John McGivern’s Main Streets

- I'm in Minnesota along the Mississippi River in what's known as the 'Island City.'

[upbeat music] - "John McGivern's Main Streets" thanks the following underwriters... - Remember when the American Dream was being able to say, "I made that, I built that"?

Wouldn't it be great if your kids and grandkids chose a career that provides that kind of pride with good pay but without a ton of student loan debt?

A four-year degree is n't the only path to success.

We need talented people to make and build on main streets everywhere.

Skilled work isn't a thing of the past.

It's a bright future.

[exciting music] - I'm on my way Oh, it's time to hit the road I'm on my way This is the freedom I live for [gentle acoustic music] - In Southeastern Wisconsin, there's a village... With something for everyone.

It's everywhere you look... On every street, behind any door you open.

And we want to share it with you.

You just gotta see Greendale.

- Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Plum Media and the Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Thanks, friends!

- 'Cause these are Main Streets Something about a hometown speaks to me There's nowhere else I'd rather be The heart and soul of community's Right here on these Main Streets - John McGivern: This Is Winona, Minnesota, a river town built on a sandbar on the west side of the Mississippi, surrounded by beautiful bluffs.

People were drawn to this area because of its lush resources, which brought big business to this river town in the mid-1800s.

Winona is 50 miles east of Rochester, Minnesota, and just a little north of Wisconsin's river city, La Crosse.

Winona's downtown is separated from the rest of the city by a lake that bears the same name.

And the city's history is all about that name, Winona, or 'Wenonah,' which is the Dakota word that means eldest daughter.

So the Dakota people were the first to call this place home.

Hey, Emmy, we miss you.

What else do you have on Winona?

– Emmy Fink: Hey, John, look at me.

I'm back at work.

I'm just not in Minnesota.

But I can tell you about Winona.

So it became a settlement in 1851, thanks to a group of Yankees.

Now, do you know who Yankees are?

I just learned this.

People from New England.

Later, German and Polish immigrants made it their home too.

Railroads and steamboats help Winona grow by transporting lumber and wheat to other areas.

And in the late 1800s, Winona was the third-largest city in Minnesota.

- I'm inside the Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka.

What is a basilica?

It's a Catholic church that's been given a designation by the pope.

This church got its designation in 2012.

It was built in 1895 for the Polish immigration population of Winona.

The only other basilica in the state of Minnesota, the Basilica of Saint Mary's in Minneapolis that was built in 1871, the first basilica in the United States.

[pipe organ music] [gentle acoustic music] [hammering] - Garrick Holey: We primarily create new stained-glass windows and restore old stained-glass windows.

- So, did I hear right that this used to be or still is the stained glass capital of the world?

- At any given time, I mean, there were far more stained-glass studios here than in Chicago or Minneapolis.

And it just became a little hotbed.

- Yeah.

- West Point Military Chapel, that really put our company on the map.

The National Cathedral, Grace Cathedral, kind of everywhere in between.

We start by taking the lead away from the glass.

You can see there are hundreds of pieces in the tank here.

And then there are thousands of pieces in the boards.

And everything is organized by church and by piece and by panel.

- Is it mostly church work?

- It's mostly church work, probably 90% or more.

So-- and that's a traditional figure you'll see in a lot of windows.

- You will?

- Yeah.

- Yeah, same looking guy?

- Yeah, same guy.

[laughs] - One piece at a time, yes?

- Right.

[laughter] - Oh, I'm not sure I have the patience, just so you know.

- We also create new stained-glass windows.

We were founded on that and still do quite a bit of that.

- Is it the same process that it was in 1898?

- Yeah, really nothing has changed in our industry with the exception of a little bit of computer-aided help in design.

– Melissa Janda: It starts with this design.

So this is a little scaled rendition.

Then it's blown up to full size.

And that's when-- - And that's it?

- Yeah, that's it.

And then we also have, you know, portraits like this that are worked out ahead of time.

He's got a white beard, so that's the base color we start with.

- And then all the features-- who does-- - Then I paint all the features onto it.

