Touristing the Iron Range

[dreamshark]

Since biking all day is just too strenuous, I'm contemplating a few tourist activities. Just think, of all the times I've been in Chisholm, I've never been to Iron World (not that I'd be willing to set foot in the Iron Range's premier family tourist attraction on Labor Day Weekend!) Unfortunately, the one sight I really would like to see is going to switch from a tourist attraction to its intended use the day after Labor Day - Hibbing High School. This may not be the world's most off-beat tourist attraction, but it's certainly well up there. This palatial building was constructed in 1920 by the mining companies as compensation for making the people of Hibbing move their entire town so the iron underneath it could be dug up (see Hull Rust Mine - the world's largest open pit mine). It is by all descriptions the most spectacularly out of place building on the planet. You have to realize that Hibbing was then (and to a large extent, still is) a dusty little mining town composed of small storefronts and shabby little houses. The entire town could have been not only moved but reconstructed ten times over for the amount that was spent to build this high school.. Yet, I spent a whole summer on the range in the early 70's and never even thought of touring this building. I was hanging out with actual Rangers who had gone to high school there and didn't think it was any big deal. In fact, they thought it was pretty funny that anybody would consider their dumb ol' high school a tourist attraction.

My favorite article on Hibbing High.. Now what DID we do with all those priceless works of art? Has anybody seen the bust of Sir Walter Scott? If so, please give the Hibbing Daily Tribune a call!

[Edited to add links to photo blog of the trip]
Day 1: Virginia and Mountain Iron
Day 2-3: McCarthy Beach
Day 2-3: Pictures
Day 4: Tower Soudan Mine
Day 5: Chisholm to Hibbing
More Day 5: Hull Rust Mine pics
Day 6: Chisholm to Buhl, Duluth and home

Comments

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

Hibbing High School -- I had no idea. Wow.

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

On the way to the Hull-Rust-Mahoning Mine overlook, you drive through the abandoned building-less townsite of old Hibbing. It would be a nice place to have a picnic.

K. [also, ask around about quarries to swim in!]

[dreamshark.livejournal.com]

Hee. I know about the quarries (actually referred to as ore pits in that neck of the woods). I used to know how to find the best one near Hibbing, but even if I remembered, that info is well out of date. I'm going to be wearing spontaneous swimming clothes of one kind or another under my bike clothes in case we run across one.

I notice that the town of Gilbert has rechristened one of its old ore pits "Lake Ore-be-Gone."