Minnesota Byway Signs

Some text goes here...

The Grand Rounds Scenic Byway is marked auto tour that covers the many parkways in the City of Minneapolis and nearby suburbs. It includes the Mississippi River Parkway, Minnehaha Parkway, the Chain Of Lakes, the Minnesota Mile near St. Anthony Falls, Theodore Wirth Parkway, Victory Memorial Parkway, and the St. Anthony Parkway. A final link is being built between the Milling District and St. Anthony.

The green signs above mark the Grand Rounds auto tour. The square sign shown here is the new logo for the Grand Rounds adopted since it became a national scenic byway. The new style signs have been posted along the bicycle path that is a central feature of the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway.

The Great River Road was established in 1938 as a system of existing roadways and future parkways that would parallel the great river from the Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. Most area of the river have a national Great River Road posted on one side of the river, and a state Great River Road on the other side. Above Hastings, MN, there is only one route, which is both the state and national route.

Minnesota has 575 miles of the Great River Road. A big slice of this mileage is north of the Mississippi River on the Canadian Extension of the Great River Road, which takes the route into Manitoba and Ontario all the way to Winnipeg.

This sign is used on the Great River Road bicycle path along the Great River Road in Minneapolis and St. Paul. The variation in this sign is the green outline and the text "Canada To Gulf" as opposed to a state name.

This byway follows 88 miles of the route of former US-16 (now MN-16) from La Crescent (on the Mississippi River) to Dexter (where MN-16 meets I-90). The eastern segment travels through the bluffs and along the Root River. The western section passes through the heart of a Minnesota farming area.

Established in 1996, the MN River Valley Scenic Byway covers 287 miles from Belle Plaine (just southwest of the twin cities) to Ortonville (near the South Dakota state line). The route follows US, state, county, and township roads, some unpaved, giving a spectacular overview of one of Minnesota's lessor known river jewels.

The North Shore Scenic Drive runs for 154 miles along the east coast of Lake Superior. The path has a dedicated roadway from Duluth to Two Harbors, and follows MN-61 the rest of the way to Canada. The views of the water and bluffs make this one of the most spectacular drives in the nation, on par with the Pacific Coast Highway.

Some text goes here...

The Apple Blossom Scenic Drive follows 17 miles of county roads through the river bluffs on the Minnesota side of the river near La Crosse, Wisconsin. The two times of the year to visit are in spring when the apple blossoms are out, and in fall when apple harvesting is in full swing.

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

The Rushing Rapids Parkway is the name given to MN-210 as it travels through Jay Cooke State Park along the St. Louis River from the Gary New Duluth area over to Carlton (near Cloquet). In the 9 mile length of the parkway, the St. Louis River drops from an elevation of 1,069 feet at Thomson down to 601 feet at the normal elevation of Lake Superior, making for a 9 mile long 450 foot tall cascade.

The Shooting Star Scenic Byway follows 32 miles of MN-56 from the Iowa state line to I-90 in south-central Minnesota. The shooting star is a rare and unusual wildflower. The leaves bend back, resulting in a flower that looks like a bridge meteorite with a long tail of flames. While the best time of year to visit is when the flowers are blooming, you can watch the farming operations in this historic agriculture area throughout the year.

Skyline Parkway runs about 25 miles along the top of the face of the bluffs in Duluth, MN. The parkway runs from the far south part of the city near Gary and New Duluth to as far north as the Seven Bridges Road near the Lester River on the north side of Duluth. The road is well marked, but still a little tricky to follow. No matter where you end up, the views will be superb.

Some text goes here...

Some text goes here...

Dedicated to the veterans of Carlton, Pine, and St. Louis counties. Includes the 50 miles of MN-23 from I-35 near Sandstone to the Wisconsin state line just south of the Gary New Duluth neighborhood of Duluth. The rolling hills and modest curves in the highway make this a fantastic drive during the fall color season.

Some text goes here...

The Amish folks moved into the area near Harmony starting in 1974. Since their modes of transportation are buggy and bicycle, the high speed on US-52 quickly became an issue. These green signs were posted as much for the safety issue as opposed to creating a formal scenic byway. As a result, this is a named highway as opposed to a scenic byway. There are official scenic byways focused on the Amish way of life in other states.

Road was started in 1855 as a way to move troops north from Prescott, WI, to Superior, MN. Route was heavily used by civilians and commercial traffic despite never being finished. Faded from use after the railroads came in the early 1870s. Road is marked along MN-23 and MN-123.

US-8 in Chisago county, Minnesota, is designated the Moberg Trail. Vilhelm Moberg is famous Swedish writer. He wrote about the immigrant Swedish farmers who were dropped off by riverboat, and were to forge ahead and build a life in the new world. The logo on the sign is a representation of the statute of Moberg as it sits in a city park just off of US-8.

