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
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"I am one of a dying breed," said Peter Laveau during a recent interview at his farm. He is referring to his occupation as an independent family dairy farmer. In 1990, the state numbered just under 10,000 dairy farms. By the end of 2020, the total was down to 2,334, according to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. Farms have become larger and produce more with volume working for them. The small-farm operations have lost out. To be a dairy farmer requires dedication and determination. It's...
Summer festival season is upon us. This weekend Moose Lake and Wright will celebrate their signature events, with Agate Days running Saturday and Sunday and Wrong Days in Wright kicking off Friday. Wright may be the only city in Carlton County that can still claim an “annual” festival, as organizers there did not pause the Wrong Days in Wright celebration because of the pandemic. It was business as usual last year — with masks added to the mix — and it’s business as usual this year: think three days of smalltown fun for everyone. Check out...
Calling all artists, future artists and wannabe artists: Cloquet's West End is inviting you to bring your art supplies and sense of adventure to a West End Art Day on Saturday. Organized by artist Phyllis Ducey with assistance from a West End Flourish grant, the event is a way of getting art out into the community, specifically Fauley Park and Avenue C. There will be space on Avenue C for artists to set up and paint in the city's historic West End. "I'm hoping to have people sprawled out in the...
A property in Scanlon with political flags on a pole disparaging President Joe Biden and voters with expletives, and supporting former President Donald Trump, is being sold, and the flags are gone. According to real estate listings, the home at 22nd Street and Doddridge Avenue on the border with Cloquet was listed in earaly June for $250,000. The home hadn't sold as of early this week and the price had been reduced to $224,000. In March, the Pine Knot News had a story about the flags and...
A woman who was severely injured in a fire at Cloquet’s Larson Commons apartments last month has died. Nancy Carlson, 70, was a tenant at the senior high-rise on Cloquet Avenue; the fire started in her apartment the morning of June 13. The Cloquet Area Fire District responded to a 911 call around 9:30 a.m. June 13, for a fire and possible trapped victim. Upon arrival, CAFD crews forced entry into the apartment and found the residence full of smoke with zero visibility. Crews found and removed Carlson, then extinguished the fire. Carlson was t...
Police are still investigating an armed standoff Saturday that ended with the suspect shooting himself and dying at the scene. According to a press release from the Cloquet Police Department, officers from Cloquet, Fond du Lac, Carlton County and the Minnesota State Patrol responded to a home on the 300 block of Ridge Road at 10:19 a.m. Saturday, July 10, on a report of a man armed with a gun who entered the house and threatened the residents. The home is on the Fond du Lac Reservation within Cloquet city limits. The responding officers were...
The Wrenshall school district is moving ahead with plans to update a moldering building on its campus into a space for industrial and technology classrooms. The school board approved a plan Monday that requires $3.1 million to shore up the former rec building, money that would likely come from a non-voter-approved levy. This is adding to the $9.3 million nonvoter-approved levy the board passed in early 2020 to cover projects that are now being completed at the school. The district is allowed to...
Sam Kavanaugh, a 2009 Carlton grad who recently won the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions, will have the seat of honor (likely in an antique fire truck) in the Carlton Daze parade at 1 p.m. July 25. Kavanaugh won a total of $156,202 on Jeopardy in 2019 during a five-day winning streak, which qualified him for this spring's Tournament of Champions, when 15 top performers came back to the Jeopardy stage for the chance to win $250,000. Kavanaugh credits his teacher parents and going to school in...
On top of 34 awards and a trophy for Most Outstanding Weekly Newspaper in the Better Newspaper Contest organized by the Minnesota Newspaper Association, the Pine Knot News recently won two more awards from the Minnesota Society for Professional Journalists for 2020 work. Competing in the category of newspapers with a circulation of under 50,000, newspaper page designer and reporter Mike Creger, editor Jana Peterson and other staff took third place in the category of Best Issue, for the entire issue from March 20 that focused on the rapidly...
The Esko School Board approved pay hikes for noncontract substitute workers during its July 12 meeting, citing a need to not only attract new substitutes but also to show appreciation for the current roster of substitutes. The rates for substitute teachers did not change, and will remain at $120 per day or $60 per half-day. But substitute paraprofessionals, food service, and custodian workers and program assistants all will receive $12 per hour, a raise of 50 cents per hour. Superintendent...
A tiny Carlton County department gained national recognition recently for work they did to limit person-to-person contact during vaccination clinics held during the pandemic. Geographic Information System coordinator Jared Hovi and GIS specialist Siona Roberts were awarded the prestigious Special Achievement in GIS award for their work creating a digital tracking system for residents wishing to be vaccinated during the Covid-19 pandemic. Their goal was to eliminate paper forms and limit human...
In the wake of the pandemic when substitute teachers were in short supply, Cloquet School Board members approved raising the daily pay for substitute teachers to $150 a day during Monday’s meeting, up from $116 a day. They also moved the position to the district non-union rate sheet. In the future, superintendent Michael Cary said the substitute pay will be increased annually by the same percentage as the teacher contract because of the move. Cary explained that substitute teachers work eight h...
Cloquet's Jake Schwinn is facing some hefty medical bills after a flash fire from a bonfire last month left him with first- and second-degree burns across his torso, hands and arms. Schwinn has no health insurance and had to take two weeks off while he was recovering before returning to work. A spaghetti feed benefit, including a quilt raffle (quilt pictured below), bake sale and silent auction, is scheduled for 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, July 17 at the Cloquet VFW on Arch Street....
