One More Minnesota Post

 This last August post is about some of the interesting historical sites we happened upon while geocaching to and from our E Family gathering in Minnesota earlier this month. 

Christdala Swedish Lutheran Church

built during the summer of 1878 at a cost of $230

interesting story about the Younger Gang and the beginning of the church

(you can click on the photo to enlarge it)

a fine crop of cattails

another pioneer family tragedy

(click any photo to enlarge it)

Finnish Pioneers in the Dassel & Cokato area

Temperance Corner

Monument at Temperance Corner

first Savu Sauna in MN, 1868

built and used by 3 Finnish families

Lee School at Temperance Corner

The first school house was built on this corner in 1891 for the area Finnish Families. It was destroyed in a fire in 1921 and another school was built that summer to replace the first school. That building was moved from this location but the Lee School, built in 1899 was donated and moved to this location. It was used until 1971. The original teacher's desk and the school bell from the original temperance Corner school was saved from the 1921 fire and are located in this school house.

Temperance Hall

The Temperance Society was formed in 1896 and this hall was built for the community at this location. The building served as a sporting hall hosting boxing, gymnastics and wrestling. It also hosted plays performed by locals and traveling troupes of actors. Temperance Hall also hosted musical events and lectures. It was a temporary school in 1921 when the original school building burned to the ground in the middle of the winter. The school also used it for their programs over the years. The Helping Hand Society met in the hall and offered assistance to Finland when Russia invaded Finland in 1939 and 1940, during the Winter War.

This log cabin was originally built in 1866 and sat on an 80 acre claim 1/2 mile west of this location. It was moved to Temperance Corner in the 1970s and changed from a granary to its original state as a pioneer log cabin. It was the first permanent cabin in the area.

Once again, we would not have known about the Finnish settlement and Temperance Corner if not for geocaching.

Mushroom Building

This unusual building was constructed in 1931 as a gas station, but it has also been a dentist office and a realtor's office. It was a gas station until 1934. One day a week during the summer, it hosts events and serves ice cream.

some beautiful flowers in somebody's yard

Minnehaha Falls

 The final stop for the E family was at Minnehaha Falls. This was a new location for most of us. The falls along the Mississippi River were vital to the tradesmen, soldiers, and farmers who settled in the area. A history of the Minnehaha Falls can be found here: Minnehaha Falls

We saw only a fraction of the park, mainly the falls.

The water drops 53 feet over limestone cliffs to the pool below.

a view from the bridge at the top of the falls

and a view from the pool below

The E family taking a break after completing their 10K+ steps (and stairs) after the morning and afternoon adventures. Time to think about the next E family destination for 2024.

Como Park Zoo

 The Conservatory was the main reason the E family went to Como Park, but I for one, am glad we added a walk through the Como Park Zoo. I asked McBe how it compared to his recent trip to the Omaha Zoo. His reply, "All the same animals, but on a much shorter walk!" Probably not ALL the same animals they may have seen in Omaha, but definitely a shorter walk! 

The first zoo in Saint Paul was started when in 1897, the city of St. Paul received a gift of three deer. Additional animals followed, when more room was needed to house the animals they were moved to facilities at Como Park. Como Zoo continued to grow through donations of animals and money.

The Art Deco Zoological Building was designed in 1936 by Charles Bassford as part of the federally funded Works Progress Administration. Other WPA structures were completed in the 1930s, including Monkey Island, barn and bear grotto.

In the 1980s several new exhibits were added as part of a major renovation project, including the Large Cat exhibit (1980), Aquatic Animal Building and conversion of Monkey Island to Seal Island (1982), the Primate Facility (1985), the Land and Water Bird exhibit (1986) and the African Hoofed Stock Facility (1987). A new Polar bear exhibit was finished in 2010. A new seal and sea lion exhibit with two pools was completed in 2021. The zoo opened a new exhibit in 2013 called Gorilla Forest. ~ Wikipedia

First, the bird pond with lots of noisy ducks and some flamingos.

Toby the Tortise has gotten many hand rubs over the years.

Then a visit to the penguins. It was so humid in the penguin and otter enclosure, I am surprised the photo turned out as well as it did, because the glass was super dirty, too.

This polar bear gave us his back side while trying to decide if he/she wanted to go in or stay out.

This polar bear was confined to an inside pen, in the AC area.

All the lions were sleeping or resting in their enclosure.

The leopard was another large cat on display in the Big Cat area.

The tiger was also all stretched out and resting in the late morning.

There were three or four giraffes in their enclosure. Their food was on a platform on the tree.

There was a viewing area and platform for humans to feed the giraffes. This one had enough human hands and posed so nicely near the fence.

One of several zebras looking for food on the ground.

The ostrich was so funny! It was catching flies or bugs by contorting his neck and opening his/her beak.

There was also a building for primates, a field for gorillas and another for orangutans.

There is also a daily Sparky otter show in the amphiteater that was very popular. This is just one of a handful of painted otters on display throughout the Como Park Zoo. 

