Historic Main Street Walking Tour

Discover the stories of Minneapolis’s oldest neighborhood and gain insight into the rich diversity of the 1850s town of St. Anthony. Learn about the immense changes along Main Street throughout the years, and landmarks like the 1855 Upton Block, 1858 Martin & Morrison Building, and the Pillsbury A Mill.

The town of St. Anthony was established on the east side of the Mississippi in 1848, a few years before its neighbor Minneapolis started on the west side of the river. In its early years, the city was a crossroads for many diverse peoples, including Yankees, immigrants, Métis, a free Black community, southern tourists, and Dakota and Ojibwe peoples.

This tour begins and ends at the gray door of the Pillsbury A Mill on Third Avenue SE at Main St. (around the corner from the A-Mill Artist Lofts main entrance at 315 Main St. SE). The tour includes about 1 mile of moderately paced walking on uneven surfaces, Sunday, July 18, 10:30 am-noon. Cost $14; Minnesota Historical Society members receive a 20% discount. Tickets at mnhs.org.