Curious Minnesota

Any list of the most famous Minnesotans who ever lived should include Charles Lindbergh, who became a worldwide celebrity when he completed the first nonstop flight from New York to Paris in 1927. But Lindbergh's controversial statements and actions in the years preceding Pearl Harbor have become an enduring aspect of his legacy. The Star Tribune's Kevin Duchschere joins the show to discuss Lindbe...

Some people believe that the battle of Gettysburg would have ended differently had it not been for the heroism of the First Minnesota Volunteer Infantry regiment. Their sacrifice in 1863 is a landmark event from Minnesota's early history as a state. Readers wanted to know why it isn't better remembered today. The Star Tribune's Kevin Duchschere joins the show to discuss the battle and the First Mi...

While "Fargo" is undoubtedly the most famous movie filmed in Minnesota, it was far from the first. Star Tribune movie critic Chris Hewitt talks with host Ash Miller about the film "Free Air," which shot in Minnesota during the early 1920s. It is a film that -- quite possibly -- no living person has ever actually seen. What was the first movie filmed in Minnesota?  (December 2021 Curious Minnesota...

Nicollet Island is arguably the most unusual park in a city known for its parks. Located beside downtown Minneapolis, it is an oasis of green space in the heart of the urban core. It was once home to some of the city's most prominent industrialists, as well as factories powered by the Mississippi River. But it has undergone a major transformation in roughly the last half century. Chris and Rushika...

What do a medieval French prince and an 1800s Minnesota sawmill owner have in common? They're both key figures in the wild story of how the city of St. Cloud got its name. The Star Tribune's St. Cloud reporter Jenny Berg joins host Ash Miller to share the tale and talk about the series of equally strange events that followed. LINKS: How did St. Cloud get its name? (July 2021 Curious Minnesota arti...

Generating electricity and getting it to houses and businesses across Minnesota is a round-the-clock effort that is easy to take for granted. Star Tribune energy reporter Mike Hughlett joins host Eric Roper to discuss where Minnesota's power comes from, how it's distributed and who oversees our regional power grid. LINKS: Where does Twin Cities electricity come from and how is it delivered to home...

The Minnesota accent is ubiquitous in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. But where does it come from? Keely Wolter, a Richfield-based accent and dialogue coach, joins the Star Tribune's Hannah Sayle and Rachel Hutton to discuss the accent's origins and what defines this uniquely Minnesotan way of speaking. LINKS: Why do Minnesotans have accents? (Nov. 2021 Curious Minnesota article)

Considered one of the most corrupt cities in America during Prohibition, St. Paul's historical relationship with gangsters was rooted in an agreement between the police department and the criminals of the city: As long as you commit your crimes somewhere else, you're welcome to hide out in St. Paul. Ash Miller and James Walsh talk about how this agreement affected the city, from its crime rates to...

Minneapolis' "Mill City" nickname traces its roots to a 50-year period when the city's flour milling dominated the world market. But that came to an end in 1930, when the city lost its crown to Buffalo, N.Y. Eric Roper and Hannah Sayle discuss how Minneapolis rose to prominence as a flour milling capital, and the many factors that led to the decline of flour milling on the riverfront. LINKS: Why d...

Last fall, Curious Minnesota listeners voted on their favorite questions submitted by people stopping by the Star Tribune's booth at the State Fair. There was a three-way tie for the top question. Those winning questions were: "What is the oldest building in Minnesota?" "How did the Northwest Angle come about?" and "How big does a body of water need to be to qualify as a lake?" Reporter Katy Read...

The Jolly Green Giant has moved on from Minnesota. His legacy, however, lives on in the form of an iconic Minnesota River Valley billboard. Reporter Brooks Johnson joins Ash Miller to talk about the history of the Green Giant brand and what the billboard means for those Minnesotans who drive by it every day. LINKS: The Jolly Green Giant has moved on from Minnesota. So who is maintaining his iconic...

The wildfires of 1894 and 1918 remain two of the worst natural disasters in Minnesota history, more than a century after destroying entire towns in the northern portion of the state. These rapidly moving blazes claimed more than 900 victims. What caused them to spread so quickly? Could it happen again? Hannah Sayle and Duluth reporter Jana Hollingsworth discuss the circumstances that led to these...

