Duluth, Port City on Lake Superior

Do you remember the Gordon Lightfoot song, The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald? Well, out of the blue memories of singing this song in 5th grade came flooding back, but I digress. The lake is vast! Carolyn Sundquist, National Trust Advisor and field session manager, has put together a full day exploring this part of the western shore of Lake Superior. This session sets out early (7 am), but the ride is definitely well worth it. After loading up with coffee, Lori, Farin and I set out for Duluth. Our first stop was the Thompson Hill Rest Area where we got a great view of the city - practically at our feet. Carolyn met us here and after piling into her car we were off along the Skyline Parkway and heading to Glensheen.

We were met by Dennis, who spent part of his childhood at Glensheen. His mom was a friend of Miss Elizabeth Congdon, who was murdered (yes, murdered! Check out Will to Murder) in the house in 1977. Glensheen was built between 1905-09 for Chester and Clara Congdon. The house, including landscaping and furnishing cost $857,000 to build. Maybe the equivalent of $25 million today?!

From the exterior Glensheen is stately and stunning. However, once inside it is breathtaking! The Congdon's ordered the furnishings while the house was being built, so 99% of the furnishings and finishes were expressly made for the house.

They were a compassionate couple, perhaps reflected by being devout Methodists. They employed many of the girls arriving in Duluth from Scandinavia. Typically these young women worked for the Congdons until they got married.

In addition, the Congdons were the first to have a built-in vacuum system. Mr. Congdon got to fiddling with it and realised that the hose was extremely heavy - it was made of cast aluminum - anyway, he decided that vacuuming would be a job for the houseman or butler! This is only a sampling of what there is to learn and discover at Glensheen and Dennis is a much better storyteller than I am.

After a trip through the neighborhoods between Glensheen and downtown Duluth (even sneaking a peek at our esteemed leader's childhood home and church), we had lunch at the Kitchi Gammi Club. Kitchi Gammi means "big sky water" in Ojibway. This Jacobean Revival clubhouse was designed by Bertram Goodhue of the architectural firm of Cram, Goodhue and Ferguson of New York City and is set on the shores of Lake Superior. It is a perfect stop for a bit of peaceful respite in the middle of the city and a very busy day. Be sure to ask your waitress about the horseradish served on every table.

Next stop the Depot. Did you know that Ellis Island was not the first stop for thousands of immigrants coming from Scandinavia, Italy, Germany and a host of other predominantly European countries? That would be the Depot in Duluth. This French Norman building, now a train museum and arts center tucked behind the public library, is probably the best train museum in the country. It definitely wows and is a train lovers paradise! Farin, Lori and I had more fun checking out the massive cars, the largest engine ever built and a myriad of train paraphernalia, while Carolyn struggled to keep us to our tight schedule - sorry Carolyn!

We had the opportunity to check out the Marine Museum and Aerial Lift Bridge - a mighty engineering feat. Attendees will have an opportunity to learn about the preservation challenges facing the Canal Park area. The Army Corps of Engineers operates the Marine Museum, offices, and public facilities and will lead the presentation and discussion.

This is a very busy day looking at the many faces of this port city. There is so much to see and do, but the day goes quickly and is jam-packed with information, amazing sites, and panoramic views.

The last stop on the way back to the Twin Cities is in Cloquet, where Ray Lindholm, owner of the Best Oil Company built a gas station. This isn't just any gas station. Lindholm was a friend of Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright sold Lindholm the plans to the gas station from his Utopian City and here it is at the intersection of Cloquet Avenue and Sunnyside Drive in Cloquet, Minnesota. The station is still in use. Perhaps the best part of this story is that Terry Chartier, the gas station owner and his crew are savvy about this building and even think that it is pretty cool that so many folks come by to check it out.

It certainly can't be bad for business!

~Charlotte