A loyal reader stopped into the Pine Knot News office to chat the other day, and pointed out how few motorists understand the concept that a pedestrian has the right of way. We would like to remind all drivers that it's state law to stop for pedestrians in a crosswalk. But it's not just the law that we are promoting, it's common decency. When you see someone at a crosswalk, it's smart to slow down. If they step off the curb, you should stop. Pedestrians have to participate, too. It's...
I love newspapers, and always have. It's common for me to pick up a copy of the local paper at every little town I may be traveling through, and it's fascinating to learn that every town has its issues - there's often a story about a local tax increase or public construction project, and there's always coverage of local government meetings. You can figure out who are the local sports heroes of the day, and it seems people are getting married all the time. Even the obituaries provide a nice...
Donald Arnold Seabury, 87, of Cloquet passed away July 9, 2021, at St. Luke's hospital. He was born to Walter and Elsie (Haderly) Seabury on Aug. 27, 1933, in Mellen, Wisconsin. Don married Marian Johnson on Aug. 31, 1957 in Cloquet. He was a lifetime member of the VFW, American Legion, and the Bricklayers union. Don was a bricklayer by trade and the owner-operator of his own company for many years. Don and Marian wintered in Mesa, Arizona, and were members of the Cloquet Country Club and...
Carol Jean (Johnson) Schubert, 82, of Cloquet passed away Saturday, July 10, 2021 after a brief illness, surrounded by the love of her family. She was born Dec. 18, 1938 in Superior, Wisconsin, and was preceded in death by her parents, John I. and Lillian (Wicken) Johnson, and husband, Harry L. Schubert. Carol graduated from Superior Central High School in 1957 and soon after was united in marriage to Harry on Aug. 10, 1957. They were married almost 50 years until his death in June 2007. Carol w...
Nancy Elaine Carlson, 70, of Cloquet passed away Thursday, July 8, 2021 in the Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis. Visitation: 11 a.m. until the 12 p.m. funeral service Saturday, July 17 in the Atkins Northland Funeral Home in Cloquet. Burial will be in Hillside Cemetery in Carlton....
Kathie Jo (Danger) Kemi passed away July 7, 2021, at home, with her daughters by her side. She was born in Crookston on Oct. 15, 1951. Kathie graduated from Esko High School in 1969. She married her high school sweetheart, Bruce, in 1970. They built a beautiful home and life together with their two daughters, Kelly and Kym. Kathie worked at the Cloquet Co-op Credit Union for 48 years, where she made many lifelong friendships. She was a hardworking, strong, dedicated and loving woman. Kathie’s biggest joy in life was having grandchildren. She c...
DaWayn "Dewey" Herbert Johnson, 86, of Carlton passed away peacefully at home with his family by his side July 4, 2021. Born Oct. 9, 1934, to Caroline and Herbert Johnson in Red Wing, he attended a one-room school on an island on the Mississippi River through eighth grade, then attended Red Wing High School, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Wisconsin Superior for a master's degree in fine arts. Dewey taught art and physical education at Cloquet High School for more than 35...
Darwin "Teets" Laverne Bishop, resident of the Duluth area, passed away peacefully Saturday, July 3, 2021, just shy of his 86th birthday. He was born to Sylvester and Charlotte Northrup in Carlton County. He was a member of the Fond du Lac Band of Ojibwe. In his younger years, Darwin and Lynn "Dolly" lived in California with their family. He held several painting jobs, including working for Disneyland, Lockheed Martin, Carroll Shelby and Hiller Helicopters. He was a truant officer at Washington...
Debra Esther (Timonen) Smith, 55, of Proctor died peacefully July 6, 2021, at Inter-Faith Care Center in Carlton after a brief battle with uterine cancer. Deb was born in Moose Lake, the daughter of Raymond and Mary Timonen. Deb grew up in Carlton and graduated from Carlton High School in 1984. She attended Bemidji State University. She was employed for the past 22 years at Kindred at Home as a care team coordinator, and had previously been employed with Vaydich Enterprises and Kmart. Deb was...
After three glorious days of perfect golfing weather, Hermantown's Taylor Sundbom emerged as the champion of the 90th annual Cloquet Invitational golf tournament, shooting a total three-under par. It was the fourth time Sundboom has won the tournament hosted by the Cloquet Country Club. Recent high school state champion and Cloquet native Sam Baker finished two strokes back. John Sheff tied for third at even par. He and Monticello native Brian Moores each shot 213. A total of 175 golfers partici...
Braun Park was bustling again this past weekend as 30 girls fast-pitch teams converged on the sparkling complex in Cloquet's Hilltop neighborhood for the USSSA Northern State tournament. "It was just great to see the park finally full again," said tournament director Jeff Woollett. "Cars were lined outside the parking lot all the way down the roadway. After a year with Covid, it was just fantastic to see all the kids and people at the tournament again." Through Woollett's efforts, Braun Park...
Her voice has a certain gravitas to it, then at turns it is lifted by a whimsical lilt driving a hearty laugh. Free as a kid's laugh, really. It is her 80th birthday, and a party has sprung up near Scott's Corner south of Carlton. She is flitting around, getting this and that ready. She earnestly thanks everyone who arrives, with theatrical gestures as further exclamation. She dings around on her electric keyboard, playing along with the alphorn player set up under one of the tents. That whimsy...
