Superior Street 1963/2023 - Part Two: Change

Superior Street 1963/2023 – Part Two: Change

Matthew James Dec 06, 2023 2 Comments

The Providence Building, 332 West Superior Street, 11:11 a.m.

The first post in this series looked at locations along Superior Street that have gone largely unchanged over the past 60 years. This set of 10 photos looks at locations where the difference between 1963 and 2023 are a bit more evident. In some cases, that is because of major developments like the Gateway Renewal Program, the Holiday Center, the Skywalk system or the I-35 extension. In other instances, it is simply because at some point the building acquired a new façade.

Even within all of this change, there is still some continuity. On the 300 West block of Superior Street, a pair of buildings with new exteriors still have two of the same businesses occupying their interiors: Security Jewelers and Ed Barbo’s Columbia Clothing. The remodel of the Providence Building, shown above, makes it barely recognizable and yet for at least 60 years those walking down Superior Street can know the time from a digital clock fixed to the same point of the exterior. And even when the buildings are gone entirely, some continuity with 1963 can sometimes still be found. The ornate facade of the Lyric Theater is long gone but its name remains in the form of the Lyric Kitchen Bar. The Depot, a part of its roof sticking up behind a row of buildings in 1963, becomes visible through the complimentary design of the Duluth Public Library.

20-12 East Superior Street