A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 1274
My granddaughter was recently sitting on my lap and asked, "Why do you have such hairy knuckles, Grandpa?" Kind of a personal question, but it made me pause and think. My dad had hairy knuckles. The hair even curled. To my eyes, he always had big, strong hands. He died 40 years ago, when I was 29. My dad, for most of his working life, was a car mechanic and gas station owner. When not at work, he was putzing around in his four-stall garage. He could fix almost anything: cars, plumbing,... Full story
The Moose Lake Library used book sale is 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, June 14 and Saturday, June 15 at the Riverside Ice Arena. It's part of the 2024 library's vendor and craft fair, and the book sale proceeds will go toward helping the library continue to serve the community. The Finnish Luncheon is at noon on June 18 at the Kettle River senior center. You don't have to be Finnish to attend, so come and enjoy some good food, time to visit with friends and maybe win a prize. The Kantela Players... Full story
Kerry Rodd [email protected] Carlton County was well-represented last weekend at the Class A Minnesota State High School League's boys and girls track and field state meet at St. Michael-Albertville High School. While there was no state champion from the area this season, a number of athletes made the finals and medaled for being in the top 10 places. Barnum's Annaka Bogenholm had the best state meet of all area athletes by finishing third in the discus in Class A and seventh in the shot... Full story
Dwight Cadwell [email protected] Making their third trip to the Minnesota State High School League state girls softball tournament last week, the Rebels were hoping to make a run at the state title after being close the previous two years. Those hopes were dashed in the state quarterfinals by Russell-Tyler- Ruthton. In their first-ever state tournament appearance, the Knights shut down the Rebels in a 10-0 10-run victory last Wednesday night in Mankato. RTR scored four runs in the bottom... Full story
FRIDAY, JUNE 14 Moose Lake Public Library book sale and vendor and craft sale 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Riverside Arena, 20 Earl Ellens Dr., Moose Lake. Also 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 15. Community Chess Club 3-4:30 p.m. Fridays through the month, Cloquet Public Library. The Tri-Community Food Shelf is open 3-5:30 p.m. Fridays, 5597 Highway 210, Cromwell. Serving Cromwell, Tamarack and Wright residents. “Who Gives a Hoot?” 7-7:30 p.m., Jay Cooke State Park. Meet at the River Inn Visitor Center for this program on how nature built a better mou... Full story
The candidate filing period for political races subject to a primary election ended on Tuesday, yielding a ballot with more than a few surprises. In Cloquet, councilors Lara Wilkinson, Iris Keller, Kerry Kolodge and Lyz Jaakola will all run unopposed, barring a write-in campaign mounted against any of them, on the Nov. 5 ballot. In Carlton County, the commissioners’ races are a tale of three different outcomes. To replace outgoing Dick Brenner in District 1, representing west Cloquet, Scanlon and Sawyer, Sarah Plante Buhs and Caleb Dunlap will...
David Clanaugh, director of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees Local 1701 union, talked with a group gathered Sunday at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center. It was a rally to raise awareness about work conditions at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program facility in Moose Lake. Clanaugh said there is "serious workplace staffing, retention, and safety issues" at the facility, where he coordinates volunteer service. The rally included delegates and some officeholders from the M... Full story
The Minnesota Fishing Challenge is one of the largest fundraisers supporting the work of Minnesota Adult & Teen Challenge, helping people break free from the chains of addiction and restoring broken families. Top fundraisers Stu Nelson and Rich Brummer of Cloquet are passionate about restoring the lives of people who feel enslaved by drugs and alcohol, and brought in $102,000. In all, 14 of the teams raised at least $10,000. Anglers set another annual record by raising more than $611,000. The cu... Full story
I was able to attend the Floodwood’s graduation on May 31. This class has been very special to me, as I have subbed for them since kindergarten. When you are a substitute teacher, you follow them all the way through their school years, and many of them become special friends. I’d like to share the following poem with them and all our area seniors: To the Class of 2024: I’m glad I was your teacher, and I will miss you so. I can’t believe the end is here. I hate to let you go. Remember all the...
Oh, glorious summer in Minnesota, we hail thee. Sunny days with blue skies and so much green. Summer rains. Pinehurst Park will soon be brightly lit at night with summer softball leagues, and the swimming pond is full and opens its doors next week. Whitewater rafting has plenty of water to ride in the St. Louis River, which is high and impressive, but not threatening (yet). The drought is no more in Carlton County and most of the state, a happy change. The farmers market is open again, mini golf opens soon and folks are firing up their grills... Full story
A huge five-run inning by Duluth Marshall Wednesday, June 5, saw the Hilltoppers topple defending state champion Esko 9-0 in the semifinal round of the double-elimination tournament at Wade Stadium in Duluth. But the season wasn't over yet. Esko needed to crawl back via the Section 7AA elimination bracket later on Wednesday, defeating Proctor to get another shot at the Hilltoppers. They would have to beat Marshall twice Thursday to advance once again to the state tournament next week in St.... Full story
Section 7A is one of the largest sections in the state for track, with 22 teams with boys and girls competing to qualify individually for the week's state track meet. A plethora of Carlton County talent was headed south to St. Michael Thursday through Saturday after the May 30 section meet at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Esko won top honors in both the boys and girls divisions with the Esko girls narrowly squeaking by Two Harbors by a point and the Esko boys with an easy victory over the... Full story
Team makes third straight appearance Dwight Cadwell [email protected] The third time may be the charm for the Moose Lake/Willow River girls softball team as the team captured its third straight section 7A title and advanced to the state girls softball tournament in Mankato this week, June 5-7. The Rebels season was different from the past two seasons. "We may have flown under the radar some as we played a tough schedule and had more losses than people were accustomed to," head coach Kelly... Full story
Congratulations to all the 2024 graduates in the area. Good luck and best wishes in your future endeavors. Let the graduation parties begin. This is the time for families to celebrate and honor their graduates’ accomplishments. Mark your calendars, this year’s Carlton Daze will be held July 26-28. More to come in the next Carlton Happenings column. Carlton Community CleanUp was held May 17. Despite the rainy and damp weather, 121 students and 13 staff braved the elements to rake 10 yards and...
