Advertise on podcast: Curious Minnesota

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 Lawler talks with host Erica Pearson about the station and Minnesota's once-secret Cold War history.

“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 international media sensation. Jenny Berg caught up with some of those erstwhile eligible bachelor farmers and shares their stories with host Erica Pearson.

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 Duluth.

Southdale in Edina became the first fully enclosed shopping mall in the world when it opened in 1956.  Its architect had a vision to thwart the cold and create an indoor town square where it was always 75 degrees. Southdale spawned thousands of suburban shopping malls across the country, shaping an era of American life. Host Erica Pearson makes a visit.

Hubert Humphrey was Minneapolis' mayor before he headed to the U.S. Senate and White House. Reporter Eleanor Hildebrandt talks with host Erica Pearson about how his time as mayor shaped the city.

Your phone rings. It’s a number you don’t recognize, but it’s a Minnesota area code. The caller ID location reads Norwood Young America. If you’ve gotten these spam calls, you’re not alone. Casey Darnell shares the likely story behind the calls with host Erica Pearson. Plus: Is Norwood Young America really home to Minnesota's oldest summer festival?

The Edmund Fitzgerald went down 50 years ago on Nov. 10, 1977. The ore carrier simply vanished from the surface of Lake Superior. It was an ominous ending — mysterious and tragic, too. Hundreds of other vessels have sunk in the big lake, and shipwreck hunters still work to find their watery resting places. Guest Christa Lawler shares some of Lake Superior's striking shipwreck stories with host Erica Pearson. Still curious? Read more at the Minnesota Star Tribune. To support Curious Minnesota and the important work of the Minnesota Star Tribune, subscribe today by visiting Startribune.com/WorthItToSubscribe. Stay up to date with the Star Tribune at @startribune on TikTok, Bluesky, X, Facebook, and Instagram.

At its peak, an estimated 35,000 rotting Minnesotans participated in the annual Zombie Pub Crawl, founded 20 years ago. The event grew large enough to set a world record for the largest amount of people dressed as zombies. Then the festival seemed to have its own apocalypse. Our guest is columnist Laura Yuen. Still curious? Read more at the Minnesota Star Tribune. To support Curious Minnesota and the important work of the Minnesota Star Tribune, subscribe today by visiting Startribune.com/WorthItToSubscribe. Stay up to date with the Star Tribune at @startribune on TikTok, Bluesky, X, Facebook, and Instagram.

Curious Minnesota goes on a bit of a bar crawl through history. We look into which of the state’s historic watering holes is really Minnesota’s oldest. The question is trickier than you might think.

For thousands of years, Native Americans have quarried a sacred, soft red rock from a patch of Minnesota prairie. The site is now Pipestone National Monument. Reporter Jp Lawrence joins host Erica Pearson to share the story of this special place.

Minnesota’s trout stamp, a special add-on to fishing licenses, brings in more than $1 million each year. The program funds fish hatcheries, restocking efforts and more. Reporter Anna Sago joins host Erica Pearson to share the history of the program and give a glimpse into what a day's work is like at a trout hatchery.

A scuplture called “The Scroll” once had a prominent spot in downtown Minneapolis. It stood in front of the old central library for more than 4 decades. Alicia Eler, the Minnesota Star Tribune's visual art reporter and critic, joins host Erica Pearson to tell the story of how the sculpture narrowly missed ending up in a scrap heap when the library building was demolished to make way for a new one.

Harmony, Minnesota is home to the largest Amish settlement in the state. The "Old Order" community is also one of the most conservative of its kind in the country. Reporter Sean Baker joins host Erica Pearson to explain why and when the Amish selected this sliver of southeast Minnesota to call home. 

Nearly 8,000 years ago, in the wild expanse of what is now southwestern Minnesota, a primal drama of survival unfolded. Early Plains Archaic hunters ambushed a herd of massive, now-extinct bison. Then, in 1988 a Granite Falls man found bones while digging in his pasture. Reporter Jp Lawrence joins host Erica Pearson to share what happened next and explain why archeologists left some of the site undisturbed.

In the summer of 1977, the leaders of a small Iron Range town made a rather bold announcement: Kinney, Minn., had seceded from the United States. The statement was tongue-in-cheek, but the town’s situation wasn’t funny. The story of the Republic of Kinney is one of dismissed town needs, a wacky, bar-born plan and the power of media attention. Reporter Christa Lawler joined host Erica Pearson to share Kinney's story.