Downtown Grand Forks 40 years ago

A week or two ago I put up a postcard picture of downtown Grand Forks circa 1946. Interestingly, I have another postcard in my collection which shows downtown as it appeared in the 1960s...about twenty years after the other postcard. As you can see, this picture was taken from virtually the same spot as the earlier postcard's picture.

Clearly, not too much construction or demolition took place downtown from the 40s to the 60s. The days of "urban renewal" would come in the 70s and, of course, the flood would change downtown plenty in 1997. One interesting thing about this picture is how clearly it shows all of the buildings that used to sit south of Kittson Avenue on the river-side of South 3rd Street. As you can see, this stretch used to be lined with buildings. Now, the area is used for parking and the dike. Also, you can see the old grain elevator on South 5th Street. This area now houses the Police Department.

I just thought you might enjoy seeing this postcard since it is so strikingly similar to the other postcard I showed you, yet many details are even clearer and in full color.