CLOQUET, Minn. — Beauty, art and design can take many forms.
Case in point is the latest subject of our drone series KARE in the Air.
Noted architect Frank Lloyd Wright is best known for the unusual homes he designed, iconic structures like Taliesin, Fallingwater, Hollyhock and the Wright home and studios. But in the northern Minnesota community of Cloquet, Mr. Wright designed a gas station - yes, a gas station - as part of a plan to build a utopian, futuristic city known as Broadacre.
Wright believed that automobiles were the ultimate freedom, fueling the curiosity and travel desires of Americans. He designed the station in 1927 with the aim of constructing it in Buffalo, NY., but it didn't actually take shape until 30 years later when it was built for a client he built a home for in Cloquet. Atlas Obscura says R. W. Lindholm was in the petroleum business as owner of Best Oil, so Wright thought it would be a good fit. The gas station opened in 1958, one year before the architect's death.
The station had, and still has a futuristic vibe that includes an observation deck where employees could watch and wait for customers in comfort. It is currently owned and operated by Minnesota native Andrew Volna, who purchased the business from Lindholm’s grandchildren in 2018. It is on the National Historic Register.
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