#OnThisDay Sept 23, 1955: Slightly more than a year after streetcar service ends, double tracks of the Twin Cities Rapid Transit system are torn up out of Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis.

RAPTURE WATCH: Spring 1896, amid a craze of citizens across America claiming to see strange airships, Minneapolis newspapers carried accounts of a local physician being abducted by one of them. On April 13 "The Saint Paul Globe" published this photo of the end times being played out over the city.

It's even worse than @taylordahlin.com says. Major N/S and E/W routes in Hennepin County, namely Broadway, Franklin, Hennepin, Lake, Lyndale and Penn were vastly widened for NASA. That's why we can't change any of these roads to accommodate people, because a Space Shuttle may appear at any moment.

This is your reminder from the glorious past that Lyndale Avenue had a major streetcar line, meaning there's plenty of ROW for @hennepin.bsky.social @hennepindebbie.bsky.social to do the right thing. The difference between the bad and good design is just 8 parking spaces along the entire corridor.

Dear Friends: I hate to spoil your preparations, but there now appears to be hedging on the exact day of the Rapture since Trump and Elon made up yesterday. Stay tuned for more Rapture coverage as events unfold.

#OnThisDay Sept 22, 1939: A streamlined Chicago & North Western Railway "Twin Cities 400" passenger train crosses the Stone Arch Bridge to Saint Paul, so named because it made the run to Chicago in 400 minutes.

#OnThisDay Sept 21, 1909: The funeral train for Governor Johnson leaves Rochester Minnesota after his death at Mayo Clinic. A popular democrat, he successfully reduced insurance and railway costs for state citizens, making his last trip cheaper than it would've been when he first took office.

Lawless Times

Jamecia Bennett kicks off 40th anniversary celebrations for the Dakota Jazz Club on the Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis: "We are Minnesota strong."

The lines for @farmaid.org at Huntington Bank Stadium on the U of M campus in Minneapolis. Haven't seen a crowd this big since the Rolling Stones were here.

#OnThisDay Sept 20, 1897: Turbines are delivered at the new "Lower Falls" hydro station, designed to capture the drop in rapids just below St Anthony Falls. This plant supplied the rapidly growing electric streetcar system, making transit in Minneapolis "sustainable" before that term was popularized

#OnThisDay Sept 19, 1891: Aftermath of 2 trains colliding right in front of the Northern Pacific Railway Hospital in Brainerd, Minnesota. Brainerd was a company town, serving as the primary maintenance hub for the railroad's transcontinental lines between Duluth, Twin Cities, and Portland/Tacoma.

#OnThisDay Sept 19, 1970: Mary Richards throws her hat into the air in front of Dayton's on the Nicollet Mall for the first time, as the ground breaking Mary Tyler Moore Show begins a 7 season run. The Writer's Guild of America ranks it 6th best written television series of all time.

Echoes of "Rainy Evening on Hennepin Avenue" by Koehler, 1902.

It's so weird experiencing mid August in mid September

Minneapolis once had great industrial neon signs. The removal of signs like this has made the downtown area a less colorful and interesting place, akin to the "Millennial Gray" floors that obliterated the character of flipped houses in the 2010s.

#OnThisDay Sept 18, 1928: After burning for 2 days, fire is finally put out at the Washburn-Crosby A Mill in Minneapolis. The interior was gutted but the structures were saved with the help of new sprinklers. The mill was rebuilt and produced Gold Medal Flour for many years before closing in 1965.

#OnThisDay September 17-18, 1938: The all new streamlined Milwaukee Road "Twin Cities Hiawatha" is on display at Minnehaha Park Station, with a more powerful F7 "Baltic" engine. The F7s are major contenders for the fastest steam locomotives ever built.

Station signs just went up at the new E Line BRT terminus. This will transform Westgate into a major St Paul transit hub and also revolutionize Southeast Minneapolis, with 1 seat express service through the University, Dinkytown, @eastbankmpls.bsky.social all the way into @wedge.live territory.

16. Lots of band trips, some railroad history, one is a gas stop on the way to Duluth that I've been to many times for a only few minutes, several I've just passed through... but have seen them!

#OnThisDay Sept 17, 1952: LOOK magazine publishes this iconic photograph taken on Nicollet Avenue with the subtitle "Minneapolis and St. Paul turned out in Mardi Gras style yesterday to greet Eisenhower. Police estimate more than 300,000 persons lined the streets of the two cities."

D and G are the obvious big contenders, but I prefer B. My people are all from there, and that's where the good beer and original comfort food comes from. Plus there's Northern Italy and the Adriatic thrown in for variety.

Yes! tho it's an odd story. At least 12 sticks of dynamite were placed just outside the doors of Stouffer's at 89 S 7th Street, and more than 70 windows in nearby buildings were blown out in the explosion. It reopened soon after, no known motives or criminals were ever found.

#OnThisDay Sept 15, 1904: Despite frantic efforts of the bridge tender, a fire on the Old Stillwater Bridge attracts a large crowd. Suddenly the span collapsed, carrying firefighters, horses, and sightseers into the river. 3 people are killed and numerous others injured, including the fire chief.

