The character of Smithville, Duluth, Minnesota
Part of the Smithville neighborhood guide. Back to the full guide.
Smithville is the quietest neighborhood in this guide, and the rating is not close. There is no through traffic beyond Grand Avenue, no commercial destination, no rail yard, no freeway and no port.
The settlement is small and modest: houses along and above the corridor, the creek through the middle, and woods rising steeply behind. What is above the neighborhood is more dramatic than what is in it, and Bardon Peak is the reason people who are not residents come here at all.
The feel is settled and long-tenured, which is what an 84.8% owner-occupancy rate looks like on the ground. People here have generally been here a while.
A Saturday is outdoors. The Superior Hiking Trail on the ridge, the overlook, Spirit Mountain six minutes north, the Munger Trail south toward Jay Cooke, or the river. In winter it is skiing, snowshoeing and snowmobiles. Errands are a deliberate trip in one of two directions.
What is absent is community infrastructure: no shop, no cafe, no school, no confirmed congregation, no community building. This is a residential pocket rather than a village.
Character next door
North along the river, sharing the same Census tract and the same owner-heavy river-corridor profile, with direct Spirit Lake frontage.
Morgan ParkEast along the river, the 1913 US Steel company town built almost entirely of concrete block.
Gary-New DuluthImmediately south, the nearest everyday services and the closest published price anchor in the far west.
Norton ParkNortheast, where the Munger and Western Waterfront trails begin and Indian Point gives boat access.
Fond du LacSouthwest along the river, the oldest community in Duluth and quieter still.