Star Tribune
What are some of Minnesota’s best ghost towns?
“The ghost towns here in Carver County … don’t really look the same way ghost towns out west do, where you’ve got a lot of, like, abandoned buildings and things like that,” said Jayna Hulleman, the education and exhibits coordinator at the Carver County Historical Society.
It also depends on how you define “ghost town,” said Bill Convery, the director of research at the Minnesota Historical Society.
“Are you talking about old Dakota and Ojibwe villages? Are you talking about fur trading posts? What constitutes a ghost town?” he said. “If you count everything, I would say it’s in the hundreds.”
Of the many former communities that once thrived here, some of Minnesota’s ghost towns do stand out, however. At least one of them was preserved in its empty state and draws tourists.
Donnelly advertised his vision for the Minnesota city before it was built in the 1850s, targeting immigrants on the East Coast.
It worked. At its peak, Nininger had around 1,000 residents. Many who lived there were from the northeast, places like New York and Pennsylvania. But the town also drew emigrants from overseas, including Germany, Ireland, Scotland and Norway, according to an 1857 census provided by the Dakota County Historical Society.
ROCHESTER – The biggest venue here will technically have new operators in 2025, though there likely won’t be staff changes.
Experience Rochester has switched operating companies, ending a contract with venue specialists ASM Global and expanding a contract with its food and beverage vendor Oak View Group. The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) revealed Friday that 146 workers would be affected by the switch.
ASM Global notified DEED officials last month that it planned to lay off its staff running the Civic Center. Experience Rochester said in a statement Friday that Oak View Group plans to rehire and retain all employees once it takes over operations in January, “ensuring continuity and a seamless transition for our staff and our guests.”
The Mayo Civic Center has been a Rochester fixture since 1939, though it’s expanded over the years. It boasts almost 200,000 square feet of space, can seat up to 7,200 people in its arena and claims to be the largest event facility in southern Minnesota.
A head-on crash of pickup trucks on the Iron Range in northern Minnesota killed both drivers, officials said.
The collision occurred about 8:50 a.m. Thursday just west of Britt in the 9100 block of Biss Road, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office said.
Frank Bertram Ratliff, 76, Angora, Minn., was driving east on Biss and appeared to have drifted onto the shoulder to the right, overcorrected and struck a westbound pickup being driven by Steven Craig Shoden 69, of Virginia, Minn., the Sheriff’s Office said.
Emergency responders declared both men dead at the scene.
Architect Paul Ormseth wanted a project, and the bluff of St. Paul felt like the perfect place.
Between overgrown bushes and shrubs, right in the middle of 77 steep steps connecting pedestrian traffic between St. Paul’s Grand Avenue and Lawton Street, Ormseth discovered the foundation from an old house. Standing on the lot with views of the Mississippi River valley and High Bridge, Ormseth decided to build.
Today, the home spans 1,410 square feet and is on the market for the first time. Current owner — former editor of the Growler Magazine Joseph Alton — is selling the beloved property he spent more than a decade in to focus on his Wisconsin farm full time. Built in 2008, it’s much newer than the historic mansions surrounding it and a fraction of the price at $489,500.
The two-bedroom, one-bathroom house in the Summit Hill neighborhood is one of a kind, said listing agent Anna Garnaas-Halvorson.
“People are either going to love it and want it and be willing to pay for it. Or they don’t want to carry their groceries down the steps to the house,” Garnaas-Halvorson said. “It’s probably the most unique house ever. I almost feel like I’m in a tree house in there, and I love how it’s so cozy in its spaces.”
While the new owner will have to trek up and down the stairs regularly, the city actually maintains the stairs, including shoveling in winter. But some potential drawbacks are because of the home’s location, there is no street address (70 Lawton Steps is what goes on mail), no garage and only street parking available, the closest being at the top of the stairs along South Lawton Street.
That’s also where the mailbox is, though Amazon delivery drivers seem to always brave the steps to drop packages right at the front door. DoorDashers, however, often have a hard time finding the place.
But with an open floor plan and plenty of seating available in the courtyard, the home has been a host’s dream, Alton said.