- You do?

- Yes.

They said they wanted it to look like a Michelangelo painting.

- And you-- - No pressure.

[laughter] This is the rest of the window that God and the Mary go into.

- Oh, go in here?

- Yeah.

So you can see little holes where their faces go.

- And in the end... - It's going to look like that.

- That's what we got.

- Exactly.

- That was great.

Thank you.

We'll see you.

- Okay.

- Did you know you can hear history on the streets of Winona in the summer?

On Wednesday nights, check out the Winona Municipal Band.

They're the oldest continually performing city band west of the Mississippi River.

They celebrated 100 years in 2015.

And you can listen to them yourself at the Bandshell in Lake Park.

[applause] - It is Tuesday night in Winona, Minnesota, and this is obviously the place to be-- right on the Mississippi River, enjoying something called Mississippi Sippin'.

Mississippi Sippin'-- say that 10 times fast.

I'm at the Minnesota Marine Art Museum, where you can order a snack or your favorite beverage, enjoy the river, or go inside the museum and enjoy the exhibition after hours.

It's called Mississippi Sippin'.

Mississippi Sippin', Mississippi Sippin'.

Mississippi Sipp-ipps-- Sis-sipps-- Oh, that's hard.

[gentle acoustic music] We're at the Watkins Company.

– John Goplen: We are one of Minnesota's oldest industries.

We were founded in 1868 by Joseph Ray Watkins.

He just simply bought the rights to a liniment formula.

- Is that an ointment?

- No, it's liquid.

It's for sore muscles, backaches, strains, those sorts of things.

- He did more than liniment then, didn't he?

- Anything from spices to cough medicines to animal feeds.

At one point, we even sold spark plugs and car tires.

- Right?

- Yes.

And today, we're probably best known for our vanilla, cinnamon, and ground black pepper.

We make a lot of vanilla.

Number one seller, by far.

Hands down.

- Which is probably why it's in production today.

- It is.

- How are you?

- I'm good.

- Tell me what to do.

- Oh, these have to go.

- Yeah.

- There we go.

- Just like that.

- Ooh, that was wrong, sorry.

Don't look!

So when I hear about the cleaning products, the Watkins-- that's not this company.

- That is a separate company, the JR Watkins Company.

We split the company in two about five years ago.

- How great that you have all these, isn't it?

- He came up with the trial mark.

We're going to leave you the bottle.

And you can try the product up to that trial mark.

- There's still some in that bottle.

- So they're ready.

- They returned it.

- They returned it.

Yes.

We'll-- - Yeah.

- I prefer to think it just evaporated out of there.

- [laughs] - One of our new products we just came out, our bitters.

I didn't know how many people drank Old Fashioneds and Manhattans until we started selling these.

- They come from Wisconsin for those.

You realize that?

John, this lobby, this building, it certainly speaks to a day, doesn't it?

- It does.

This building was built in 1912.

The thing that probably catches everybody's eye is either the dome or the beautiful Tiffany window.

There's a large window above each entrance.

And if you were to put them all together, it's a scene of East Lake, Winona, with Sugarloaf, our local landmark, being the focal point.

- Right here.

- Right there.

- Yeah.

[gentle acoustic music] - We're at the beginning of the Sugarloaf Trail.

It brings us up to the Sugarloaf Bluff.

You know all about this?

– Eric Barnard: I know a little bit about this, yeah.

- How do a little bit about this?

- Well, we've worked to build this trail, for one, up here.

- Oh, really?

- And then, taking people climbing.

Sugarloaf is pretty quickly becoming one of the best beginner/intermediate sport climbing areas in the entire Midwest because there's a lot of really easy climbs, so people can learn how to climb.

They can learn the techniques without having the danger and fear of falling because the climbs are so easy.

- Is this community surprised at what's come of all of this, of outdoor, sort of-- the reputation?

- I don't know if surprised is the right word.

I think appreciative, for sure, because it's a huge economy.

A lot of people don't understand that.

Outdoor recreation is the third-largest economy in the United States.

