Traveling the Old North Shore

Series produced by WTIP

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Minnesota's North Shore stretches from Duluth to the Canadian border. Known for its dramatic and pristine natural landscape, the area also has a history as unique and diverse as its geography.

Minnesota's North Shore stretches from Duluth to the Canadian border. Known for its dramatic and pristine natural landscape, the area also has a history as unique and diverse as its geography. In this WTIP series, producer Martha Marnocha invites listeners to join her on a retrospective exploration of the region's people and places.

Arts, cultural and history features on WTIP are made possible in part by funding from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund. Special thanks to the Cook County Historical Society for access to their archives and photographs.


9 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Caption: Cabin at site of old border crossing, 1930s, Credit: Cook County Historical Society
For several decades Joanne Hart and her family lived on a remote homestead along the Pigeon River – once the site of the former Highway 61 border c...

  • Added: Mar 18, 2024
  • Length: 10:42
Caption: The Road to the Pincushion Dump, Credit: Martha Marnocha
WTIP producer Martha Marnocha explores an area high above the city of Grand Marais on Pincushion Mountain that was once the town's garbage dump.

  • Added: Jan 05, 2024
  • Length: 07:21
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Silver Island Lake lies inland from the Tofte/Schroeder area along Lake Superior’s North Shore. It’s a remote part of northeast Minnesota even toda...

  • Added: Oct 25, 2023
  • Length: 10:09
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In this edition, producer Martha Marnocha learns more about one of Minnesota’s three remaining and actively functioning Finnish Community Halls. Pe...

  • Added: Jun 19, 2023
  • Length: 10:17
Caption: Courtesy of Cook County Historical Society
Monker Lake is a small and somewhat unremarkable lake located near Grand Marais. It was named for Claus and Kristine Monker, early Scandinavian hom...

  • Added: Mar 17, 2023
  • Length: 05:32
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Producer Martha Marnocha travels to Toimi, Minnesota, which was once a remote community of Finnish homesteaders, but is now mostly forest and a few...

  • Added: Jan 14, 2023
  • Length: 08:46
Caption: Photo courtesy Tettegouche State Park
Traveling the Old North Shore is a WTIP multi-part series, focusing on the history of this diverse region. In this feature, producer Martha Marnoch...

  • Added: Jun 30, 2022
  • Length: 09:02
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Producer Martha Marnocha and Doug Turner share the history of some very well-known North Shore place names.

  • Added: Jun 30, 2022
  • Length: 07:56
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Learn about the mysterious case of Donald "Blackie" Kulas, who went missing just north of Two Harbors, never to be seen again.

  • Added: Jan 11, 2022
  • Length: 05:05