This blog is about the street names of Saint Paul and how they can have a literary connection even if in a creative manner.  Thanks to the book, The Street Where You Live, by Donald Empson for much of the real background for the street names. Lawrence Ferlinghetti (born 1919), is an American poet, painter, liberal activist, and the co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers in San Francisco, California. Several years ago he came up with what he called a Modest Proposal to Change the Names of Streets in San Francisco. He was being slightly satirical as evidenced in the reference to the Anglo-Irish satirist, Jonathan Swift (1667 –1745) who made a “Modest Proposal” in 1729  to deal with the problem of children being a burden on their parents. You’ll have to read it yourself. This author modestly suggests that perhaps a literary possibility could be applied for all the streets of Saint Paul. Since “odonymy” is the practice of applying source names to streets, he proposes to be the official  “literary odonymist” for Saint Paul. He hopes the reader finds an interest in the literary odonymy of any number of the streets of Saint Paul.  When the poet, W.H. Auden died, he had been living in Vienna, Austria. The street he lived on had been renamed Audenstrasse  in his honor. It is fitting, then,  to close this Proposal as Auden would say at the end of his poetry readings:  Good words to you.

Y Street

York Ave. Don Empson’s book tells us that there is no person connected to the name. This author makes a modest proposal to name it after his favorite poet, Wystan Hugh (W.H.) Auden (1907 – 1973) who was an Anglo-American poet,  born in York, England. The author likes his poetry, but also the fact that Auden chose to move to America from England and become an American citizen, as opposed to another poet named T.S. Eliot who did the opposite. Patriotism First! this author says; and is the reason he drinks bourbon. Auden drank martinis, but that was only for breakfast. Joseph Brodsky: A Literary Life, by Lev Loseff, relates an incident when Brodsky left Russia and had a layover in Austria at the same time that Auden was living there. Brodsky was invited to stay for a few days. He said that Auden's drinking routine was a little much even for a Russian. Martinis for breakfast and other libations throughout the day stopping only for an afternoon nap. Here’s a lovely poem by Auden: This Lunar Beauty This lunar beauty Has no history Is complete and early, If beauty later Bear any feature It had a lover And is another. This like a dream Keeps other time And daytime is The loss of this, For time is inches And the heart's changes Where ghost has haunted Lost and wanted. But this was never A ghost's endeavor Nor finished this, Was ghost at ease, And till it pass Love shall not near The sweetness here Nor sorrow take His endless look.

Yorkshire Ave. No particular reason for this street being named Yorkshire other than it is the name of a county in England. It is up to the reader to choose from the following: The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a book of children's stories by British author J. K. Rowling. It purports to be the storybook of the same name mentioned in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the last book of the Harry Potter series. The book was published for the general public in 2008. Beedle the Bard is described as hailing from Yorkshire, England. The Brontë family was a nineteenth-century literary family associated with Yorkshire, England. The sisters, Charlotte (born 1816), Emily (born 1818), and Anne (born 1820), are well known as poets and novelists. They originally published their poems and novels under the male pseudonyms Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell, much like many contemporary female writers.

Young St. The street was named for the developer, John Young. His last name gives this author a chance to explain that he has tried to focus on literary connections that would appeal to the young of any age. He has not meant to dishonor the memory of real people who were honored with a street naming. He only wished to bring an awareness of literary connections  to the street name.

Postscript: Lawrence Ferlinghetti (born 1919), is an American poet, painter, liberal activist, and the co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers in San Francisco, California. Several years ago he came up with what he called a Modest Proposal to Change the Names of Streets in San Francisco. He was being slightly satirical as evidenced in the reference to the Anglo-Irish satirist, Jonathan Swift (1667 –1745) who made a “Modest Proposal” in 1729  to deal with the problem of children being a burden on their parents. You’ll have to read it yourself. This author modestly suggests that perhaps a literary possibility could be applied for all the streets of Saint Paul. Since “odonymy” is the practice of applying source names to streets, he proposes to be the official city “literary odonymist.” He hopes the reader finds an interest in the literary odonym of any number of the streets of Saint Paul. When the poet, W.H. Auden died, he had been living in Vienna, Austria. The street he lived on had been renamed Audenstrasse  in his honor. It is fitting, then,  to close this Proposal as Auden would say at the end of his poetry readings: Good words to you.

