Latest Bay Area Historical Society Stories

By Rob, Dan, and Eric Moschet Frank Moschet and his wife Shirley were natives of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and for many years before moving to Minnesota had enjoyed skiing on the slopes of Pine Mountain, in Iron Mountain Michigan. After moving to Silver Bay in 1955, Frank helped to build a small ski hill and […]

By Guest Contributor: Faith Rockford Nothing brings people together quite like food. We share stories over a meal with good company. A connection is made between people when someone says, “This is delicious! Can I have the recipe?”. This is a wonderful way to connect and spark community. In Silver Bay, MN, cookbooks have done […]

I did not experience having LaJean Firminhac as a teacher in my youth, but her legacy in our small community continues and it was a joy for me to get to know her as an adult. She has led a very full life and has impacted many in her pursuit of making positive changes for […]

Building of the Golf Course is Underway!As noted in Part 1 of this series, the location selected for the course was 1-1/2 miles SW of town, on the Betzler farm. Silver Bay resident George Starkovich recalled (for “Company Town” editor Kent Kaiser) walking the land with his dad before the work began on building the […]

Silver Bay Golf Course Clubhouse Silver Bay Golf Course and Country Club OPENS! Private or Public?After years of planning, designing and building, the golf course and clubhouse opened in June 1959. Play seemed to have begun without evidence of fanfare or a grand opening celebration. The first printed golf news found, to indicate that the […]

Opening play and Golfers 1957-1969In June of 1959 the golf course opened and member golfers quickly established leagues and tournaments. Men’s League tee-off times were set for Thursdays, with Wednesday designated for Women’s League play. Both schedules remain the same today. Women’s tee-off times were listed in the Silver Bay News each week in the […]

Meet the Driven Dynamo‘A superintendent, general manager, terrific golfer and champion curler. Meet Silver Bay Golf Course’s Norma O’Leary. Dubbed as the Driven Dynamo by the golf industry.’– Golf Course Industry, March 2019. In the spring of 1990 Norma O’Leary was hired as the golf course superintendent and club manager. So what makes Norma a […]

Besides providing a great golf course, the Silver Bay Golf and Country Club has supported their community. From off-season use of the course to hosting events throughout the years, the course has become an integral part of the community. Off-season events we found record of: The Duluth Herald announced in October 1964 that the Mariner […]

The Silver Bay Public Library and the Bay Area Historical Society have begun a project to merge the physical newspapers in their possession (to get as complete a set as possible) and to loan them to the Minnesota Historical Society in St Paul for scanning. The goal is to eventually have all issues of all […]

Meet Merlon Mayrand, the Postcard Guy! If you visit historical societies and gift shops up and down the North Shore, you will find postcards for sale with photos taken by Merlon. Now a resident of Silver Bay, Merlon spent many years photographing iconic scenes along the shore and inland. Merlon’s photography started out as a […]

The Twin City Postcard Club (www.twincitypostcardclub.com) produces a newsletter every 2 months. Their March/April 2023 issue featured WKS graduate Jane Lee and her collected postcards of Silver Bay. Enjoy! View the Newsletter Here!

Jerry Kern, a Silver Bay resident on Burk Drive, answered our questions one recent morning about the town’s original water tower that used to sit up the hill from his house. Jerry was away at the time, but a friend who was vacationing at his home, captured the event in pictures and even drew a […]

Do you remember this event in Silver Bay history? On January 6, 1961 a train locomotive and several loaded ore cars derailed and hung over the rock cliff above Outer Drive in Silver Bay. Traffic was rerouted off Outer Drive during part of the day until the locomotive could be secured. These were big happenings […]

The Dari-Delite building at 1040 Main Street in Beaver Bay had been vacant for 2 years when Gary Zinter, chemistry teacher at William M. Kelley High School in Silver Bay, purchased it and renamed it the Rapid Serv Drive-In. He installed a new glass and fiberglass entry, all new equipment, stainless-steel counters and was ready […]

These aerial photos of the Village of Silver Bay during its construction are 2 of many that appear in a slide show at the Bay Area Historical Society building. Visit us to see the rest of them! We are also showcasing many promotional items from Silver Bay businesses past and present. We are open Tuesdays […]

Jessie C. Davis, in her book titled “Beaver Bay, Original North Shore Village”, begins as follows: “During the more than 100 years of the settlement at Minnesota’s Beaver River on Lake Superior’s North Shore, thousands of people have passed by and many of them have stopped. The earliest came on the waters of the Lake […]

Do you remember this restaurant? Send us a message! From 1955-1963, Ray and Lillian Nurkka owned and operated the Dari-Delite located on Highway 61 in Beaver Bay. Open only in the summer, the Nurkka’s employed their children to give them work experience. Click to view full size