Editing Grand Rapids, Minnesota (section)

==History==
[[File:Itasca Heritage Center-side.jpg|thumb|left|[[Itasca County Historical Society|Itasca Heritage Center]]]]
[[File:Edge of the Wilderness - Grand Rapids Gateway - NARA - 7718201.jpg|thumb|The gateway to the Edge of the Wilderness Scenic Byway in Grand Rapids welcomes visitors to one of the terminus towns of the Byway.]]
Grand Rapids became a logging town, as the [[Mississippi River]] provided an optimal method of log shipment to population centers. Blandin Paper Mill opened in 1902.<ref>{{cite web|title=Grand Rapids Minnesota |url=http://users.stlcc.edu/jangert/grnd_rpd/grnd_rpd.html |date= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705041751/http://users.stlcc.edu/jangert/grnd_rpd/grnd_rpd.html |archive-date=July 5, 2008}}</ref> The Forest History Center,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mnhs.org/foresthistory |title=Forest History Center}}</ref> located in Grand Rapids, MN, is a State Historic Site and a living history museum that recreates life as it was in a turn of the 20th century logging camp. Costumed interpreters guide visitors through a recreated circa 1890s [[logging camp]] to educate the public on the history of white pine logging and its relevance to today's economy. Miles of nature trails, educational naturalist programming, and an interpretive museum are also located on the site.

Old Central School, located in downtown Grand Rapids, was built in 1895 in the [[Richardsonian Romanesque]] style of architecture. The three-story building served as an elementary school from 1895 to 1972. A community effort restored the building in 1984 and it now serves as a location for commerce and is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].

In 1991 [[Enbridge]]'s [[Line 3 pipeline]] [[Line 3 oil spill|ruptured]], spilling 1.7 million gallons of oil into the area, including the [[Prairie River (Mississippi River tributary)|Prairie River]], in the largest inland oil spill in US history.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Siple |first1=Julie |last2=Wareham |first2=Bill |last3=Kraker |first3=Dan |last4=Nelson |first4=Cody |title=Rivers of Oil, Episode 2: The largest inland spill |url=https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/06/20/rivers-of-oil-podcast-line3-pipeline-ep2-spill |access-date=January 19, 2021 |work=MPR News |date=June 20, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Laduke |first1=Winona |title=Happy Anniversary: The largest inland oil spill in U.S. history happened in Minnesota |url=https://www.grandrapidsmn.com/opinion/happy-anniversary-the-largest-inland-oil-spill-in-u-s-history-happened-in-minnesota/article_2ade2706-004f-11e7-9023-2b31a01741a6.html |access-date=January 19, 2021 |work=Grand Rapids Herald-Review |date=March 3, 2017 |language=en}}</ref>