It goes insurance, health care, outdoor recreation.

Rock climbing is exploding.

Middle schools, high schools, elementary schools, they have climbing walls in them now.

It's not a fringe sport anymore.

It's more mainstream, and it's a lifetime sport.

I think in this day and age, it's really important that we find things to be able to turn our brains off and disconnect.

I can't look at my phone.

You have to just think about climbing.

And so it's a really good, like, mental break for us.

- This is not just a summer sport, is it?

- No.

I mean, probably our busiest season locally is guiding at the Winona Ice Park, which is one of four ice parks in the country and the second largest.

Ice climbing is one of those things when you first hear it, you think it's totally absurd.

You have knives on your feet and axes in your hand.

But once you do it, I would almost say 100% of the people who try it love it.

It's kind of like around here now, it's starting to become--like, there's ice climbing season and there's "waiting to ice climb" season.

- Yeah.

- It's amazing.

Anybody can hike up here on Tuesdays in the fall and try rock climbing.

The ropes, all the gear, everything's up there.

All the professional staff are up there.

- On Tuesdays.

- There's very few communities that offer that for free.

- It's like Mississippi Sippin'.

That's Tuesday, as well.

- Yeah.

So you could get some climbing and then go get a cocktail.

And it's the Midwest because that's how we roll.

[laughter] - Banks today have customer service desks in offices, right?

Boring.

In Winona, think Tiffany-stained glass and African safaris.

It's called WNB Financial now, but it used to be Winona National Bank.

The Watkins family, which we all know has a long history in Winona, was behind the construction of this building in 1916.

The daughter of patriarch JR Watkins commissioned the beautiful Tiffany-stained glass windows.

She was also an avid hunter.

You can check out her taxidermy collection from several African safaris.

You can also take a look at he r now-antique gun collection.

It truly lives up to its spot on the National Register of Historic Places.

- What's in a name?

In Winona, it's all because of her.

So what is the story of this princess and her legacy?

[quirky music] - Well, I heard there was a princess in Winona, and I got all excited.

But no, not this kind of princess.

Princess Wenonah's father wa s a Dakota chief in the area.

Now, the story goes-- instead of marry a man picked by her family, she decided to jump to her death instead.

And the lover's leap is referenced throughout history.

[upbeat music] - Take a look around.

[laughs] This is like a canoe heaven, I think.

– Bill Kueper: Over 50 years ago, Mike Cichanowski, here in the city of Winona, built the first boat in his dad's garage because he was unhappy with anything he could commercially buy.

Fast forward, Wenonah is a global brand.

- So this is a family-run business?

- This is a family-run business.

- And are you a son from somebody or how does it work?

I know you're-- - I'm a son from somebody.

But I'm the son-in-law of the founder and the original owner.

- Oh, you are?

- Hey, Mike.

- This is Mike.

- I'm John.

– Mike Cichanowski: Hey, Hi.

- Good to meet you.

So, he's been talking about you.

- Uh-oh.

I don't know if that's good or bad, so-- - Can you talk about, like, 50 years ago?

What happened?

- Oh, I don't know.

I went to sleep and woke up now, so I mean-- I tell people I started on a hike, and here's where I ended up.

I've never worked for anybody else besides doing this, so-- - This is it.

- This is it, yeah.

- You should be proud.

Good to meet you.

- Thanks.

- So all of these are molds?

- All of these are molds.

- Wow.

How long ago did this come out?

- It came out of this booth probably 45 minutes ago.

- Yeah.

- This is what we're known for.

What we've done so far is we've put in two layers of fabric and some reinforcements where they need to be.

But we're not putting excessive material in where we don't need it.

What we're seeing here is the incorporation of ribs and a core.

And when it cools, it'll maintain that shape.

Ken's been with us for-- what are we at, Ken?

- 35.

- 35.

- Days?

[laughter] - 35 years.

- 35 years.

- Oh, there you go.

- Get the resin spread out.

Make sure everything's nice-- nice and tight.

Get the bag on, and get the vacuum on before we start to cure.

