September Travels: Part Two - Minnesota

On September 8th I met up with my sister, Nancy, and her husband, John, at the Minneapolis airport. From there we set off on a 6 day trip to explore some of the places that our parents called  "home". Our Dad, Ross Oliver Hambly (1914-2015), and our Mother, Eileen Claire O'Leary Hambly (1914-2008), were born, grew up, met and married  in Duluth, Minnesota. Nancy and I, having grown up in Seattle, had not had the opportunity to see the places we had heard so much about. The timing worked out perfectly for us to be in Minnesota at the same time...so off we went. 

Much of this trip is about my family and its roots in the upper mid-west. Thus a departure from my usual educational travel adventures. I'll share my photos and assorted factoids I picked up as we made our way through this special slice of America. And I'll just say up front, it was a wonderful, memorable and unique trip in every way. 

Our first stop was Moose Lake, MN.  

• Located is about 45 miles southwest of Duluth.
• Current population approximately 2,700.
• Sets on the shore of Moose Head Lake.
• Established as a station on the St.Paul & Duluth Railroad
• First home built there around 1869 

The town of Moose Lake, MN is very near Sand Lake. In 1927 our Grandpa Hambly purchased some property at Sand Lake and built a cabin there. That land and cabin are still in the family. 

Sand Lake, MN

Today our Aunt June lives in that cabin at Sand Lake and she was our first stop. Nancy and I have heard about Moose Lake and the cabin at Sand Lake for as far back as we can remember.

John, Aunt June and Nancy

Sand Lake has a long history as a recreational and fishing destination. In 1927 when Grandpa Hambly bought land on Sand Lake, there was a golf course on the road leading to the cabin. And today there is still a municipal golf course and a group of original cabins that face the lake.

Above left is the Hambly cabin (June's Home) from the road and on the right is the cabin facing Sand Lake. 

Sand Lake and Moose Lake were part of my Dad's life beginning when he was a teenager. And during his retirement years he visited Uncle Bud (his brother) and Aunt June here. Aunt June assured us, with a certain twinkle in her eye, that they always had "fun".

On September 9th we spent a beautiful sunny afternoon at Sand Lake meeting relatives from Dad's side of the family. So good to finally put faces to names.

Left: John, Nancy, Mary, Aunt June, Kathy and Cousin Dick

Cousin Dick and his wife, Kathy and Aunt June. 

Cousin David (son of Aunt June and Uncle Bud) and Aunt June.

Both Grandpa Hambly and Dad worked for the railroads. Our Dad retired with over 40 years of service to the Duluth South Shore & Atlantic RR and the Soo Line Railroad.  Our trip would not be complete without a visit to the "Moose Lake Depot and Fires of 1918 Museum".  The Moose Lake Area Historical Society operates this museum in the former Soo Line Depot which was built in 1907, survived the 1918 Fires and continued operation until 1990.

While working on an oral history project with our Dad, Nancy asked him what would be a most vivid memory of his childhood. His answer was seeing from Duluth the smoke and flames of the 1918 Fire at Cloquet, MN. On October 12, 1918 many small fires in northeastern Minnesota converged to produce a huge firestorm affecting a five county area which included the cities of Cloquet, Moose lake and up to the edges of Duluth. Over 250,000 acres of forest land were burned. The weather in the summer of 1918 had been hot and dry. High winds fanned the flames of a number of small fires. The result was a massive inferno which remains one of the largest natural disasters in Minnesota history. Property damage was valued at over $73 million and 450 people died in the fires. Moose Lake was especially hard hit and almost totally destroyed. The story of the 1918 Fires and the rebuilding of Moose Lake is told in one of the few buildings that survived the fire, The Soo Line Depot.

Time to leave the Sand Lake area and head for Duluth and Lake Superior.

Duluth is the 2nd largest city on the shores of Lake Superior.
 Thunder Bay, Ontario is the largest city on the lake. 

Current population: 86,250

The St. Louis River feeds into Lake Superior at Duluth. It is the westernmost point of the Great Lakes and the terminal port on the St. Lawrence Seaway.

 Ocean going vessels travel 2300 miles from the Atlantic ocean along the Great Lakes Waterway and the St. Lawrence Seaway to the port at Duluth.

We spent an evening and the following day in Duluth. Our brief time was spent scouting out places significant to our family history combined with some more traditional sightseeing. 

