Curious Minnesota

Sandstone, Minn., is known today for rock climbing, ice climbing and whitewater rafting. But before it became an outdoor recreation destination, it was one of the Midwest's most important sandstone-producing...

Meat raffles are a beloved Minnesota bar tradition: Buy a ticket, watch the wheel spin, and maybe go home with steaks, brats or ground beef for dinner. But where did this unusual game of chance come from? In this...

Minnesota’s license plates proudly proclaim the state as the land of “10,000 lakes.” But some Wisconsinites insist their state has even more. So who’s right? In this Curious Minnesota episode, Erica Pearson dives into...

<p>A small white shack near the entrance to Interstate 94 has puzzled Minneapolis commuters for years. It's boarded up, rarely noticed, and easy to dismiss as an abandoned shed.</p> <p>But behind it lies a heartwarming...

<p>What happens when a fishing trip turns into a foraging question?</p> <p>Recording live at the Minnesota Star Tribune’s Strib Unbound Festival, Curious Minnesota investigates whether the weeds growing in Minnesota...

<p>In this episode, Curious Minnesota goes live, recording from the Strib Unbound festival at Theodore Wirth Park. Reporter Bob Timmons joins host Erica Pearson to explain why the number of Minnesota’s state parks...

<p>A pair of Ancient Egyptian mummies once were a main reason for visits to Minneapolis' Central Library. They were on display there from the 1880s to the 1980s. But where did they go when the library got out of the...

<p>When the Titanic went down 114 years ago this month, there were 35 Minnesotans on board. Sixteen of them survived, including newlyweds on their way back from a European honeymoon and a young Duluth woman traveling on...

<p>Back in the 1970s, a Canadian ice researcher developed a formula to determine how thick lake ice needed to be for logging trucks to drive across. It helps inform the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' ice...

<p>You’ve heard of Stonehenge in England ― but what about Minnesota’s own Basshenge? Reporter Alicia Eler shares its story with host Erica Pearson. The 2001 piece of public art celebrates an instrument — the double...

<p>The Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, the federal government headquarters for U.S. Immigration Court and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, isn’t part of Historic Fort Snelling, but it sits on a small...

<p>A special treat for Curious Listeners: Check out the latest episode of the Minnesota Star Tribune's newest podcast, Essential Minnesota. Even with the announcement that Operation Metro Surge is coming to an end, many...

<p>An abandoned Air Force station on Lookout Mountain above Lake Superior has become a ghost town. But during the Cold War, it was seen as a crucial spot to watch the skies in case of a Russian attack. Reporter Christa...

<p>“Wanted: A Few Good Women.” That’s how a 1994 Associated Press story about the west-central Minnesota town of Herman began. The tale of the town with 78 bachelors and fewer than a dozen unmarried women became an...

<p>The coldest day ever recorded in Minnesota was Feb. 2, 1996. Casey Darnell joins host Erica Pearson to talk about what happened when temperatures plunged to a record low of minus 60 in Tower, about 90 miles north of...