They never taught us all about Governor Floyd B. Olson in school.
I believe their might be a brief mention of Minneapolis' favorite son and governor in that tired tome, "Minnesota, Star of the North", mostly about his untimely death due to cancer if I remember correctly. But bicycling through North Minneapolis nearly a half century ago I came across Governor Olson's namesake highway, and inquired of my elders how an actual named street, and named for a person at that, ended up amongst the blandness of the numbered street grid? I was referred to grandpa Shobe, the old Famer-Laborite who even by Hubert Humphrey the Senior's 3rd term in the senate hadn't fully made his peace with the Democrats.
Grandpa Shobe proceeded, with the assistance of Grandma on several points, to give me a several hour long thumbnail history of Governor Olson's' too short life and long list of accomplishments, the 1934 trucker's strike, the Farmer-Laborite Party, and even Humphrey's rump convention in the 1940s that still left a bad taste in Grandpa's mouth. From that day since I have appreciated, been fascinated by, and tried to continue the progressive struggle of my Farmer-Laborite forebears.
Such is the power of naming, that even an old tin hand embossed streetsign could so influence a life. And so recognized is the power of naming that most of the "Floyd B. Olson Memorial Highway" signs on his namesake highway have suspiciously disappeared during Republican governor's reigns. Thus while by statute the entire length of Minnesota Trunk Highway 55 is designated the "Floyd B. Olson Memorial Highway", it remains so marked only through Minneapolis and a few DFL leaning western counties of Minnesota. Reading the same statute I find Interstate 94 west to North Dakota so far undesignated, and with all due respect to the NoDaks, clearly an ideal freeway to nowhere to commerate failed President Ronald Reagan.
Mr.Reagan's remembrance having been disposed of, within our own city limits we have far too many streets designated only by numbers, lost opportunities to inspire and educate future generations by the power of naming. Granted we have some streets named already, but the names sound a little too English, with even Irish names being quite unrepresented on our streetsigns. So we have something like 50 or so numbered avenues north, around 60 streets south, and about 40 avenues south eligible for renaming. We also have a city sign shop quite capable of turning out high tech streetsigns that the WPA workers who built the Floyd B. Olson Memorial Highway could only dream of- big multicolored signs with portraits and urls that point kids to more history on the web.
And surely we have heros enough to name every numbered street in our city- can you imagine the drug dealers on now 26th Avenue North being confronted with oversize streetsigns for "Nellie Stone Johnson Boulevard", complete with portrait of Nellie holding a picket sign? And surely a city that played a vital role in so many liberation movements has enough heros and distinguised groups to rename all our numbered streets for. Then we'll start naming the trails, alleys, and sidewalks.
So may I start by suggesting a Matt Little Post Road, Steve Endean Street, Bly Boulevard, Holiday Social Club Court, ... Anyone care to nominate some more?
bored with numbered streets in Hawthorne,
Dyna Sluyter
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