W Street

Wabash Ave. "The Wabash Cannonball" is an American folk song about a fictional train. It appears on the The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list. It is the oldest song on the list. Here is the first stanza as sung by The Carter Family in 1929: From the great Atlantic ocean to the wide Pacific shore She climbs flowery mountain, o'er hills and by the shore She's mighty tall and handsome, and she's known quite well by all You can set your watch to - the Wabash Cannonball. Wabasha Avenue is home to the famous Candyland store at 435 Wabasha St in downtown Saint Paul. You can read the history in the 2014 publication of Candyland In the Twin Cities: Popcorn, Toffee, Brittle and Bark by Susan M. Barbieri. This author had the pleasure of getting a behind-the-scenes look at the operation with his (very small) class of students. He was as excited as the children. A lovely thank you card was sent in the form of a large stuffed paper popped popcorn kernel. The shop hung it in their window for over a year.

Wacouta St. Chief Wacouta  was the last chief of the Red Wing band of the  Mdewakanton Dakota chiefs whose name "Red Wing" came from their use of a dyed swan's wing as their symbol of rank. "Red Wing" was a popular song written in 1907 with music by Kerry Mills and lyrics by Thurland Chattaway. There once lived an Indian maid, A shy little prairie maid, Who sang all day a love song gay, As on the plains she'd while away the day. She loved a warrior bold, This shy little maid of old, But brave and gay he rode one day To battle far away. In 1940 Woody Guthrie wrote new lyrics to the tune, a version that may be more familiar now: There once was a union maid, she never was afraid Of goons and ginks and company finks and the deputy sheriffs who made the raid. She went to the union hall when a meeting it was called, And when the Legion boys come 'round She always stood her ground. Oh, you can't scare me, I'm sticking to the union, I'm sticking to the union, I'm sticking to the union. Oh, you can't scare me, I'm sticking to the union, I'm sticking to the union 'til the day I die. Walls of Red Wing is a folk and protest song, written by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It describes the boys reformatory in Red Wing, Minnesota. In the spirit of full disclosure, this author should disclose the fact that he was a guest of that institution many years ago. He declines to disclose why he was a guest. It really was a “failure to communicate.”

Wakefield Ave. The street is named for William (1825-1906) and Harriet Wakefield. This author can find no relation to the Sarah Wakefield (1829-1874) who was taken prisoner by a Dakota man named Chaska during the 1862 Dakota War. She and her children were returned unharmed after the war. She tells her story in  Six weeks in the Sioux Tepees: A Narrative of Indian Captivity  by Sarah F. Wakefield ; edited, annotated, and with an introduction by June Namias (published in 1997).