Chad Richard Timonen, 43, of Apple Valley, Minnesota, passed away at Fairview Ridges Hospital on March 28, 2024, with his family by his side. Chad was born June 14, 1980, at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, and was raised in Beaver Township. He graduated from Moose Lake High School in 1998. Chad worked in various industries, including farming, the railroad, truck driving, logging, over-the-road heavy haul, driving tow trucks and, most recently, for Castle Rock Contracting &... Full story
Since the chaotic end to the 2024 legislative session on May 19, folks back at home have been trying to figure out exactly what it all means. Local ambulance services expect to see some of the short-term emergency aid for rural EMS, but exactly how much is still uncertain. Steve Risacher, who serves on the board for the Cromwell-Wright Area Fire District, said they’re pleased something passed, but they still don’t know what it involves for the ambulance service there. How to gain access to it, and what it’s going to be used for, is still pendi...
The filing period for elected offices closes Tuesday, and there were some notable additions throughout the past week. Sarah Plante Buhs filed to run for Carlton County board, seeking the District 1 post being vacated by Dick Brenner after 32 years in the seat. Buhs is currently a member of the Cloquet school board, and is executive director of the United Way of Carlton County. The District 1 seat represents west Cloquet, Scanlon and Sawyer. For Cloquet City Council, incumbent Lara Wilkinson filed to return in the at-large council seat. The...
The window to run for public office closes at the end of the business day on Tuesday, when the two-week candidate filing season comes to a close. Running for local office is a big decision. A proper campaign to introduce or refamiliarize oneself with voters takes both time and fundraising for things like lawn signs. An election victory means modest or scant compensation in most cases, and comes with loads of responsibility. It requires the office holder to study and be informed on matters, and spend oodles of time in meetings and visiting with... Full story
Esko teams dominated the Section 7A south subsection meet last Thursday in Crosby-Ironton as 12 boys teams and 11 girls teams hit the track with hopes of moving athletes on to the Section 7A finals Thursday in Duluth. Esko won the boys title with 135 points while Barnum and Crosby-Ironton tied for second with 92 points. Moose Lake/Willow River was fourth and Carlton/Wrenshall placed fifth. The Esko girls had 141 points and took top honors. Crosby-Ironton and Two Harbors tied for second with 97... Full story
At the start of the fourth quarter of the school year, Wrenshall English teacher Joel Swanson drew a 13-foot line on the classroom whiteboard, representing the lives of this year's seniors from kindergarten through senior year. Both Wrenshall valedictorians Jack Riley and Lexis Swanson spoke about it in their commencement speeches Friday afternoon. "He marked out the last three inches of that 13 feet - the time we had remaining as students here. He told us not to take those three inches for... Full story
Moose Lake/Willow River is the only local team left as the Section 7 girls softball tournaments are winding down to state tournament time. After beating Cherry in a semifinal Tuesday, the Rebels advanced to the Section 7A championship for the third consecutive season. ML/WR opened the section tournament May 23 in Grand Rapids with an 8-0 victory over North Woods following a bye in the opening round of the playoffs. After the win over the Grizzlies, the Rebels topped Ely, 5-1. ML/WR had defeated... Full story
The Section 7 boys baseball playoffs got into full swing Tuesday. Lots of local eyes were focused on defending Class AA state champion Esko as they opened 7AA play with victories over Two Harbors and Greenway-Nashwauk/Keewatin (GNK), scoring 25 runs in two shutout victories. Esko rolled through the regular season, dropping only two contests: one to section rival Duluth Marshall and the other to Grand Rapids. Jackson Peterson stuck out six batters in the 12-0 win over the Agates. Jamis Halverson... Full story
The Barnum Area Community Club announced this week that Bill and Irene McKay from Mahtowa are the grant marshals for the Spring Fever Days parade on June 8. Bill and Irene moved to Mahtowa when a hobby farm with acreage became available. The couple raised five daughters - Jenny, Amy, Heidi, Colleen, and Maurita - and now 10 grandchildren come to visit often. Bill has held jobs at Diamond Tool, USG, Inter-Faith Care Center, and ended his career when he retired from Mercy Hospital in Moose Lake. I...
Chad Richard Timonen, 43, of Apple Valley, Minnesota, passed away at Fairview Ridges Hospital on March 28, 2024, with his family by his side. Chad was born June 14, 1980, at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, and was raised in Beaver Township. He graduated from Moose Lake High School in 1998. Chad worked in various industries, including farming, the railroad, truck driving, logging, over-the-road heavy haul, driving tow trucks and, most recently, for Castle Rock Contracting and... Full story
Observed on the last Monday of May, Memorial Day was originally set aside to honor the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. Many Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting and decorating cemetery graves or holding family gatherings. Unofficially, it marks the beginning of the summer season. Local honor guard members and other veterans groups treat Memorial Day — and their stops at various cemeteries — as a sacred duty. Cloquet Combined Honor Guard Captain Rich Chassé said... Full story