#OnThisDay Sept 15, 1946: Students Roxanne Miller and Jean Brown check their departure time at the Milwaukee Road Depot in downtown Minneapolis. They're enroute to William Woods College in Fulton, Missouri, where they attend classes.

How do you answer your phone?

Sept 1939: Workers on the Minnesota Transfer Railway push linseed oil tank cars through the huge Archer-Daniels-Midland complex in Southeast Minneapolis. The photo below from @chaddavis.photography was taken from the Elevator No. 7 towers in far background center, the only part still standing.

#OnThisDay Sept 14, 1892: Civic celebration and BBQ as electric streetcar service begins in South Superior, Wisconsin. During the boom era from 1883 to 1892, eastern investors built business blocks along Tower Avenue, seeing Superior as the "new Chicago." By 1892 the population had reached 32,000.

Agree w Laura 💯 on this but I'm here to note the bridge they're about to pass under, one of my favorites! The Milwaukee Road Short Line Bridge once hosted local and express trains between Mpls and St Paul. In 1883 you could get between the downtowns, with intermediate stops, in about 30 minutes.

#OnThisDay Sept 13, 1948: Minneapolis Gas and Light Company employees introduce the new "Step-Saving Kitchen" at the American Home Economics Association conference. The U-shaped ergonomic design was developed by USDA, part of a national effort to promote kitchen efficiency following World War II.

Twin Cities Hiawatha, two trains a day in each direction, top sustained speed 100 mph, 6-1/4 hours to Chicago on the fastest passenger service in the world in 1939. RETVRN.

Historian Paul Hobbs gets a celebrity welcome and does a deep dive on his passion, the Spokane Portland & Seattle Railway. This is the first pure New Zealand accent I've heard since @evanrobertsnz.bsky.social

#OnThisDay Sept 12, 1913: Duluth Street Railway Car No. 154 on the Duluth-Superior Interurban Line derails on fresh ballast that had just been laid, almost falling off the end of the Interstate Bridge between Minnesota and Wisconsin. No injuries reported.

I got to see Dan Patch Electric Lines No. 100 yesterday when the shop doors were open and the lights on. I'd call it both lighter and darker than I thought 🤣

Awhile back @blindeke.bsky.social wrote the Lift Bridge in downtown St Paul might be on borrowed time. Today, totally by accident, I ran across the famed "9001 Heavy Steel Gang" near the bridge, completely replacing the line with welded rail. It looks like UP is here to stay, any updates Bill?

A private tour of the Holiest of Holies

While Minneapolis friends ride the wave of political madness, I'm over in St Paul at a much quieter but equally nerdy gathering, the week long Great Northern Railway Historical Society Convention.

Many eons ago I also enjoyed this view. Behold, Archer-Daniels-Midland Delmar Elevator No. 7, part of a vast complex begun in 1894 and expanded through the 1940s. Once among the largest grain facilities in the United States, now fondly known as "United Crushers" due to prominent graffiti up top.

Not a great day to rely on the Green Line. I have an appointment in downtown St Paul at 11. Will I make it?

Who says @bsky.app is dead? This is top notch content.

#OnThisDay Sept 9 1886: After complaints from wealthy homeowners about noise and smoke from steam-powered streetcars running through South Minneapolis, "Soda Motors" were introduced. These noiseless engines used a caustic lye chemical reaction to create steam. It was a short-lived experiment.

#OnThisDay Sept 8, 1906: Today's the big anniversary folks! Racehorse "Dan Patch," already internationally famous, paces a mile in 1 minute 55 seconds at the Minnesota State Fair, setting the world's record that stood unmatched for the next 30 years.

Aaron Carlson Co, founded in 1891, built this Northeast Minneapolis factory complex in stages between 1905-1928. One of the premier millworks in the US, many old homes and public buildings in the Midwest, including the Minnesota State Capitol, feature fine woodwork that came from here.

#OnThisDay Sept 7, 1876: The James-Younger Gang attempt to rob the First National Bank in Northfield, Minnesota. Citizens rise up to stop the robbery, resulting in the death of 2 gang members, the wounding of others, and capture of the Younger brothers. Jesse and Frank James barely escape alive.

Literally supper club in rural Wisconsin or Minnesota with an 82 year old bartender has a menu that blows this out of the water

Whether it's anti-density, anti-bike lane, or anti-whatever, far too many denizens of Ward 13 believe it's their God-given purview to inject themselves onto other parts of the city, even wards they would never dare go.

#OnThisDay Sept 6, 1893: The last Minneapolis Industrial Exposition is held. 10 years later the derelict building is bought by Marion Savage, owner of race horse Dan Patch, and becomes the International Stock Food Company headquarters.

March 16, 1935: "Edict for the Buildup of the Wehrmacht." In yet another step to dictatorship, the old German Republic's defense forces are renamed. By June the German Navy is renamed "Kriegsmarine" (War Navy). In 1938 the High Command orders that all officers must apply Nazism "in every situation"

#OnThisDay Sept 5, 1928: The corner of 7th Street and S 2nd Avenue at the Baker Building, vs Now.

#OnThisDay Sept 5, 1882: The first central hydroelectric station in the United States comes online at St Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, beating a similar project in Appleton, Wisconsin, by 25 days. A large light tower is raised in front of Old City Hall at Bridge Square.