Indigenous people have been living in the area that became Minnesota since ancient times. Anton Treuer, professor of Objiwe at Bemidji State University, joins the podcast to discuss the Native Americans who inhabited the state prior to European settlement -- and their tribal affiliations. LINKS: Which Indigenous tribes first called Minnesota home?

Star Tribune reader Sharon Carlson joins the podcast to discuss her questions that have been answered by Curious Minnesota. Eight of Carlson's questions, linked below, have appeared in the column. How did St. Cloud get its name? It's a strange story Are Minnesota's day-care costs really the highest in the nation? Why does Minnesota have one of highest rates of volunteering in the country? Why is M...

Streetcars were a defining feature of what it meant to live in Minneapolis and St. Paul in the early 20th Century. The elimination of the streetcar system in the 1950s, in favor of buses, dramatically reshaped life in the Twin Cities. A number of unusual characters played a role in that switch -- several of whom went to prison. Hannah Sayle and Eric Roper discuss organized crime's impact on Twin C...

Minnesota is home to one of the most prominent roadway testing facilities in the nation, known as MnROAD. Researchers there study how different pavement types hold up amid real-world traffic on Interstate 94 and Minnesota's extreme weather. Audience Producer Ash Miller joined the podcast to discuss how MnROAD is helping engineers around the country design better roads. LINKS: Why a slice of I-94 w...

St. Anthony Falls has long been one of Minneapolis' top attractions. But the endurance of the falls is due to some complex infrastructure designed to halt erosion. A key component of that infrastructure is a hidden wall -- buried beneath the river -- that has protected the falls for roughly 145 years. Little is known about the wall's condition, however. River historian John Anfinson believes there...

The next generation of cellular technology, known as 5G, will bring much faster speeds. But the rollout of 5G has been accompanied by a litany of new cellular antenna poles in some neighborhoods, particularly in Minneapolis. Eric Roper and Ash Miller discussed the evolution of cellular technology and the reason for all the new antennas. LINKS: Why is there a new cellular pole in my Minneapolis nei...

We asked fairgoers to tell us what they want to know about Minnesota during Curious Minnesota Day at the Star Tribune's State Fair building on August 28. Today's episode features recordings of many of the people who submitted questions. Click the link below to vote for your favorite! Vote for your favorite question here (or by e-mailing Curious@StarTribune.com) See photos and video of the event (I...

The arrival of vaccines earlier this year offered a glimmer of hope that the COVID-19 pandemic was nearing an end. But the emergence of the delta variant has dampened some of that optimism. The Star Tribune solicited reader questions about this new phase of the pandemic. Pulitzer Prize-winning health reporters Glenn Howatt and Jeremy Olson discussed the answers in their third appearance on the pod...

It has been roughly a century since planes began flying at what is now Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, which has evolved from a bankrupt racetrack to an acclaimed travel hub. Transportation reporter Janet Moore joins the podcast to discuss the airport's long history. LINKS: From bankrupt racetrack to aviation hub — what remains from MSP Airport's early days? (May 2021 Curious Minnesota...

The monthly Wednesday tornado siren test, a Minnesota tradition, traces its origins back to 1950s fears of a Soviet atomic bomb attack. Writer Dave Kenney, who has researched Civil Defense in Minnesota, discusses how Minnesotans responded to an evolving international threat during the Cold War. LINKS: Why does Minnesota test tornado sirens on the first Wednesday of the month? (April 2021 Curious M...

Fears of a Soviet attack during the 1950s spurred the federal government to install four missile sites around the Twin Cities. The "Nike-Hercules" nuclear warheads stored in those bunkers stood ready to take down Soviet bombers headed for the Twin Cities. Curious Minnesota host Eric Roper discusses the topic with reporter Michelle Griffith, a former Star Tribune intern who now works at the Fargo F...

The source of the Mississippi was a consequential mystery after the Revolutionary War. It remains hotly debated in some circles today. Connie Cox, the lead interpretive naturalist at Itasca State Park, discusses the history and science behind this issue with host Eric Roper. LINKS: Is Minnesota’s tiny Lake Itasca the true source of the Mississippi River? Could the Mississippi River actually begin...

The Great Northern Depot on Hennepin Avenue was a de facto welcome mat for Minneapolis for many years. Along with the Milwaukee Road Depot, it was the primary place people arrived in the city. So why was Great Northern torn down in 1978, while the Milwaukee Road Depot survived? Rail historian Aaron Isaacs joins host Eric Roper to discuss the history of the Depot and the decline of passenger rail t...