Image of a group of men standing outside of the Agate Bay House. Painted sign underneath the decorative peak on the covered porch. This was utilized as a boarding house for railroad workers. Also pictured is an intersection of a wooden sidewalk, one of the first built in Two Harbors, Minnesota. Managers are Brown, Butler, and Blake standing on the right side of the covered porch.
Opened in 1882 by the Minnesota Mining Company, Breitung pit was part of the first iron ore mine on the Vermillion Range. Ore from this pit made up the first commercial shipment of Minnesota Iron Ore out of the Agate Bay ore docks, Two Harbors, Minnesota July 31, 1884.
Image taken from bay showing the wooden footings for the first ore dock in Agate Bay. Wooden planks are lined up along the bank, Agate Bay House is the large building in the center of the image. Construction of the ore docks began in 1883.
Group of men pose for a photograph with shovels. They stand on the clay bottom of the bay, water held back by a berm. The first wooden ore docks were built at Agate Bay in 1884. The docks were upgraded to steel beginning in 1907.
Duluth Missabe and Iron Range owned Edna G. Tugboat at dock (1896-1986) with Carlo passenger vessel. Note the eagle on top of the pilot house of the Edna G. Taken before the Tug was in service on the East Coast in World War One.
Image shows the Edna G. Tugboat moored on the dock in Two Harbors, Minnesota. The iron ore dock in Agate Bay rises up behind the boat. Note the eagle atop the pilot house and two men seated on the deck. Footings for another dock appear in the foreground.
Image shows the Ella G. Stone, predecessor to the Edna G. tugboat pulling a whaleback vessel into the ore docks at Agate Bay. Note the hatches are open on the whaleback.
Image of a group of men posing for a photograph next to a hoist and derrick system. Man standing on deck tips a steel bucket into a large pile of iron ore. Identified as hoist at Shaft Number 3 at the Cincinnati Mine, first hoist on the Mesabi Range. Mine was owned by the Standard Ore Company of Duluth. Photograph shows the first bucked of ore hoisted from the site.
Ice harvesting at Agate Bay. Bays in Lake Superior regularly froze in the cold winter months. Jacob Rafin Senior is seated on the sled. Town of Two Harbors in the background.
Set of 3 delivery wagons loading in front of J. Schriener and Company General Store (1888-1919). Called the Big Store as all merchandise was purchased in carload lots. Operated by John Schreiner and E.H. Schreiner. The business later evolved into Schreiner Brothers and Molton.
Pairs of men march down the center of the street, rounding the corner with the "The Headlight" saloon at the intersection of Cedar Street and First Avenue. Each man is carrying an American Flag or small shovel. Eugene LaForce was the Proprieter of The Headlight.
The Nelson Store was located on First Avenue, where the present day American Legion now stands. The N.C. Nelson General Store was the first store in Agate Bay, Minnesota, now known as Two Harbors.
Interior view of clerk windows. Man stands at Money order window while woman stands at the general delivery window. Boxes appear on either side of the general mail delivery window. Elizabeth Hangartner (Billingsley) clerk and postmaster W.B. Woodward.
Interior view of female and male postal clerk in mail room. Boxes with newspapers and letters surround the pair. One gas lamp hangs from the ceiling. Elizabeth Hangartner (Billingsley) clerk and postmaster W.B. Woodward.
Image of a group of men and children standing on a wooden sidewalk outside of the Iron Port Printing Shop. Second floor contains apartments for the proprietor and his family. The Iron Port was the official paper of Two Harbors and Lake County. Founded by James Coggswell, the newspaper was first published July 11th, 1890.
Street scene taken from Old High School. Original Lake County courthouse and sheriffs residence can be seen on the right side of the image. Note the wooden sidewalks and wagon-rutted roads.
Road construction in First Avenue Business district. Note the surveyor in the right corner. People gather on the wood plank sidewalks to watch. Identified businesses include: L.A. Rose Store, Lee Kee Laundry, The Bodega, and Nordby Mercantile Company.
Interior view of Schreiner Brothers & Moulton Company (1888-1923) interior view. Image of three men standing near a china display. An array of gas light fixtures hang from the ceiling of the store. A piano is covered in the foreground. Wooden railings frame an opening in the floor that looks down on the first level of the store. Store proprietors were E.H. Schreiner and W.N Moulton.
Interior view of Schreiner Brothers & Moulton Company (1888-1923). Image of seven men and four women standing around display cases full of merchandise. Handkerchiefs and other accessories are displayed in glass cases while skirts, scarves, and textiles are displayed along the walls and wooden shelving units holding boxed goods. Gas lights hang from the ceiling, lighting the room. Store proprietors were E.H. Schreiner and W.N Moulton.
Image of people lined up on dock and outside deck of Ossifrage. Large dock owned by the Weiland Family, a prosperous family that owned and operated a lumber company out of Beaver Bay (1860-1883). Steam ships would tie up to the Weiland dock, bringing passengers and supplies to the town.
Image of a steam powered shovel sitting on a railroad track. Land is barren, multiple tracks cross the landscape. Town of Virginia extends beyond the boundaries of the mine, separated by a fence. Note the rows of iron ore cars in the background. Oliver Mining Company owned this mine.