Nancy and John - September 11, 2015

We took a boat tour of the inner harbor and onto Lake Superior. This gave us views of the city from a different vantage point.

 The Aerial Lift Bridge - a major Duluth landmark (more later on the bridge)

Old Duluth Central High School. Both parents graduated from Duluth Central High!

 

Commerce in the form of the fur trade dates back to the 17th century in the Great Lakes Region. It is followed by the mining of copper and iron ore, the harvesting of timber and the introduction of the railroads to transport these raw goods. The city has a "boom and bust" economic history with periods of fluctuation between economic prosperity and deep decline. For example, in 1869-70 Duluth was the fastest growing city in the U.S, expected to exceed New York and Chicago in population. In 1873 a stock market crash left it devastated. Then in the early 1900's the steel industry arrived, the population increased and Duluth was on the map again. In 1905 Duluth was said to have the largest number per capita of millionaire residents in the country. For the first half of the 20th century Duluth was an industrial port boom town. Industry thrived. In the 1950's with the depletion of iron ore resources from the Iron Range and the downturn in the US steel industry, the fortunes of Duluth began to turn. As with so many American cities, the industrial core was abandoned and search for a shift in economic focus continues. This economic history is reflected in the architecture and the skyline of the city.  

 Saturday sailing - Spinnakers on the inner harbor.

One of the most photographed landmarks in Duluth, or all of Minnesota for that matter, is the Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge. A clearance of 180 feet is attained when the span is completely raised. The span length is 386 feet and weighs approximately 900 tons! The bridge is very similar to the only other one of its kind in the world, which is in Rouen, France.

The Aerial Lift Bridge spans the Duluth Ship Canal. The canal was cut through a sand spit that is known as Minnesota Point (or Park Point by locals). The original bridge was completed in 1905 and has been upgraded over the years. In this picture the "span" part of the bridge is lowered. 

 















Left: Nancy on the Lift Bridge 
Right: Nancy & John at Minnesota Point/Park Point beach 

Not my photo, borrowed from the internet, but couldn't resist. It is a beautiful structure.

And now some random photos of Duluth.

Continuation of the Soo Line RR theme....

 

The Lakewalk...a six and a half mile walking path along Lake Superior and the Inner Harbor area. On two different days I walked nearly the entire distance. Urban planning at its best.

 

LAKE SUPERIOR
The Lake is the Boss!

Taking some time now to showcase the most dominant and striking feature of all, Lake Superior itself! So here are a few shots and some factoids about the largest of the Great Lakes. They say the Lake makes its own weather!

Lake Superior is, by SURFACE AREA, the world's largest freshwater lake. The lake's surface area is 31,280 square miles. This is equal to the surface area of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont and New Hampshire combined.

Lake Baikal, in Russia, is the largest lake in the world by VOLUME, but second to Lake Superior in size by surface area. 

There are 2,730 miles of shoreline along the lake. Many remain wild and untamed.

Over 200 rivers and streams flow into Lake Superior, the largest being the St. Louis River at Duluth.  There are nearly 400 islands on the lake. The largest one is Isle Royle (a National Park) with a surface area of over 200 miles.

 Final destination: Apostle Islands National Lakeshore.

At the northern tip of Wisconsin is an Archipelago of 22 islands. In 1970 a NPS National Lakeshore was established to protect 21 of the islands and their remote open waters and shorelines. Madeline Island is the only island not part of the National Lakeshore.

 

We traveled to Bayfield, Wisconsin for a boat trip through the Apostle Islands. 

Nancy and John head to the boat.

Leaving Bayfield Harbor

Hermit Island

Honeymoon Rock, Basswood, Island

Manitou Island Fish Camp. One of several dating back to the late 1800's.

Devil's Island Lighthouse

Devil's Island is the northernmost point of land in Wisconsin. The island is noted for its remoteness and the sea caves that undercut the sandstone shoreline.

Raspberry Island Lighthouse

The Shining Big-Sea-Water 

Only when one comes to listen,

 Only when one is aware and still,

Can things be seen and heard.

Everyone has a listening point somewhere...

Some place of quiet where the 

Universe can be

Contemplated with awe.

The words of Minnesota naturalist, environmentalist and author, Sigurd Olson

    

On September 14th Nancy and John headed west for their road trip back to Washington state. On September 15th I headed back to Indiana. I feel all the richer for having visited the places that speak of origins and roots for my parents/family. And for having made the trip in the company of my sister and brother in law. Signing off...with gratitude.