This postcard, published by the Duluth Photo Engraving Company, was mailed 100 years ago today — Aug. 30, 1924. It shows the Great Northern Power Company Dam, now known as the Thomson Dam and operated by Minnesota Power.
For a tad more than 21 years, Perfect Duluth Day has depended heavily on unpaid labor. Though multiple independent contractors receive paychecks for their contributions to the website, the amount of work that goes out has always greatly exceeded the amount of dollars that come in. That’s why we occasionally toss up a post to remind everyone that PDD can always be better or worse based on cash flow, so donations are a big help.
This undated postcard, published by Zenith Interstate News Company, shows coal docks in the Duluth Harbor. There is no caption on the back identifying the name of the docks, and the image is an illustration that might not exactly depict reality, but it is likely meant to represent the Clarkson Coal & Dock Company.
Imagine waking up in the middle of the night to discover a pillow is being pushed down over your face. Just like in the movies. How would you react?
Well, perhaps you can learn from me. I recently woke up to find myself being smothered, and I survived. How I escaped is less interesting than what went through my head in the first three seconds.
The human brain can perform quickly in these situations. It can sort through dozens of scenarios instantly. This is partly because our thoughts can be morbid at times, leading us to plan ahead for how to respond to things that are very unlikely to happen. We are also influenced by movies, television, books and other forms of storytelling that warn us there really are people who, randomly or premeditatedly, are stabbed, shot, strangled or otherwise rubbed out. If it happened to them, it can happen to you, right?
Being suffocated by someone pushing a pillow into your face should rank pretty low on the list of ways you might think you could be killed, even though it’s something that frequently happens on TV. It just seems so stupid. Why would someone planning a murder choose such a potentially flawed option? And why would anyone acting impulsively choose a pillow as the best available murder weapon? Are there really no blunt objects in the room? Is it really possible in the United States of America to enter a bedroom without passing a gun rack or a kitchen with a vast array of knives? Or is the murderer really limited to seeking out an extra pillow, decorative and fluffy, near the one under the head of the victim?
From G. E. Sackett’s Owl Studio at 6 E. Superior St. in Duluth circa 1915 comes this photo of two unknown men.
This postcard, circa perhaps 1910, shows the western side of Downtown Duluth and the city’s hillside, with the caption “$5,000,000 Water Power.” Though the card doesn’t make it clear what that means, the logical guess is it refers to Duluth’s investment in hydraulic power at the start of the 20th century.
You’ve probably noticed most things are more expensive these days. But reading Perfect Duluth Day is just as free as it has always been.
Keeping Duluth’s Duluthiest website running with new content every day, however, comes with a price tag. That’s why we occasionally toss up a post like this one to remind everyone that PDD can always be better or worse based on cash flow, so donations are a big help.
This postcard was mailed 110 years ago today — July 22, 1914. It shows Duluth’s Incline Railway, which operated from 1891 to 1939. The tram system carried passengers from a housing development at the top of the hillside into the downtown along Seventh Avenue West.
This postcard was mailed 110 years ago today — July 18, 1914. It shows a scene along Tischer Creek in Congdon Park.
The photo of a painting above comes to Perfect Duluth Day via Dean M. Brickson, who wondered why there was no information online about the artist J. W. Perry.
This undated postcard from Kreiman’s Lyceum News & Book Store sports an illustration of Park Point in the vicinity of South Tenth Street, referred to as “Tenth Ave.” on the front of the card. The 72-degree temperature is cited as proof Duluth is “the air-conditioned city.”
For sale on eBay under the header “RPPC Duluth Minnesota Melancholy Mother with Children Real Photo Postcard c1910” is this photo of a rather unenthusiastic-looking foursome. The postcard is from the Owl Studio in Duluth.
Duluth’s Duluthiest website was launched 21 years ago today. Join us for a party on the beach at Park Point at 5 p.m. as the Park Point Art Fair wraps up.
This undated postcard from the V. O. Hammon Publishing Company shows Duluth’s Aerial Bridge circa 1905 to 1929, when a ferry car transferred people across the shipping canal.
On Saturday, June 29, Perfect Duluth Day will be 21 years old. Because the anniversary falls on a day loaded with events, we’ve decided to loosely piggyback on one of them and hold our little birthday party on Park Point Beach as the Park Point Art Fair wraps up. We hope you’ll join us.
