#OnThisDay June 26, 1959 President Eisenhower and Queen Elizabeth II dedicate the St Lawrence Seaway aboard the royal yacht "Britannia" at Montréal, opening the Great Lakes to large transatlantic vessels for the first time. Duluth Minnesota becomes the farthest inland seaport in the World.

#OnThisDay June 25 1950: Inaugural run of the Great Northern Railway "Red River", a 5-car streamlined day train between St. Paul/Minneapolis and Grand Forks ND, allowing Red River Valley residents to travel to the Twin Cities for an afternoon of shopping and return home the same evening.

Beaver breakfast Minnehaha creek Minneapolis, MN 6/25/26

Tom Emmer wasn't born in Minnesota and therefore hasn't assimilated to our culture. You know what? I'm done being even the least bit careful. He should go the hell back to Indiana.

#OnThisDay June 25 1977: The first Grandma's Marathon is held from Two Harbors to Duluth, Minnesota, with 116 finishers. The race was won by local Olympian Garry Bjorklund and 18-year-old Wendy (Hovland) Cregg. Today it hosts nearly 24,000 participants across three events.

The 2026 @wedge.live Cat Tour™ is about to launch, after the usual formalities of ground rules, uplifting speeches, and the handing over of the grand marshall's baton.

Timeline Cleanse: tiny pupper on the Green Line.

#OnThisDay June 24 1963: Grain Belt Brewery dedicates a new 10-acre park in Minneapolis, featuring a fountain shooting brewing water 18 feet in the air from the famous Diamond Wells, 1407 feet below. The venue featured flower gardens, a Black Forest beer garden, and tame deer.

The upper rail bridge, while newer, is the original 1880 "Short Line" of the Milwaukee Road, connecting Minneapolis with St Paul. Just to the right of this structure was the famous Merriam Park train station. Travel time to either downtown from here under steam power? 12 minutes.

#OnThisDay June 24 1869: Bishop Henry Whipple dedicates the Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour in Faribault, Minnesota. The first church in the United States built specifically as an Episcopal cathedral, it was designed by James Renwick, Jr., architect of St Patrick's in New York City.

#OnThisDay June 23 1888: The first whaleback, a 191-foot barge designed by Captain Alexander McDougall, is launched at Duluth. The unique hull was designed for better handling on the Great Lakes. A total of 40 were built at Duluth-Superior, including a passenger ship version.

Summer 1938: Chicago North Western Railway's "Travel Wise" owl mascot announces summer services to the abundant holiday fishing grounds in Minnesota and Wisconsin. 21 trains daily to the northland from Omaha, Minneapolis-St Paul, and Chicago.

Minneapolis sunset 9:05pm, longest day of the year

Another day and another hour that @kstptv.bsky.social gets its facts completely wrong. The most ridiculous "news" outlet in Minnesota, and that's saying something.

Marching across East Hennepin Ave into Southeast Minneapolis carrying the Northeast Minneapolis flag is imperialism of the lowest order. This dog parade needs to be banned.

Last night Elwood escaped and spent the night outside. This morning he's acting as if nothing happened. WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL VINCE, WHY ARE YOU YELLING?

#OnThisDay June 20 1970: Dave Kunst, his brother John, and their mule "Willie Makeit" set out from Waseca, Minnesota, on an around the world journey on foot. After John is killed by bandits in Afghanistan, Dave completes the trip in 1974, the first verified circumnavigation of the globe on foot.

I was skeptical if a storm was actually going to get here but this looks ominous

Fine, I will drink the reflecting pool water, I don’t care anymore.

#OnThisDay June 19 1954: TCRT CEO Fred Ossanna receives his payout in front of a burning streetcar in an event staged to celebrate the changeover from electric rail to GM buses. Ossanna was later convicted of fraud in the deal, but by then the venerable 500-mile-long system was gone.

There's plenty to love about Gooseberry Falls. Park supervisor Nate Springer spoke with MPR News host @claymasters.bsky.social about why USA Today readers voted it the best state park in the nation.

#OnThisDay June 18 1936: The "City of Denver" passenger train is launched, an iconic ultra-fast streamliner offering daily overnight service between Chicago and Denver. It cut nine hours off previous schedules, making the 1048-mile journey in just 16 hours, at an average speed of 93mph.

The only reason polls show people disliking the flag is because it is a completely manufactured drama and the only people with an opinion are people who wanted to be mad. The prevailing opinion about the flag is “Oh right. States have flags! That’s weird. What’s ours?”

#OnThisDay June 18 1954: "Farewell to Streetcars" event on Twin Cities Rapid Transit's last day. TRCT president Fred Ossanna, corrupt architect of the system's destruction, mugs for cameras from the drivers seat. The next day the streetcars would be burned for scrap and he would pocket the proceeds.

Ian is trustworthy, and there are going to be people among the Minneapolis 15 who don't qualify for the Federal Public Defender and can't find a pro bono defense. Part of what the Feds are counting on is crushing defendants under massive legal costs to force them to flip and/or plead. Fight back.

