A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 38
After more than 1,000 protesters in Duluth marched down Superior Street to City Hall, organizers asked them to kneel for nine minutes, almost the time that a Minneapolis police officer knelt on the neck of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who'd been arrested on suspicion of passing a counterfeit $20 bill. Floyd pleaded with the police officer, Derek Chauvin, telling him he couldn't breathe. He called out for his mother. Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck for eight minutes and 46...
It must have seemed like Christmas to the youth hockey players Monday when Northwoods Credit Union Arena opened on a limited basis for hockey camp. "I am having a great day because I am looking out my office window and seeing kids skating again," said Cloquet Area Hockey Association director Justin Harriman, who also acts as facilities manager for both the Northwoods and Pine Valley ice arenas. "We opened with precautions from a social distancing aspect." With the closing of the locker rooms as...
Thank goodness the sun came out. Monday marked the first day people could eat at restaurants and drink at bars - outdoors only, not inside - since Gov. Tim Walz began issuing orders to keep people at home and nonessential businesses closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although many local restaurants have been offering curbside or delivery service for customers, most bars have simply been closed for almost three months. There's been a lot of remodeling and cleaning, but minimal revenue,...
Historic Minnesota events with anniversaries this week. June 5 1885 The Western Appeal (later the Appeal), the first Minnesota-published African American newspaper to gain national readership, premieres, edited by Frederick D. Parker. June 6 1945 Just after 5 a.m. a fire was discovered at a farm home near Mahtowa. Vivian Doan, aged 28, was found dead in the home along with four children, Dorrayne, 8; Laurene, 5; Darlene Kay, 2; and Danny, about two months. The father, Robert Doan, later signed a confession stating that he had beaten to death...
After months of searching and almost an entire day of interviews, Cloquet has a new, yet familiar, police chief. Following a nationwide search, Cloquet city councilors voted 6-1 Tuesday to hire interim police chief Derek Randall as the permanent police chief. A panel of nine community members interviewed the three finalist candidates Tuesday morning, then the council conducted interviews via teleconference in the afternoon. Candidates included Troy Bacon, police chief in Franklin, Indiana, Eric...
When a 73-year-old man didn’t return as expected last week, family members called the Carlton County Dispatch Center the evening of May 27. The man had been planning for future tree plantings on a property on Carlton County Road 4. Carlton County deputies responded to the 911 call at approximately 7:22 p.m. With the assistance of the Carlton County drone team, U.S. Border Patrol K-9, Carlton Fire and Ambulance and the St. Louis County Rescue Squad, an extensive search of the property was conducted. The male was located by searchers at 9:45 p...
In keeping with the altered state of life during a pandemic, the Cloquet Public Library kicked off a virtual summer reading program Monday. Instead of using physical time sheets to log their reading, the library is using Beanstack, an online software program for keeping track of reading time and activity challenges. Participants will earn badges and tickets along the way, and once they reach seven-hour reading time, every child will receive a free book. They can also turn in their tickets for a virtual grand prize drawing. Prizes are...
Add July Fourth festivities in Cloquet and the swimming pond at Pinehurst Park to the list of cancellations caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Cloquet City Councilors voted unanimously Tuesday to cancel all of the usual July Fourth activities, including the fireworks. The committee that organizes the event had hoped they could still offer the fireworks, and ask people to watch from cars or other uncrowded locations, but it wasn't to be. City administrator Tim Peterson requested the council not...
The swimming pond at Pinehurst Park is another pandemic casualty, city staff and councilors determined during Tuesday's Cloquet city council meeting. Although there was no formal vote, councilors agreed with a staff assessment and the Cloquet parks commission that the The Beach at Pinehurst would not open this year. Public works director Caleb Peterson said it would take staff two weeks to fill the pond and balance the chemicals to start. Add a late start to the state's current prohibition...
After much study and citizen input, the Carlton county transportation department has decided to keep the Kettle River county garage open as a base of operations for the area’s grader. Commissioner Gary Peterson recently attended a Split Rock Township board meeting with more than 15 people in the audience. “Not one person there thought the closure of the Kettle River garage was a good idea,” Peterson said. “I am glad that it has worked out to keep the garage open. My constituents support that action.” The county’s Barnum garage is being upgra...
The Carlton County Republican Party will hold its monthly meeting outside at Wrenshall’s Hugh Line Park at 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 8. Bring your own chair. All are welcome. Social distancing guidelines will be observed. Call Republican Party chairman Tony Sheda at 218-384-4734 for more information....
Mildred Marie (Olson) Kjoberg, 101, of Cloquet died June 1, 2020. She was born on Jan. 12, 1919 to Swedish immigrant parents, Emil A. and Hulda M. Olson. Her mother, a survivor of the 1918 fire, saved the family by hiding in a culvert in Brookston. She settled in Brookston where Mildred attended grade school and high school, graduating salutatorian of her class. Mildred attended the Duluth State Teachers College, now UMD, and received her degree to teach elementary education. She taught in a...
It may seem like dental offices were already among the most sanitary of services, but the COVID-19 pandemic has Cloquet dentist Kraig Gunelson dressing like someone from a top secret government laboratory. To stay safe and follow recommended guidelines, Gunelson and his hygienists wear N95 masks covered with surgical masks, covered by face shields, plus safety glasses. "They're respirator masks, so we won't be breathing out onto our patients, or breathing in (air or spray from the patients) and...