I-35 and I-535 in Minnesota, and US-34 in Iowa, are named in honor of the US Army 34th Infantry Division, nicknamed the Red Bull. Much of the division is made up of the Iowa and Minnesota National Guard. The Red Bull fought in WWI and WWII. Over half of the first US Army Ranger division was selected from the Red Bull.

State Patrol officer Ted Foss was struck and killed by a semi-truck while making a routine traffic stop on I-90 in south-eastern Minnesota. As a result of this accident, the state legislature enacted the move over or slow down law that requires motorists to give law enforcement, emergency, and service vehicles room when they are parked on the side of the highway.

This is a relatively old designation that seems to be fading from history. It once covered MN-56 from the Iowa state line to Anoka. The northern parts of MN-56 were trimmed back, with parts surviving as MN-47 and MN-156. I saw only 2 signs for this route, both of which were badly faded. I had to use the flash to make the lettering visible.

Marked for 120 miles on US-61 south of St. Paul to the Iowa state line.

Ruby Hughes founded the La Creche Early Childhood Center just off of Olson Memorial Highway in northwestern Minneapolis. She was killed in a domestic incident. The boulevard is only a single block, and it is marked with a standard street sign.

This historic highway was named after Laura Ingalls Wilder, who wrote the series of books related to life in the "Little House on the Prairie". The road was first designated in 1995 to include US-14 from Mankato to near the South Dakota state line. The road network has since been expanded to include Iowa and South Dakota with an extension to the Wisconsin state line at Lake City, MN.

Floyd B. Olson was governor of Minnesota in the early 1930s. Olson became famous for his opposition of radical labor groups. He died of stomach cancer at the age of 44. Minnesota highway 55 is designated as the Floyd B. Olson Memorial Highway in his honor. At this time, only the segment of MN-55 west of downtown Minneapolis is signed, and only with traditional street signs.

Rudy Perpich was governor of Minnesota from December 1976 to January 1979, and again from January 1983 to January 1991, making him the longest serving Minnesota state governor. His innovative ideas lead to him being known as Governor Goofy, but his work to promote industry and tourism resulted in a booming state economy during the 1990s and early 2000s. The memorial drive covers 60 miles of County highway 4 in St. Louis county running from Duluth to Biwabik, reflecting Perpich's iron range roots.

Shawn Silvera was a Lino Lakes city Police Officer. He was killed in the line of duty on September 6, 2005, while assisting in a high speed chase. He deployed stop sticks on I-35. The suspect driver saw the stop sticks, and choose to drive around them and strike Officer Silvera. Silvera was killed instantly. The section of I-35 from exit #131, Broadway Avenue in Forest Lake, and the I-35E/I-35W split is named in honor of Officer Silvera.

This old style sign is being replaced by a new logo sign. See above for more details.

Blue Star Memorial Highways were started by the National Garden Club in 1945 following World War II. Blue stars were placed in windows or on flags for people to show that they had a loved one serving in the war. After the war, the blue star was remembered by the garden club. They would improve a highway or rest area landscaping, and then post a marker. Some states have designated highways as Blue Star Memorial Highways. In Minnesota, that includes I-35, I-35E, I-35W, and I-94.

The future General Eisenhower took part in an Army convoy that crossed the USA in 62 days. Eisenhower later saw how quickly Germany could move troops across their country using the Autobahns. As a result, Eisenhower worked to create the Interstate Highway system. Congress tried to honor Eisenhower by requesting that states sign the route that Eisenhower took on that 62 day journey. That effort never caught on. The program was later modified so any Interstate highway can display the blue 5-star sign. In Minnesota, you typically find those signs when exiting rest areas.

Some text goes here...

The Lake Superior Circle Tour is a marked 1,000 mile path using existing highways that totally circles Lake Superior. The trip will take several days to complete. The route is sponsored and marked by a non-profit marketing organization created to encourage tourism around the lake. They publish both an electronic and paper guidebook to attractions and events along the scenic tour route.

The Mississippi Mile is a group of streets located along the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis between I-35W and Plymouth Ave. Its purpose is to highlight the history and attractions along the river section that made Minneapolis what it is today.

Natural Preservation Routes are typically state-funded county roads that follow the natural terrain over hills and around curves. The thought is that rebuilding the road to modern standards would wipe out the natural feel of the road, so the road is being preserved in its hilly and curvy alignment. The sign is to alert drivers that there may be slower drivers who are sight-seeing as a means of trying to prevent accidents.

Many states have official programs to plant and maintain native wildflowers. The state of Minnesota has a program to restore native wildflowers to key highways. Those highways are then marked as Wildflower Routes using these highway signs. This particular sign is on MN-56 near the Iowa state line.