Hibbing is located in the Northeast region of Minnesota in St. Louis County. Once called the "Iron Capital of the World", Hibbing traces its origins to a strong, viable mining industry.
The community was established in 1893 by German miner Frank Hibbing, who discovered iron ore nearby. In the 1920's, the town moved two miles south to its present location after iron ore was discovered under the city's old location. Building by building, using steel wheels and logs, Hibbing was moved to where it stands today. The move started in 1919, and took many years to complete. More than 180 houses and 20 businesses eventually relocated to their current sites, costing about $16 million.
What remains of historic Old Hibbing is now home to the Hull Rust Mahoning Mine View. There is also a large park that is used for summer events. The foundations of many buildings are still in place and signs are posted with information about the buildings that were there before the town moved south.
Hibbing is know for several famous former residents, including music great Robert Zimmerman, better known as Bob Dylan. Other notables include former Boston Celtics basketball player Kevin McHale, who upon retirement coached the Minnesota Timberwolves; Vincent Bugliosi, the prosecutor in the Charles Manson case who later became an acclaimed author; and baseball player Roger Maris, who held Major League Baseball's single season home-run record for 37 years; and entrepreneur Jeno Paulucci.
The mining companies helped Hibbing rebuild itself by building the City Hall and the high school. City Hall was constructed in 1923 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Hibbing High School was constructed from 1920 to 1925 at a cost of $3.9 million. You Tube
To get credit for this cache, you must visit the Hibbing Historical Society & Museum located in downtown Hibbing. The Museum is open Tues. - Fri. 10:00am - 2:00pm(or any other time by appointment) and is FREE. The museum contains a number of interesting displays depicting the town’s career in mining, the subsequent move and the people that helped to create such a rich and fascinating history. The hours are somewhat limited but it is well worth finding time to visit. It also makes this virtual Cache that much better and not so easy. A 8'x16' scale model shows north Hibbing as it looked in 1913. To the right of this model is a plaque with some dates. You are looking for the date this model was built. Please e-mail me this date for credit on this cache. This is a fascinating piece of Minnesota History and a fabulous facility that I hope all Geocachers will enjoy.
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.