Minnesota
Became a state: May 11, 1858 (32nd state)
Area: 87,014 sq mi (ranked 12th in size)
Population: 5,132,799 (ranked 21st in population)
Capital: Saint Paul
Largest City: Minneapolis (population 370,000)
Bordering States: Iowa, Michigan (across Lake Superior), North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin
Origin of state name: The name Minnesota is based on the Dakota Sioux Indian word for sky-tinted water, which refers to the Minnesota River and the state's many lakes.
State Nickname: Gopher State, North Star State
State Bird: Common Loon
State Flower: Pink and White Lady’s Slipper
State Tree: Norway Pine
State Gemstone: Lake Superior Agate
Trivia: The popular toy Tonka Trucks was founded and created in Minnesota. On September 19, 1946 Mound Metalcraft was created in Mound, Minnesota by three partners; Lynn Everett Baker (1898–1964), Avery F. Crounse, and Alvin F. Tesch. The first products produced by the fledgling company were two versions of a metal tie-rack. Their original intent was to manufacture garden implements. However when their building's former occupants, the Streater Company, attempted to market two metal toys and failed, the three men at Mound Metalcraft thought they might make a good side line to their other products. After some modifications to the design by Alvin Tesch and the addition of a new logo created by Erling Eklof with the Dakota-Sioux word "Tonka", which means "Great" or "Big", the company began selling metal toys. This soon became the primary business. On November 23, 1955, Mound Metalcraft changed its name to Tonka Toys Incorporated. The logo at this time was an oval, showing the Tonka Toys name in red above waves, presumably honoring nearby Lake Minnetonka.
The impact of the Tonka truck concept has been enduring and pervasive, especially the Mighty Dump Truck and associated "Mighty" line of construction equipment models introduced from 1964. The all-metal "Tonka trucks" were sold throughout the world and earned a reputation as being indestructible, although the steel has been increasingly replaced by plastic from the late 1980s onwards.
Abbreviation: MN
No comments:
Post a Comment