Wales St. Most poetic people's first thought of Wales is to associate it with Dylan Thomas. And well they should though it is worth noting that Thomas did not speak or write in Welsh which is making a comeback now in print and speech. Thomas did, however, use Welsh poetic traditions in much of poetry. He also seemed to enjoy a drink or two. Not necessarily a Welsh tradition but still . . ..   Thomas died in November, 1953, after famously drinking "18 shots of whiskey" which he claimed as a record. He died three days after the 18 shots with the Minnesota poet, John Berryman, at his side in hospital. At Thomas' death, Berryman ran through the hospital screaming, "Poetry is dead!" Not exactly. Just his drinking buddy. Of course, Minnesotans remember Berryman as the guy who jumped off the Washington Avenue bridge in 1972. Poetry still lives. Another Welsh poet was Dannie Abse (1923-2014) who had historical moment greeting T. S. Eliot in the back of an auditorium in 1951. They were both there as spectators for a poetry reading in which the British-Jewish poet, Emmanuel Litvinoff , got up to read his poem titled, To T. S. Eliot.  The moderator of the program saw the title and thought it was a tribute to Eliot who had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature two years earlier. When it became clear that it was not a tribute the audience erupted as they knew Eliot had just walked in the back door. Abse was sitting in the next-to- last row and Eliot sat right behind him. The two shook hands and when the poem was over Eliot got up to leave. Abse said he clearly heard Eliot say, "It was a good poem. A very good poem."  Here it is: To T.S. Eliot Eminence becomes you. Now when the rock is struck your young sardonic voice which broke on beauty floats amid incense and speaks oracles as though a god utters from Russell Square and condescends, high in the solemn cathedral of the air, his holy octaves to a million radios. I am not one accepted in your parish. Bleistein is my relative and I share the protozoic slime of Shylock, a page in Sturmer, and, underneath the cities, a billet somewhat lower than the rats. Blood in the sewers. Pieces of our flesh float with the ordure on the Vistula.  You had a sermon but it was not this. It would seem, then, yours is a voice remote, singing another river and the gilded wreck of princes only for Time’s ruin. It is hard to kneel when knees are stiff. But London Semite Russian Pale, you will say Heaven is not in our voices.  The accent, I confess, is merely human, speaking of passion with a small letter and, crying widow, mourning not the Church but a woman staring the sexless sea for no ship’s return, and no fruit singing in the orchards. Yet walking with Cohen when the sun exploded and darkness choked our nostrils, and the smoke drifting over Treblinka reeked of the smouldering ashes of children, I thought what an angry poem you would have made of it, given the pity. But your eye is a telescope scanning the circuit of stars for Good-Good and Evil Absolute, and, at luncheon, turns fastidiously from fleshy noses to contemplation of the knife twisting among the entrails of spaghetti. So shall I say it is not eminence chills but the snigger from behind the covers of history, the sly words and the cold heart and footprints made with blood upon a continent? Let your words tread lightly on this earth of Europe lest my people’s bones protest. The country of Wales has a rich literary history. They have a National Poet rather than the Poet Laureate which we have in America. Gillian Clarke (born 1937) has held the post since 2008. She wrote a poem about a German massacre in a small village in France (Oradour-Sur-Glane) during World War II. The German soldiers herded the entire village population into a church, bolted the doors and set it on fire. This author recently found a video of his late father describing his experience watching the massacre while he was hiding with his OSS team and members of the French Resistance. There is little more this author can say other than to reprint the poem: Oradour-Sur-Glane by Gillian Clarke Tomorrow you will visit the village that stopped dead in its smoking ashes the morning after. Too often, in summer I step out of the sunlight into that church, where the molten bell’s tongue is a dumb lump in its throat. Don’t think of the children burnt in the confessional. Don’t think of the holy child in its mother’s arms that flew through the great altar window, in a prism of stained glass and blood. Don’t think of the soldiers who raided the cellars, fed well, drank their good wine, pleasured themselves before sleep dreaming of wives and lovers, woke to a peerless summer morning, crossed themselves, blessed their sons, their daughters, and set off for the slaughter.

Wall St. "Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street" (1853) is a short story by the American writer Herman Melville  (1819–1891) of Moby-Dick fame. On December 13, 1711, the New York City Common Council made Wall Street the city's first official slave market for the sale and rental of enslaved Africans and Indians. (from  Peter Alan Harper, posted on the website, Root: Feb. 5, 2013). The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African, first published in 1789, is the autobiography of Olaudah Equiano. The book describes Equiano's time spent in slavery.

Walnut St. Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867–1957) was an American writer, most notably the author of the Little House on the Prairie books of children's novels based on her childhood.  The family lived for a time in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. Her legacy has been somewhat tarnished lately as some of her negative views of native people have become known. The phrase, “in a nutshell,” originates in a story, described by the Roman scholar Pliny in CE 77, that the philosopher Cicero witnessed a copy of Homer’s Iliad written legibly on a piece of parchment that was small enough to fit into the shell of a walnut. Others have tried it and succeeded. Why not you? Shakespeare also gets into the nutshell business: Hamlet: To me [Denmark] is a prison. Rosencrantz: Why then your ambition makes it one. 'Tis too narrow for your mind. Hamlet: O God, I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of infinite space—were it not that I have bad dreams. Guildenstern: Which dreams indeed are ambition, for the very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream. Hamlet Act 2, scene 2, 251–259

Walsh St. Pearl Buck (1892–1973) was the author of The Good Earth which received the Pulitzer Prize in 1932. Buck was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1938. She married  Richard Walsh, editor at John Day publishers in New York, after divorcing her first husband in 1935. This author would like to point out that an edition of The Good Earth" published by Simon and Schuster has map of the entire area of the world including China and all surrounding lands. Every land is labeled except for a huge island off the coast of China. Huge island. NO label. It happens to be Taiwan. And China happens to consider it part of their country. We have no business bowing to another country's imperialistic demands. Shame on Simon and Schuster.

