Leaning into Architecture and History
Andy Sturdevant wrote a regular column, The Stroll, for MinnPost until 2017. I still miss it. For those who feel the same, I can offer a brief taste of Andy’s writing on a Stroll-like architectural … ‣ more…
Category Archives: History
Tracking Down Minnesota’s “Doughnut Cities”
This does not happen in Massachusetts. There, cities and towns tile the counties and the state: they do not overlap. Minnesota is kinda different. In this state, eleven cities are completely enclosed within the limits … ‣ more…
Aldus, Bembo, and the Semicolon
The semicolon was invented in 1494. I got to researching its creators; this investigation uncovered connections to the University of Minnesota, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, and my own career. The semicolon’s inventors were three Italian Renaissance … ‣ more…
The River’s Source, Part 2
The source of the Mississippi River has resisted being pinned down over centuries of time and countless expeditions of discovery. In the previous post we dug into the decades-long political and geographic confusion that resulted … ‣ more…
The River’s Source, Part 1
The source of the Mississippi River is the stuff of legends. Let’s excavate them a bit. Last time out we followed the Rev. William Boutwell as he accompanied an expedition that identified the source of … ‣ more…
A Tale of Two Boutwells
The Reverend William Thurston Boutwell has been in the Twin City news lately, as his house near Stillwater MN was saved from demolition and is being renovated. The name “Boutwell” immediately caught my eye because … ‣ more…