Minneapolis, Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...

's Powderhorn Park neighborhood (part of the larger Powderhorn community

Powderhorn, Minneapolis

Powderhorn is a community in Minneapolis, which consists of eight different neighborhoods.-Official neighborhoods in the Powderhorn community:*Bancroft*Bryant*Corcoran*Lyndale*Powderhorn Park*Standish*Whittier*Central-External links:****...

) is located approximately three miles south of downtown and is bordered by East Lake Street

Lake Street (Minneapolis)

Lake Street is a major east-west thoroughfare in Minneapolis, Minnesota which is located between 29th and 31st Streets in south Minneapolis. It was named such because it runs through the Chain of Lakes area on the west side of town and passes over a small channel linking Lake Calhoun and Lake of...

 to the north, Cedar Avenue to the east, East 38th Street to the south, and Chicago Avenue to the west. Its namesake is the city's Powderhorn Park facility in the northwestern part of the neighborhood which includes Powderhorn Lake, plus playing fields, playgrounds and a park building that hosts community education classes ranging from pottery to yoga.

Developed mainly between 1905 and 1920, it is a residential area consisting of single-family homes, duplexes, and three story brick
apartment buildings. Approximately 9,000 people live in Powderhorn Park. According to the 2000 Census, 42% of the population is white, 22% each black and Hispanic, and 5% each Asian and Native American. Along Lake Street, numerous new and existing Hispanic and African businesses emphasize the area's diversity.

The neighborhood belongs to two Minneapolis City Council

Minneapolis City Council

The Minneapolis City Council is the governing body of the City of Minneapolis. The City Council is composed of 13 single member districts, called wards. Barbara Johnson is president of the council. The council is dominated by members of the DFL Party with 12 members. The Green Party has one member...

 wards, Ward 9 in the east and Ward 8 in the west.

The park and lake are used as the setting for the last act in the city's annual May Day

May Day

May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....

 parade (actually occurring on the first Sunday in May), which is a play in motion that has been put on by the In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre

In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre

In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre is a puppet company from Minneapolis, Minnesota. HOBT began in 1973 as Powderhorn Puppet Theatre, named for a neighborhood park and lake in Minneapolis, and changed their name in 1979...

 since 1975. As the parade runs south along Bloomington Avenue, participants wear a variety of costumes, and many manipulate giant puppet

Puppet

A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....

s, all to produce a story that is based on sociopolitical themes including peace

Peace

Peace is a state of harmony characterized by the lack of violent conflict. Commonly understood as the absence of hostility, peace also suggests the existence of healthy or newly healed interpersonal or international relationships, prosperity in matters of social or economic welfare, the...

, environmentalism

Environmentalism

Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...

, current events, and others. After the parade story ends, the tail end of the parade is a "free speech" section which includes representatives of community groups and campaigning politicians.

After the parade, there is an intermission as people gather on a hillside at the west end of the park for the Tree of Life ceremony. Many details of the final act change from year to year, but there are several figures that consistently appear: River

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

, Woods

Woodland

Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...

, Prairie

Prairie

Prairies are considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type...

, Sky

Sky

The sky is the part of the atmosphere or outer space visible from the surface of any astronomical object. It is difficult to define precisely for several reasons. During daylight, the sky of Earth has the appearance of a pale blue surface because the air scatters the sunlight. The sky is sometimes...

, Sun

Sun

The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...

, and the Tree of Life

Tree of Life

The tree of life in the Book of Genesis is a tree planted by God in midst of the Garden of Eden , whose fruit gives everlasting life, i.e. immortality. Together with the tree of life, God planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil . According to some scholars, however, these are in fact...

. At the end of the ceremony, a flotilla comes across the lake with the Sun figure in the central boat. The Sun awakens the Tree of Life (a figure which includes a traditional maypole

Maypole

A maypole is a tall wooden pole erected as a part of various European folk festivals, particularly on May Day, or Pentecost although in some countries it is instead erected at Midsummer...

), and the crowd sings "You Are My Sunshine

You Are My Sunshine

"You Are My Sunshine" is a popular song first recorded in 1939. It has been declared one of the state songs of Louisiana as a result of its association with former state governor and country music singer Jimmie Davis. The song is copyright 1940 Peer International Corporation, words and music by...

" to mark the banishment of another season of winter.

In 2009 a group of residents started Powderhorn365 that documents, through photography, the day-to-day life of the neighborhood.

External links

• Minneapolis Neighborhood Profile - Powderhorn Park
• Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association
• Minnesota Stories: Powderhorn Park (broken link: archived version)
• Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board: Powderhorn Park
• Powderhorn365 Photography Project
• Parks, Lakes, Trails and So Much More, a history of Minneapolis parks (pages 210-215)