Wanda St. Wanda Gag: The Girl Who Lived To Draw by  Deborah Kogan Ray is a 2008 children’s book about the author and illustrator, Wanda Gag  (1893–1946). She wrote and illustrated Millions of Cats in 1928. It is the oldest American picture book still in print. She was born in New Ulm, Minnesota. Her home is available for touring. Check the website, wandagaghouse.org for details on times or appointments. Minnesota Open House 2007: A Guide To Historic House Museums by  Krista Finstad Hanson gives a description of historic houses in Minnesota. This author would like to say that he and his wife and children had moved from Oregon to Minnesota in 1994.  His wife and children via airplane and the author driving the family station wagon. The Wanda Gag House was his first stop after entering Minnesota. He also happens to have Gag's second cousin as a neighbor. Wanda added a mark above her last name so people would stop pronouncing it as "gag." It may have been spelled "gaag" in her father's native Bohemia and is pronounced as if the "a" is an "ah." This author happens to live across the street from a Gag second cousin. He accepts all due association.

Warbler Lane Is this Panama?: A Migration Story  by Jan Thornhill  is a 2013 children’s book about a Wilson’s warbler  learning to migrate.

Warner Rd. The Last Warner Woman is by Jamaican author, Kei Miller (born 1978) and published by Minneapolis’ Coffee House Press. The word, “warner” in the book refers to the main character’s ability to warn people of hurricanes and earthquakes.

Warren St. Don Empson says the street is probably named for Henry Warren (1893-1965) who was the Commissioner of Public Safety in Saint Paul in the 1930’s. You can read about him in Paul Maccabee’s book,  John Dillinger Slept Here: A Crooks' Tour of Crime and Corruption in St. Paul, 1920–1936 published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press in 1995. Most of us are familiar with the Warren’s Rick, Beatty, Buffett, Zevon, Earl and Harding. Also Mackenzie who is a potter living in Stillwater, Minnesota. But few know of William Warren (1825 – 1853). His wikipedia page says “he was an historian, interpreter, and legislator in the Minnesota Territory. Of Ojibwe and European-American descent, he lived in two cultures. Because his father was white, he was not considered Ojibwe in their patrilineal culture, but an Ojibwe "relative." He is the first historian of the Ojibwe people in the European tradition.” Warren's History of the Ojibway People, Based Upon Traditions and Oral Statements was published in 1885 by the Minnesota Historical Society and republished in 2009. The historian, Theresa M. Schenck, published William W. Warren: The Life, Letters, and Times Of an Ojibwe Leader in 2007. Of further interest is that William Warren was born on Madeline Island, Wisconsin, which is a beautiful place to visit. A ferry will take you over from Bayfield. While waiting for the ferry you can visit the several wonderful bookstores in Bayfield.

Warwick St. The famous singer, Dionne Warwick (born 1940) tells her story in My Life, as I See It: An Autobiography written with David Freeman Wooley.

Waseca St. Reverend Edwin Hyde Alden, known as Robert Alden (1836–1911) was one of the many real people upon whom Laura Ingalls Wilder based a character in the Little House on the Prairie series of books. He was the founding pastor of First Congregational Church in Waseca, Minnesota in 1868.

Washington St. There are too many books to list about George Washington, for whom the street is named. Then there is also Martha Washington, George Washington Carver (who comprised the extent of African American history when this author was in grade school), Denzel Washington, Booker T. Washington, Grover Washington  Jr. and many others. But once again, this author cannot pass up a chance to list the most important Washington: Washington Bartlett (1824–1887) who was the mayor of San Francisco, California from 1883 to 1887, governor of California, and–to date–the only California governor that was Jewish. No books about him but, thanks to wikipedia,  this Bartlett shall, at least, slip his name in this book.