Fiberglass sculpture of 'Sparky' the sea lion who performs entertaining shows at Como Zoo. Created by Third Street Studios in 1997 in celebration of the zoo's centennial. Located near the Sparky Amphitheater. ~ Wikipedia

There were many more visitors at the zoo than at the conservatory. I am surprised none of us were injured by the hundreds of strollers in the confines of the small buildings. But we all survived and enjoyed our walk-about the Como Park Zoo. Definitely more animals and better displays than our last visit 40-50 years ago!

The Conservatory of Como Park

 The E family also visited Como Park during our stay in Minneapolis. We spent time in the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory, exploring the many different areas and gardens.

On Sunday, November 7, 1915, Como Park Conservatory opened. For the first time, St. Paul’s annual exhibition of chrysanthemums was viewed in one location while Snyder’s Orchestra played for the visitors. The Holiday Flower Show and Spring Flower Show traditions began in 1925. In 1937, the Holiday Flower included a faux pipe organ installed in the Sunken Garden. 

The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory has two acres under glass with a number of different wings dedicated to a variety of plant life including bonsai trees, ferns, orchids and seasonal flowers. The Marjorie McNeely Conservatory also features many outdoor gardens. ~ Como Park Zoo and Conservatory

Our first visit was to the Tropical Encounters exhibit featuring plants and animals from Central and South America rainforests. This exhibit opened in November 2006.

Chloe, the sloth

part of her face

(photo by McBe)

flowers in the Sunken Garden addition

fountain in the Sunken Garden

also in the Sunken Garden room where flower shows happen

from the Orchid House or maybe in the North Garden

I think, also from the Orchid House

from the Fern Room

The Fern Room and Orchid House were opened in 2005.

fountain in the Fern Room

cacao beans

The North Garden housed plants and trees called economic plants. I considered the North Garden a display of spices. We saw a vanilla tree and a cinnamon tree and many other tropical grown spices.

the color caught my eye

interesting flowers

McBe wanted to see the Bonsai exhibit

We learned almost any thick stemmed plant could become a bonsai. It is the container or planter that make it a bonsai. Bonsai need shallow containers and careful pruning to become works of art.

We also visited the Charlotte Partridge Ordway Japanese Garden and watched the koi.

In Search of Bob Dylan

 From the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden we walked on the pedestrian bridge, the Irene Hixon Whitney Bridge (1987), designed by Siah Armajani, crossing Hennepin Avenue, connecting the sculpture garden to Loring Park.

another view of the Basilica from the pedestrian bridge

3-D billboard seen on our walk downtown

a mural, but not Bob Dylan

Lumber Exchange building across the street from our destination

old water tower on a roof also across the street 

This five-story tribute to Bob Dylan was created in the fall of 2015 as a private commission. It has become iconic to downtown Minneapolis and the Hennepin Theatre District. Eduardo Kobra, the mural artist, is a native of Brazil. While Dylan’s connections to Hennepin Avenue aren’t as well-known as his ties to the Dinkytown area of Minneapolis, Dylan and his brother once owned the Orpheum Theatre (today owned by the Hennepin Theatre Trust). In November 2014, the performer played a sold-out, three-night stand in the historic space.

since we were close, we stopped at Target Field

for photo ops

Sid Hartman and the grands

Prince Mural

Painted by muralist Hiero Veiga, the tribute to Prince stands 100 feet tall and is located downtown Minneapolis at First Avenue and 8th Street. It was unveiled June 2022.

for more about Prince in Minneapolis

see this blog post: Seeing Purple

The Basilica of Saint Mary is a Roman Catholic minor basilica located on its own city block along Hennepin Avenue between 16th and 17th Streets in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was the first basilica established in the United States. ~ Wikipedia

Emmanuel Masqueray, our architect, was born in France in 1861 and attended the "Ecole des Beaux Arts" of Paris. He was the chief architect and designer of the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. Archbishop Ireland met Masqueray at the Fair and was impressed with his work.

Archbishop Ireland invited Masqueray to Minnesota to collaborate on his grand plan to simultaneously build both the grand new cathedral in St. Paul and the Pro-Cathedral in Minneapolis. ~ Basilica of Saint Mary

Recognized as one of the finest examples of Beaux Arts architecture in the country, the Basilica of Saint Mary was constructed between 1907 and 1915. It was raised to the rank of minor basilica by Pope Pius XI in 1926 and was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. ~ The Basilica of Saint Mary

The story of Mary is depicted in the satined glass windows of the basilica. The final window is the rose window depicting the Coronation of Mary as the Queen of Heaven.

Chapel of Saint Therese of Lisieux

So I was curious as to the difference between a cathedral and a basilica. A cathedral is any church that is the “seat” of a bishop. There is one cathedral per diocese. A basilica is any church named highly important by the pope based on its historical or cultural importance, its art or beauty, its significance in the liturgical life of the Church or a variety of these attributes. ~ Google

Miss W did not believe me when I told her it was a sculpture of a homeless person sleeping on the bench. She got close and personal and touched the feet. The bench sculpture is at the front of the basilica.