#interstate 94

[petitepluiedemai]

Frank Gohlke

Landscape, Interstate 94, Minneapolis

1974

[chaddavisphotography]

Interstate 94 in Downtown Minneapolis.

[hclib]

"Pumpkin Joe" Greenstein

"There's something about this particular vegetable. They are like humans. No two of them are alike. They make you smile." - Joe Greenstein speaking to the Halloween Committee, 1964

If you were a child in north Minneapolis from the 1940s to 1960s, odds are you knew "Pumpkin Joe." Every October, Joe Greenstein, a neighborhood grocer, gave away thousands of free pumpkins to children from elementary and nursery schools on the northside. Greenstein invited students to his store (327 Plymouth Ave. N) at a special day and time to receive their pumpkins and celebrate the Halloween season.

In 1961, Pumpkin Joe became Alderman Greenstein, when he was elected to the Minneapolis city council. Despite his new position, Greenstein continued his traditional pumpkin giveaway. In 1962 alone, Pumpkin Joe distributed roughly 14,000 pumpkins. As chairman of the Minneapolis Halloween Committee in 1964, Greenstein even suggested a free pumpkin day for children citywide. In news coverage and election materials, the alderman was often still referred to as "Pumpkin Joe."

Joe Greenstein's store was demolished for the construction of I-94 in the mid-1960s. He hosted his last pumpkin giveaway in 1965. Following in Greenstein's footsteps, the Northside Roaring Lions will be holding a Pumpkin Giveaway and celebration for the north Minneapolis community at Cub Foods (701 W. Broadway Ave.) on Saturday, October 23, 2021, 10 a.m - 3 p.m.

Photos from the Star Tribune Photographs archival collection (M/A 0332). Campaign brochure from the Minneapolis and Hennepin County Vertical Subject Files.

[garrettfuckingkoval]

Made it home last weekend. What should have been a 35-38 hour drive turned into 45+ hours. Got stuck driving through that massive winter storm that passed through the Midwest. For 8-10 hours we were stuck in single file traffic, doing 25-35 mph through most of Minnesota, and Wisconsin. We must have passed 50+ semi trucks off the road, and tons of cars. Lucky for us eastbound traffic on 94 stayed moving. Never again will I race, drive through a winter storm of that size in its entirety.

[gemini-mama]

Tuesday's snow caused a lot of traffic issues, including this one less than 2 miles from my home.

Source

[chaddavisphotography]

This view looks across the residential neighborhoods bordering Interstate 94 in Minneapolis, an area shaped heavily by mid-20th-century highway construction. When I-94 was built between the 1950s and early 1970s, it cut through several established communities—including parts of Cedar-Riverside, Seward, and Phillips—reshaping street grids, housing patterns, and long-standing cultural districts. The snow-covered homes clustered above the highway reflect a mix of older housing stock and later infill development that emerged after the corridor was completed. The elevated ramps and interchanges shown here connect local streets to one of the region’s primary east–west routes, linking downtown Minneapolis with St. Paul and the wider interstate system.

[dmlphoto]

I94 merge - Taken with my first DSLR camera ~2003-2004, this picture captures a textbook merge from I35 south to I94 east via the East 7th street bridge.

[dmlphoto]

Oversized Load