Water St. Perhaps the most famous literary reference to water is found in Samuel Coleridge’s (1772–1834) poem, The Ancient Mariner. Here are the verses: Day after day, day after day, We stuck, nor breath nor motion; As idle as a painted ship Upon a painted ocean. Water, water, every where, And all the boards did shrink; Water, water, every where, Nor any drop to drink. (for the complete poem set to music check Youtube for the version by Iron Maiden)

Waterloo St. Waterloo, Belgium, was not the site of the famous 1815 battle in which Napoleon was finally defeated. The battle was fought nearby but Waterloo became the place stuck in history. Victor Hugo visited the battle site in 1861 in order to finish his book, Les Miserables. He concludes his manuscript with these words:  “finished Les Misérables on the battlefield of Waterloo and in the month of Waterloo, today, 30 June 1861, 8:30 PM, the day of Mont-Saint-Jean festival, a Sunday.” Hugo’s 1853 poem, L'Expiation (The Atonement) has this line beginning the second stanza: Waterloo! Waterloo ! Waterloo! morne plaine ! (dreary plain!) The line has twelve syllables which makes it an ‘alexandrine,’ a characteristic meter of French poetry.

Watson Ave. Mercy Watson is a series of children’s chapter books written by Kate DiCamillo (born 1964). Mercy is the fictional pig who stars in the series. DiCamillo lives in the Twin Cities area and is the author of The Tale of Despereaux which won the 2004 Newbery Medal.

Waukon Ave. Waukon, Iowa, was one of the places along the sad history of the "orphan trains" of the 19th century. A Boy from Brooklyn: Clinton Simpson and the Orphan Train, written by Jeffery Keilholtz  and published in 2016, tells the story.

Wayzata St. Minnesota Travel Companion: A Guide to History along Minnesota's Highways  by Richard Olsenius and republished in 2001, includes Wayzata in its guide.

Webster St. Don Empson tells us that the street is likely named after Daniel Webster (1782-1852), the American statesman and orator. "The Devil and Daniel Webster" is a short story by Stephen Vincent Benét  (1898– 1943). A farmer sells his soul to the Devil and is defended by a fictional version of the real Daniel Webster.

Weide St.  Tale of Two Canines: A Wolf and a Dog, published in 1998 and written by Bruce Weide is a children's book which teaches about the role of wolves in the environment.

Wellesley Ave. Wellesley College is a private women's liberal-arts college in the town of Wellesley, Massachusetts.  Vladimir Nabokov (1899 – 1977) was a Russian novelist. His most famous book is Lolita (published 1955). If you are a crossword solver then his most famous book would be Ada. Nabokov was on the faculty of Wellesley College from 1941 through 1948.

Wells St. Ida B. Wells  Mother of the Civil Rights Movement is a biography of the 19th century African American educator. Written by Dennis Brindell Fradin and Judith Bloom Fradin, it was published in the year 2000. William Wells Brown: An African American Life is a 2014 biography of a 19th century pioneer. Written by Ezra Greenspan.

White Bear Ave. There are many books about the town of White Bear Lake, Minnesota, but for good fun try the children's book, The Princess and the White Bear King, by Tanya Robin Batt and published in 2014,

Wiggins Rd. Probably no relation to the eponymous Wiggins but  For Gold and Glory: Charlie Wiggins and the African-American Racing Car Circuit by Todd Gould tells the little-known story of a highly celebrated auto-racing event for African Americans, the Gold and Glory Sweepstakes.

Wilder St. Don Empson’s book tells us that the street is named for Helen Wilder (1835-1915), the wife of the developer of the street. Her brother was Amherst Wilder (1828-1894) whose name is on several major charitable institutions around Saint Paul. Amherst H. Wilder and His Enduring Legacy to Saint Paul is by Merrill E. Jarchow and was published in 1981 by  the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation.

