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A Loon’s purview of Minnesota history…and how “North” came to be:

Historical: Minnesota became the 32nd State of the Union on May 11, 1858. A small extension of the northern boundary makes it the most “northerly” of the 48 contiguous United States. (This peculiar protrusion is the result of a boundary agreement with Great Britain before the area had been carefully surveyed.)  Minnesota is bounded by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north, by Lake Superior and Wisconsin to the east, by Iowa to the south and South Dakota and North Dakota to the west.

Contemporary: The moniker, “North”, description is an interesting confluence of recent history. I read an original article by Tim Gihring in 2014, shortly after returning to my native Minnesota from living in NYC. (The article was followed up in 2018 by the writer). Gihring was perhaps considered the author of  the “North” inception. My initial curiosity was sparked in the use of “North”, and the author observed how the machinations of “North” evolved; advertised in tag lines and marketed for public consumption.

This is how and why doitinnorth.com came to light.  As I watched, listened to the disparate definitions and uses of “North”, I could not gather a substantive or definitive answer, as to what it meant or where to go to find this “North” expression. So here, a home site has been created for “North” with doitinnorth.com, combining the unique history and crafted cultures of Minnesota by sharing for us the insiders and the out-of-towners looking in, with selections of curated Minnesota events/locations, style/mode, art/design, people/places, shop/share, eat/drink.

Join/Subscribe to learn, experience and share more of our “North”.

Date of Statehood: May 11, 1858

Capital: St. Paul

Population: 5.7 million (2021)

Size: 86,935 square miles

Nickname(s): Land of 10,000 Lakes; North Star State; Gopher State

Motto: L’Étoile du Nord (“Star of the North”)

Tree: Red Pine

Flower: Pink and White Lady Slipper

Bird: Common Loon

 

creative/content curator: gregg tusler  

contact: info@doitinnorth

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