own downtown.

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Old Sleds

admin — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 02:23:30 +0000

I paid a brief visit to the Winter Frolic festivities down on First Avenue today. The City crews hauled in a bunch of snow and the 600 block was closed to all except snowmobile and foot traffic. It was nice to see some of those old snowmobiles. Some of those brands have been gone for years. Sno-Jet, Rupp, Johnson Ski-Horse were a few of the oldies. Some of the other brands like Ski-doo, Polaris and Artic Cat are still around, but they sure look different now. I spotted the really nice Scorpion (photo) and was transported back in time. Our family had one of these, but the hood had been painted an odd metallic green color. Same type of sled though, no doubt about it.

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Blackwoods was a good choice

admin — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 22:43:12 +0000

Thursday evening, my wife and I decided to eat at Blackwoods. We love the pasta there, even though the price seems a little on the high side. After looking at the menu for a while, I found myself gravitating more toward eating some real meat. I ordered a 10 oz. ribeye steak, medium rare. I was really pleased with it. The steak was not thick, but it was done perfectly and the BBQ sauce was really good. Price was $15.95 (I think) which felt like a bargain, especially considering that most of the pasta dishes are $13.95.

The TripAdvisor website has some Blackwood’s reviews too.

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Only in Two Harbors & Merry Christmas

admin — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 00:52:06 +0000

Merry Christmas

Well, maybe not only in Two Harbors, but sometimes I like to think so . . . . . .

This afternoon, my wife and I were out and about running a few errands. One of our stops was SuperOne. As we headed for the front door, I saw our Chief of Police, Chris Donald standing at the Salvation Army collection bucket ringing the bell. As we were starting down the first aisle, I was commenting to my wife about how nice it is to live in a town where the Chief is a guy who gives back to the community like that. After we gathered a few groceries and checked out, we headed out the same door and made a little deposit into the bucket. As we walked out we were still hearing, “Thank you very much. Have a great Christmas!” I smiled all the way home.

“I am a fortunate man and nothing will take the fullness of this moment away and in this season of giving and rebirth I wish you the same gifts and hope that your deepest dreams, formed in your most sincere solitude, will find the time and space to become forever true.” Patrick J. Eller, Wolf Words

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Reminiscence

admin — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 04:21:42 +0000

Most folks know that TwoHarborsForum.com started out as little local bulletin board site quite a while back. It’s still a little local site, but the audience has grown and changed over the years. Just this evening I was reminiscing and reading some forum conversations from back in 2001. Wow, what a time capsule. There’s humor, sadness, local history, “deep” conversations, sports commentary, all sorts of stuff. Reading back over it, I’m amazed by all (well at least some) of it. It’s also an amazing slice of more current local history. Where else could you get a good glimpse into the thoughts surrounding things like the controversies that went with the new high school and other fun stuff like that? I posted a few more thoughts on the bulletin board, and here’s a link to that post. My fingers are running out of words now, so I guess it must be time to stop.

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Lake County Historical Society

admin — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 01:49:14 +0000

Rick Tokarczyk is departing and Mel Sando (congratulations Mel!) will be taking over as the Administrator of the Lake County Historical Society. This little bit of information came to me via a story in the Lake County News Chronicle.

Image courtesy of MN Historical Society

I’ve made a few trips through the museum in the last few years. I must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. I can’t help but find myself looking for relatives in the old pictures. I’ve managed to find a few. So here’s the thing . . . . those of us that have lived in the area for most of our lives and who may have had family here for multiple generations . . . . . we all have history to share.

I know that in my own family, there is a tremendous amount of oral history that has been passed

from generation to generation. I think (and hope) this is true in other families too. I know I would feel poorer in spirit and in sense of place without the memories of my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents and assorted other family elders that I have listened to over the years. This personal history is woven into the fabric of the history of Two Harbors and Lake County.

