Loring Park in Minneapolis in Hennepin County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Loring Park: Pride Festival, Diversity and Parades
Photographed by McGhiever, May 12, 2024
1. Loring Park: Pride Festival, Diversity and Parades Marker
Old Pink Flamingo entrance of the 19 Bar, circa 1970
Loring Park is host to many of Minnesota's festivals and parades. Since 1972, Loring Park has hosted The Twin Cities GLBT Pride Festival. The Pride Festival occurs in June to commemorate the founding of the gay rights movement in America. The festival consists of a parade and an arts and entertainment festival in the park. Loring Park neighborhood has a long history of being the first stop on a new life in Minneapolis for many GLBT young people with high hopes for a better future in the big city. Since 1952 the oldest extant gay bar in the United States, the 19 bar, has been serving cold beers and a game of pool to residents and newcomers alike.
Other parades such as the Minneapolis Aquatennial's night-time parade down Hennepin is a site to see and in winter there's the twinkle of the Holidazzle parade down Nicollet Avenue during the holiday season.
Art is never far as evidenced by the neighborhood's creative culture, unique restaurants and the Loring Park Arts Festival in August.
Image Source: In the Shadow of the City, A History of the Loring Park Neighborhood. Text Source: In the Shadow of the City, A History of the Loring Park Neighborhood.
Erected
this page online
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Civil Rights • Entertainment • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1952.
Location. 44° 58.197′ N, 93° 16.72′ W. Marker is in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in Hennepin County. It is in Loring Park. It is on W. Grant Street west of Nicollet Mall, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1330 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis MN 55403, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area. It is also in the American Midwest, in the Corn Belt, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once Ruperts Land, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Loring Park: Basilica and Churches (here, next to this marker); Loring Park: Loring Greenway and Housing (here, next to this marker); Loring Park: Neighborhood Organizing (here, next to this marker); Loring Park: Historic Districts and Buildings (here, next to this marker); Loring Park: The Devil's Backbone (a few steps from this marker); Wesley United Methodist Church (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); Welcome to the Historic Loring Park Neighborhood (about 800 feet away); USS Minnesota (BB22) (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Minneapolis.
Additional keywords. LGBT, LGBTQ, GLBTQ, 🏳️🌈
Photographed by McGhiever, May 12, 2024
2. Pride Festival, Diversity and Parades Marker (right) on the south wall of the Loring Parking Ramp
Credits. This page was last revised on June 5, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 18, 2024, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota. This page has been viewed 214 times since then and 26 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 18, 2024, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
