The character of Proctor, Minnesota

Proctor feels like a small town that has not been renovated into a lifestyle. The main street is short and functional, the houses are modest and close together, the yards have garages and trailers and firewood in them, and nobody is performing charm. That plainness is the appeal for the people who choose it.

The blocks near the tracks and the blocks on the outer edges feel like different places. Downhill and east, near the yard and toward Bayview Heights, the grid is tight, the houses are older, and the trains are a constant. North and west, toward Hermantown and the township line, lots get bigger, houses get newer, and it goes quiet.

The social life runs through the school and the rink. Rails football and hockey draw the town, and in a district with a high school of about 540 students, most families know most families. The historical society museum, the ball fields, and the churches carry the rest. On summer weekends the speedway runs and you can hear it across the south side.

A Saturday in Proctor is outdoors and cheap. In summer that means the Munger Trail, a ride at Spirit Mountain, a ballgame, or a drive down to Jay Cooke. In winter it means the ski hill, the tubing lanes, the rink, and a snowmobile out the Munger corridor. For an evening out, most people drive: Black Woods on the highway for a sit-down dinner, Miller Hill for anything else, downtown Duluth for the rest.

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