I heard about a history-gathering project on Public Radio a couple of years ago that involved recorded interviews with members of small, rural communities. The goal was to preserve the oral history that was slowly fading out of memory. At the time, I thought something like that would be a great thing for our area. Something to consider maybe?

I would venture to guess that most people who have roots in Two Harbors would find things at the Museum that they can connect with. For folks who are newer to the area, the connections may not be quite so personal, but what a great way to gain a little insight into the history and personality of the area you now call home.

I’m geeky enough and old enough now to admit that I love history. I mean all kinds of history, but there’s something special and very personal about knowing the history of the place where I live. I hope many of you share that feeling.

I’m looking forward to another trip through the museum. I hope to see some of you there.

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Edna G. circa 1976

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:43:45 +0000

Todd Ronning just sent me some very nice pics. The story that came with them is that in the winter of 1976, somebody decided that year-round shipping might be a good idea. The Edna G. and the Coast Guard ship Mackinac were working to get the Roger Blough into the harbor. These pics were originally slides done by Howard Udenberg.

Thanks Todd and Howard!

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Two Harbors Spring

admin — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 22:23:17 +0000

Ya just gotta love it. 73 degrees and sunny on Friday, 50 degrees and that lovely cloudy, damp, cold feeling weather on Saturday, to 34 degrees and snow today.

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The last barber . . . . . .

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 03:45:21 +0000

Remember way back when? When men went to barber shops and women went to beauty shops? I don’t know that there was anything particularly sexist about it, it was just the way it was. As years have gone by, barbers have become more scarce and “stylists” have become more prevalent. Barbers and stylists all cut hair, but their education and focus are different.

At the end of this year, my dad will be closing Jim’s Barber Service for the last time. He has been barbering since he was laid off from the railroad in 1962. After the big layoff, we moved to Minneapolis so Dad could attend barber school. I guess being a barber looked like a more stable occupation than the railroad had been.

At that time, there were several shops in town. The ones I can remember are Al’s Barber Shop on 1st Avenue. This was a two-chair shop operated by Al Grams with the 2nd chair by Charlie Nelson. Stan Loushin had a one man shop (but it had two chairs) at 115 7th St. and George Vodnick had a one-man shop, but I don’t remember where. George moved a couple of times, but he was probably on Waterfront Drive. There was another shop on the corner of 7th St. and 6th Avenue, but I don’t know who operated that one. I remember the Wildroot sign in the window (for those not old enough to remember, Wildroot was a hair tonic).

We moved back to Two Harbors late ’63 or early ’64 after Dad finished barber school and completed something like an internship. My dad ended up with the second chair at Al’s shop. That chair had been vacated by Charlie Nelson who I think had been drafted and was in VietNam. Dad worked there with Al until it was time for Charlie to come home. Turns out Stan Loushin was looking for a 2nd barber in his shop (Dad’s present location at 115 7th St.) so he went to work there and eventually bought the business from Stan and has operated as a one-man show since then.

Dad worked 5 days/week until he was about 65, then reduced to 4 days/week. He cut back to 3 days/week a couple of years ago. So now he is a ways beyond normal retirement age and is ready to hang up the clippers.

Back in the day, he made housecalls, cut hair at the nursing home, and sometimes helped out with haircuts at the funeral home. Talk about good service.

Except for the years I lived away from Two Harbors, my dad has been cutting my hair all my life. I don’t have much left, but I still get to sit in the chair at the shop, get my hair cut, and spend some quality time with my dad. I’m really going to miss that.

Stop in and say hi, get that last haircut, give some congratulations, and say goodbye to an era.

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Mayoral Race

admin — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 21:12:50 +0000

One of the nice things about this little part of my website is that its all mine, as compared to the bulletin board where everyone can discuss, argue, inform, etc., etc. So the mayoral race . . . . . so far, there are two candidates. Randy Bolen is the local boy with City Council experience, good connections, and a knack for working with others and getting things done.

Not that I have great influence over much of anything, but this guy has my vote.

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