Wildview Ave. The AIA Guide to the Twin Cities: The Essential Source on the Architecture of Minneapolis and St. Paul mentions the Frank Kacmarcik house at 2065 Wildview Ave. in Saint Paul of being of a particular "high-art modern" architecture and designed by Marcel Breuer.

Wilkin St. Don Empson’s book tells us that the street is named for Alexander Wilkin (1819-1864) who was a soldier during the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. Wilkin also played a role in the development of the Minnesota Territory, having been its second territorial secretary from 1851 till 1853. Wilkin also started the insurance company that later became Travelers Insurance. He was also in command of the hangings of the 38 Dakota men on December 26, 1862. The story is told in Over the Earth I Come: The Great Sioux Uprising of 1862 by  Duane Schultz and published in 1992.

William Tell Rd. Most people who are roughly the same age as this author will be familiar with the William Tell Overture by Gioachino Rossini (1792–1868). He was the Italian composer who instilled an eternal appreciation for classical music into the souls of baby boomers who were watching The Lone Ranger. You can read the original Lone Ranger story in The Lone Star Ranger by Zane Grey, originally published in 1915. This author’s favorite western writer is Max Brand, the  pseudonym for Frederick Faust (1892– 1944). He wrote over 500 books of which most are still in print. Most of his books were paperbacks and could fit into this author’s back jeans pocket which meant he always had something to read while waiting to do any actual work. That was back in his well-spent youth as a merchant mariner.

Wilshire Pl. Wilshire Bus is a short story in the collection Seventeen Syllables and Other Stories, first published in 1988 and written by Japanese American author, Hisaye Yamamoto (1921 – 2011).

Wilson Ave. August Wilson (1945–2005) was an American playwright whose work included a series of ten plays, The Pittsburgh Cycle, for which he received two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama. He lived in Saint Paul from 1978 to 1990 and had a long association with the Penumbra Theatre Company.

Winchell St. The street is named for Saint Paul resident, Phillip Winchell who died in 1912. A much more famous Winchell was Walter. A biographical novel about the American newspaper and radio gossip commentator Walter Winchell (1897–1972), is Walter Winchell: A Novel by Michael Herr (born 1940)

Winifred St. E. Tuck Everlasting is a fantasy children's novel by Natalie Babbitt (born 1932). It was published in 1975. The main character is Winifred (Winnie) Foster. This author loved reading the book aloud to his elementary students. When the movie came out, he had an apoplectic fit when, in the first scene, a motorcycle roars into view.

West Gate Dr. The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West is a 2008 children's biography of Mark Twain. Written by Sid Fleischman, is a story about Twain as he stands at the gateway to the West.

Western Ave. The Commodore Hotel, at 79 Western Avenue, Saint Paul, was a residential hotel in the early 1920s. Famous guests included Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951)  and F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940) .

Westminster St. Don Empson tells us that the street was likely named for Westminster, London, the site of Westminster Abbey. The website for the Abbey says it was founded in the year 960. That takes it back quite a ways. Their website is worth a little browsing. But of particular interest is the Poet’s Corner page of wikipedia. Fascinating. Especially the part about people who get their ashes buried there and their heart somewhere else.

Wheeler St. The street is named for Rush Wheeler (1844-1930). We have Rush to thank for the park-like setting of Summit Avenue. His father’s name was Orange Hill Wheeler. There might be a book in that name. Miss Maple's Seeds is a lovely children’s picture book by Eliza Wheeler. It tells a story of a woman who teaches the seeds how to find roots of their own.

Wheelock Ave. Named for Joseph Wheelock (1831-1906). We have him to thank for the Saint Paul park system. He was also the founder and long-time editor of the Saint Paul Pioneer Press. The website, SaintPaulHistorical.com has an extensive list of historical sites around Saint Paul including mention of Wheelock’s home on Summit Avenue.

Whitall St. Named for Matilda Whitall (1827-1906) who was the wife of Henry Rice of Rice Street fame. Try as he might, this author can find no literary connection to her name other than the unofficial national anthem of Australia, “Waltzing Matilda.” Another Matilda is the mother of the poet, Paul Lawrence Dunbar (1872-1906).  He wrote the poem, Sympathy, which has the line, "I know why the caged bird sings." Maya Angelou used that line as the title for one of her autobiographies.