Douglas A. Nelson, 66, of Cloquet passed away May 29, 2020. He was born July 26, 1953 in Virginia, Minnesota to Arthur and Helia (Autio) Nelson. Doug graduated from Cotton High School and was united in marriage to Sharyl Konstenius in 1987. He retired after 28 years as a lab technician at Specialty Minerals. Doug enjoyed bowling, and bowled in leagues at Skyline Lanes, Country Lanes North, and the Incline Station in Duluth. He also enjoyed fishing, hunting and camping, and he coached baseball....
Barbara J. Ross, 72, of Cloquet passed away unexpectedly May 27, 2020. She was born June 27, 1947, in Cloquet to Howard and Irene (Granvick) Ross. Barb was a 1965 graduate of Cloquet High School and graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1969, majoring in journalism. She worked for the Owatonna People’s Press in Owatonna, the Redwood Gazette in Redwood Falls, and Contra Costa College and Diablo Valley College in California as a reporter, news editor, photographer, designer, editor in c...
It seemed like the world was on fire last week, literally and figuratively. Three months of pandemic abnormalities were eclipsed by the reaction to the death of a man at the hands of Minneapolis police officers on Memorial Day night. People marched around Lake Street in Minneapolis. They marched in cities across the state and then the country and world. And with that came violence in fires and destruction, and police forces aimed at stopping it. And here we are in Carlton County, certainly aware and certainly viscerally affected by what we...
Criminal cases take up about 80 percent or so of the district court’s time in Minnesota, so it’s no surprise that people think all lawyers should know and understand criminal law. But for a civil lawyer like me, I do so little criminal work that I thought I should ask an expert criminal defense attorney, such as Joanna Wiegert, whose office is right next to the Pine Knot News, to explain what it means to be charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, like the policeman in...
For those of us who have the privilege of serving as elected officials during this difficult time, the burden of uncertainty weighs heavily on our shoulders. As a tribal leader, I am fortunate to be able to share this tremendous responsibility with a cohesive group of leaders that make up our Reservation Business Committee. Together, we find ourselves frequently looking toward our past to find answers for how we want our future to look. I am sure that countless theses will be written on the pers...
Are there injustices? Yes. Will they end? No. This doesn’t mean we cannot improve. This means life isn’t fair, it never was and never will be. The correct response to injustice is anger, but rage and violence is extreme. Responding to hate with more hate is not just fanning the flames, but pouring gas on the fire. Forcing a choice between supporting violent riots and officer brutality is a false dichotomy. You do not need to choose between the lesser of two evils. We can do better. We can do so together. We can look at what rules are in pla...
Cloquet's Sappi Mill is continuing to find its place in a pandemic world. Word that the Cloquet Sappi Mill is laying off some employees while it balances supply and demand as a result of the worldwide response to the COVID-19 virus isn't so much news as the new normal, at least for now. "These are unprecedented times for anybody and everybody," said Mike Schultz, former Cloquet mill manager and now vice president of manufacturing for Sappi North America, explaining that the mill has been...
The filing period for local political offices ended Tuesday, June 2 and there are both new and familiar faces in the mix. At the state level, incumbent Mike Sundin (DFL) will face challenger Jeff Dotseth (R) again in the general election for State Representative District 11A. For State Senator District 11, incumbent Jason Rarick (R) will face challenger Michelle Lee (DFL). For Carlton county commissioner, incumbent Dick Brenner will be challenged by Erik Blesener, while District 3 commissioner Tom Proulx is running unopposed. Three people are...
It's one of my favorite sports stories. It's also a golf story that shows a little of the craziness, stubbornness, and sisu of golfers in northeastern Minnesota. For many years, I played in a two-man golf scramble in Eveleth, home of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. It's about an hour's drive from Cloquet to the eastern side of Minnesota's famous Iron Range. This is mining country and the weather can be as tough as the ore dug out of the earth. The Eveleth golf scramble tournament is scheduled in M...
Open area courses 29 Pines Golf Course 2871 Sundberg Road, Mahtowa 218-389-3136 Cloquet Country Club 400 Country Club Drive, Cloquet 218-879-7997 Grand View Golf Links 5665 Grandview Road, Duluth Off Midway Road 218-628-3727 Kendahl Miniature Golf 812 Sunnyside Drive, Cloquet Off Highway 33 North 218-879-3314 Minnesota National Golf Course 23247 480th Lane, McGregor 218-426-4444 Moose Lake Golf Club 35311 Parkview Drive, Sturgeon Lake 218-485-4886 Pine Hill Golf Club 1689 County Road 61,...
Back in 1966, in what would become classic cars, people flocked to Sunnyside in Cloquet to grab a 49-cent hamburger at the fairly new Gordy's Hi-Hat or a burger along with a frosty mug of Root Beer at the A&W. To extend the excitement, the brand new Kendahl Miniature Golf course opened up adjacent to A&W on Highway 33 North. Since then, A&W morphed into the Family Tradition Restaurant, but these three businesses have remained under family ownership. That's quite amazing in today's business...
The Cloquet Country Club opened as a nine-hole course in 1923 and its credited designer was renowned Scottish golf course architect Donald Ross. Rudy Weyerhaeuser, its president, also consulted with Runcie Martin and Tom Varden. Martin was a Duluth newspaper writer and a talented golfer. He was also a contributing designer of the Moose Lake Golf Club, which celebrated its 90th anniversary last year. Runcie Martin was also playing in the original foursome that officially opened the Lester Park...