This is the kind of white people who have "a few concerns" with the newly proposed dense housing project because it disrupts the chakras of the land (that their outdoor cats are destroying the local bird population of)

#OnThisDay June 17 1890: In the opening salvo of the "Census War," US Marshals from St. Paul arrest 7 census takers in Minneapolis, accusing them of cooking the books so Minneapolis could claim a higher population. A court finds it true, but also that St Paul was doing exactly the same thing.

BREAKING NEWS: The @startribune.com conducts a "Minnesota Poll" by calling random numbers in rural areas to deliberately stoke the flag controversy, then posts the resulting rage bait to Twitter - but curiously doesn't post anything about it here on BlueSky.

#OnThisDay June 17 1673: Accompanied by voyageurs and guided by Indigenous knowledge, Louis Jolliet and Jacques Marquette travel down the Wisconsin River and enter the "Micissipi." They are the 1st Europeans to see the Upper Mississippi, in one of the most important explorations in American history.

At this rate we'll have the future predicted in Logan's Run (1976)

#OnThisDay June 16 1937: The Milwaukee Road's repainting of its bridge carrying the transcontinental mainline over Bde Maka Ska Parkway is halted when the Minneapolis Park Board objects on the grounds that it constitutes advertising. The bridge remains a glum gray to this day.

#OnThisDay April 24 1934: The Führer establishes the "People's Court" to pursue political opponents. Initially its prosecutors maintain a semblance of legitimacy, but progressively abandon all such pretense as the court becomes a key instrument of the regime's oppression and terror.

BREAKING: Moments ago the Minneapolis Fire Dept rescues baby ducklings and returns them via a bucket to their worried mom.

#OnThisDay June 15 1926: Grand opening of the landmark Young-Quinlan Department store at 901 Nicollet Avenue in downtown Minneapolis, the finest retailer between Chicago and the Pacific Coast. Billed by founder Elizabeth C. Quinlan as a "housewarming," the event draws 20,000 visitors.

Train/pickup accident on the Green Line at University and Cleveland

#OnThisDay June 15 1939: Crown Prince Olav and Princess Märtha of Norway dedicate Enger Tower in Duluth during a cross-country tour to bolster Norwegian-American ties as war looms in Europe. In 2011 it is rededicated by his son, King Harald V.

The Lead Paint Theory of Anti Gentrification holds that activists can prevent displacement and preserve housing affordability by preserving neighborhood disamenities and blocking investment in quality of life improvements like parks, bike lanes, and libraries. It does not work.

#OnThisDay June 14 1892: Electrification of the Hennepin Avenue streetcar line is complete. The sweeping conversion of narrow-gauge horse-drawn cars to a new system powered by hydroelectricity would be complete the following year, in one of the most rapid adoptions of technology in history.

Urban gangs blocking the streets and creating a no go zone in Prospect Park, Minneapolis.

#OnThisDay June 14 1905: Civil War and Spanish-American War veterans parade Minnesota's historic battle flags from the old capitol in downtown St. Paul to the newly completed Minnesota State Capitol on Wabasha Hill. The solemn procession deliberately excludes Confederate flags.

#OnThisDay June 13, 1895: Parelius and Martha's wedding reception at the Dale parsonage, Franklin, Minnesota. It appears the entire population of Renville County has turned out.

Service of Holy Closure, the last day for Faith Lutheran Church in St Paul, and a new day for the Pentecostal congregation moving in. Important ministries of the old church, such Recovery Cafe, will continue with the new.

Some of the efforts being made in Belfast right now to protect people, because the government can't or won't, will be familiar to Minnesotans.

#OnThisDay Jun 13 1886: A four mile long logjam blocks the St. Croix River at Taylor's Falls MN. It becomes a major tourist attraction, with special trains put on to carry 1000s of spectators a day. After being broken up in late July, cleanup continues until September.

This guy was released from ICE custody in the middle of Louisiana, where he'd been taken during the case. Volunteers and donors from Minnesota paid for his flight back, picked him up from the airport, and drove him home a state away. I could not be filled with more love for my country Minnesota.

#OnThisDay June 12 2018: First noticed by @mprnews.org employees, the "MPR Raccoon" causes a worldwide media sensation when it climbs 22 stories up UBS Plaza in downtown St Paul MN. Rescuers capture the animal from the roof the next morning and release it at an undisclosed location.

#OnThisDay June 11 1899: During the height of the bicycle boom, when tens of thousands of residents held permits to ride, St. Paul Police form a dedicated bicycle squad of 12 officers to catch "scorchers." Speed limits are set at 6 mph on sidewalks and 8 mph on streets.

#OnThisDay June 10 1929: Minneapolis YWCA celebrates the opening of its new Art Deco HQ at 1130 Nicollet Ave, now the Nicollet Mall. In 1974, during the 2nd wave of urban renewal, the building was demolished to make way for a brutalist replacement, and more parking.

#OnThisDay June 9 1912: After 5 years of construction, St. Agnes Church is dedicated in St. Paul’s Frogtown neighborhood. Built for Austro-Hungarian and German immigrants working in the Great Northern Railway shops nearby, its grand Baroque design is modeled on Stift Schlägl in Upper Austria.

What we learned today from this excellent research is that Alpha News couldn't even buy MPR lunch at Taco Bell.