Winnipeg Ave. Terry Fox  (1958–1981) was a cancer research activist who attempted to run across Canada in 1980 after losing a leg to cancer. Terry Fox: His Story  is by  Leslie Scrivener and published in 2000. He was born in Winnipeg, Canada.

Winona St. Last Standing Woman is a novel by Native American activist,  Winona LaDuke (born 1959).

Winslow Ave. Winslow Homer (1836 – 1910) was an American landscape painter and printmaker, best known for his marine subjects.

Winston St. Franklin and Winston: A Christmas That Changed the World is by Douglas Wood  (published 2011). It is a children’s book that tells a story of Winston Churchill and Franklin Roosevelt. Douglas Wood lives in Minnesota and is the author of Old Turtle.

Winter St. Winter is the title of a poem by Mehdi Akhavan Sales (1928–1990) a contemporary Iranian poet. It was published in 1956. Here is the first stanza: And if you ever greet them they will not pause one instant to greet you back. Heads are hanging sternly lowly. And if you salute the passing friends They will not raise their heads They will not move their gaze to even glance at your face. The poem is a reference to the 1953 coup in Iran in which the prime minister was deposed and the Shah was reinstated as the ruler. It’s a long history and the future events are even harsher, but the really interesting history is that the coup began in August, 1953, and this author was born October 1, 1953, in an American Army hospital in Tehran. There was still fighting going on as he knows from family stories of his father dodging bullets to get to the hospital in time for the royal birth. It does snow in Tehran as evidenced in an old family slide of the author’s mother shoveling snow from the flat-topped roof of our house with the cutest little boy standing beside her. You can read the entire poem on the internet. It is beautiful just as a reference to winter. You can read this author’s brilliant autobiography on a blog somewhere in the blogoverse. For those who are asking, “What was your father doing in Tehran?” the author will say, “working for a public health organization.” That’s about it. It may be just a coincidence that this author's father was in the OSS in WWII. The OSS turned into the CIA. The Iranian coup was the first overthrow of a foreign government by the CIA. So what was the author's father really doing in Iran in 1953?

Winthrop St. The Pie Lady of Winthrop and Other Minnesota Tales is by Peg Meier and Dave Wood and published in 1985. The authors were reporters for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune newspaper. The book is a collection of their stories. John Winthrop (1587–1649) was a an English Puritan and one of the leading figures in the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He makes a brief appearance in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter in the chapter entitled "The Minister's Vigil."

Wood St. Keen observers will recognize the name, Oliver Wood, from the Harry Potter  books. Keener observers will say, “oh, yes, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and Rolling Stones musician.” Artistic observers will think of the American Gothic artist, Grant Wood (1891-1942).  A 2010 biography of the artist is, Grant Wood: A Life by R. Tripp Evans. Movie buffs will think fondly and sadly of Natalie (1938–1981).

Woodbridge St. John Woodbridge VI (1613–1696) was the brother-in-law of Anne Bradstreet (1612–1672) who was the most prominent of early English poets of North America and the first female writer in the British North American colonies to be published. Woodbridge brought Bradstreet’s poetry to England and had them published. A reviewer was so impressed by the poems that he described her as being the”tenth muse.” This led to the title of her book being called The Tenth Muse, lately Sprung up in America (published 1650). A newer edition is The works of Anne Bradstreet, edited by Jeannine Hensley with a foreword by Adrienne Rich. For those who are interested, or who need to know for the crossword, the classical muses were nine: Calliope was the muse of epic poetry. Clio was the muse of history. Erato was the muse of love poetry. Euterpe was the muse of music. Melpomene was the muse of tragedy. Polyhymnia was the muse of sacred poetry. Terpsichore was the muse of dance. Thalia was the muse of comedy. Urania was the muse of astronomy. Calling someone “the tenth muse” is a high compliment. Having it stick is even higher. Plato bestows the first honor on the ancient Greek poet, Sappho of Lesbos (630?-612? BCE).

Woodbury St. Don Empson tells us that the street is named for Dwight Woodbury (1800-1884) who settled in the Anoka area. You can see his 1857 home in Anoka at 1632 S. Ferry St.  It is listed as a National Historical Landmark. You can find the other Minnesota landmarks in The National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota: A Guide  compiled by Mary Ann Nord and published by the Minnesota Historical Society Press in 2003.

Woodcrest Dr. Woodcrest is the name of the neighborhood in The Boondocks which was a daily syndicated comic strip written and originally drawn by Aaron McGruder that ran from 1996 to 2006. The strip  satirized African American culture and American politics as seen through the eyes of young, black radical Huey Freeman.

Woodlawn Ave. Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink (1895-1981) is about the adventures of an eleven-year-old girl growing up on the Wisconsin frontier in the mid-nineteenth century. It won the Newbery Medal in 1936.

Woodward Ave. The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, often known simply as Tom Jones, is a novel by the English playwright and novelist Henry Fielding  (1707–1754) . Tom Jones, the Welsh singer, was born Thomas Woodward in 1940. For many years, this author, who rarely listened to music of any kind, thought this Tom Jones was the literary Jones. Apparently, this author didn’t read much either. The singer is the son of Thomas Woodward and Freda Jones. The author is guessing that the Jones part comes from the singer’s mother.

Worcester Ave. John E. Brooks, S.J., (1923 – 2012) was an American Jesuit priest who served as the 28th president of the College of the Holy Cross, in Worcester, Massachusetts, from 1970 to 1994. Fraternity by Diane Brady is a 2012 book about the 1968 recruitment by Brooks of  a group of young African American men to enroll in the school.

Wordsworth Ave. Don Empson tells us that this street is named after the English poet, William Wordsworth (1770-1850).  His sister was Dorothy Wordsworth (1771–1855) who was an English author, poet and diarist in her own right. Her journals are considered to be exceptional writing in itself. The Grasmere and Alfoxden Journals, republished by Oxford World Classics in 2008 is well worth reading. The Ballad of Dorothy Wordsworth: A Life by Frances Wilson (published 2009) is another look at the journals. The website, wordsworth.org.uk, is a fabulous resource and  provides a look at the journal entry Dorothy made about seeing daffodils. There is some speculation that William’s famous poem, Daffodils, may have been influenced by Dorothy’s writing.

Wycliff St. Don Empson tells us the street is named for John Wycliff (1320?-1384). Wycliff hand-wrote the first English Bible and was called the “Morning Star of the Reformation.” A Visual History of the English Bible: The Tumultuous tale of the World's Bestselling Book is a 2008 book by Donald L. Brake. It includes a chapter about Wycliff.

Wynne Ave. Don Empson’s book shows no source for this street name. Aha! Let’s have all the cruciverbalists petition the city council to make the source refer to Arthur Wynne (1871 – 1945), the creator of the first modern crossword puzzle. There are a few books about crosswords. This author’s favorite are the New York Times collections based on the day of the week. Each day has its difficulty level with Monday being the easiest and working up to Saturday. Sunday has the difficulty level of a Thursday puzzle but longer. There is a big difference in who edited the book. Will Shortz is the current editor. Puzzles under his editorship tend to be more relevant to modern cruciverbalists.

Wyoming St. The street is named after the state, but the city of Wyoming, Minnesota, is named for the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania. For the history-curious, The Battle of Wyoming (also known as the Wyoming Massacre) was an encounter during the American Revolutionary War between American Patriots and Loyalists accompanied by Iroquois raiders that took place in the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania on July 3, 1778. More than three hundred Patriots were killed in the battle. For the Bob Dylan and blues-curious, Wyoming, Minnesota, is the current northern terminus of U.S.  Highway 61. In Dylan’s youth the highway ran all the way to Duluth. North of Duluth, the highway is Minnesota State Highway 61 and runs to Canada. On this author’s bicycle around Lake Superior in 2013, this stretch of the trip was the most difficult in terms of road conditions. Great people, just not much of a shoulder to bike on north of Beaver Bay. Highway 61: A Father-and-son Journey Through the Middle of America by William McKeen (published 2003) is an account of a summer car trip the author made with his son from Duluth to New Orleans.