- Wow.

- That's it.

- Yeah.

- But when we add the structure from the seats, thwarts, yokes, handles, it's there.

- And then it's still only 45 pounds?

- 42.

- 42 pounds.

- An 18 1/2-foot boat at 42 pounds, so easy to portage.

- Yeah.

- Now, that's-- in Northern Minnesota, that's common.

- That was great, man.

Would you do it again?

We need to take a second shot of-- no, I'm kidding.

Hey, Bill, be careful, okay?

- Okay.

- Okay.

- I'll do my best.

- [laughs] - So I live in Milwaukee.

And I live near a neighborhood called Riverfront Hills.

Yeah, they have no idea what a neighborhood on the river really looks like.

Take a look.

[gentle acoustic music] - Josh Lallaman: We're on a boat house in the Mississippi River.

So this is called Latsch Island, in the middle of the river in Winona.

So we're sandwiched between the main channel of the river and a side channel.

There's a hundred licensed slips, so there's a hundred spots available.

And that's it for the whole site in Winona.

What's kind of fun about the boat houses is there's tons of unique design.

So there's, like, a dome house.

There's a Quonset hut.

So many different styles, which kind of matches kind of the unique community that's down here.

About 12 people live here year-round.

And the rest use it kind of as a summer place.

– Moses Simon: This is my boat house.

- Yeah.

- I built this.

- You did?

You have?

- My dad purchased this spot in 1987.

- So you've known this your whole life?

- This is-- yeah, this is who I am, being down here.

It's just a wonderful place.

- So if people are-- are thinking, okay, he's in a boat house, but they may be thinking that you're in a houseboat-- - A boat house is here.

It's a house, and then it is floating on plastic barrels.

A houseboat is a boat with a cabin on top of it.

Yeah, and they can travel around.

- Right.

- Boat houses, I guess, could travel, but they really don't travel very much.

- You don't want it to travel, do you?

- No, no, that would be a bad thing if it took off down the river.

- We have two big poles that kind of keep it in place.

So the boat house just floats up.

And then, the water comes back down.

They stick out of the water probably about 20 feet.

They probably go down another 20 feet into the sand.

- Are you ever like, oh, my God.

I hope we have enough pole.

- Last-- in 2017, we had a really high water year.

And it was at the end of one of my poles if the river would have come up any higher.

- Do you have a generator?

- So we have solar power.

- Solar power, that's right.

- Yeah.

Most of the boat houses out here have a composting toilet.

- What's the deal with this?

- You know, leap of faith.

I have a 360 deck here.

And I'm going to put a 360 deck on the second floor too.

That's my son, Judah.

- Yeah, he loves it.

- He loves it.

This is the third generation that's down here now.

- And he's experiencing what you did?

- Yeah.

This is my wife, Marla-- - How are you?

Good to see you.

- And my son, Pippin.

- That's a happy baby, right there.

That's one happy baby.

Being on the Mississippi, Winona is no stranger to boats, especially big ones like this one.

That's the American Splendor.

It's a classic paddle-wheeler.

It's on its way back to New Orleans from Red Wing; it's quite a journey.

And along the way, they will make stops to allow passengers to stretch their legs and enjoy the sights.

In a minute, you're going to hear, "All aboard!"

[horn blares] - Now, if you have a sweet tooth like me, you're going to want to pay extra close attention.

[jazzy music] When in Winona, you have to stop at Bloedow Bakery.

The family business opened in 1924, so it's almost 100 years old.

It's changed hands since 1924, but it's maintained the same tasty menu.

And it's a Winona favorite.

So what are the chances John brings me back a donut?

- Their famous maple long johns.

So sorry you're not here, kind of.

- Yeah, that's what I thought.

Thanks.

[upbeat music] - You couldn't be in a better location.

– Greg Jaworski: This is my humble little kitchen.

Welcome.

So we're a scratch kitchen.

So I get in usually at 10: 00, 11:00, and I'm baking the breads, I'm doing the pastries, I'm doing everything like that.

- Let's talk about menu.

- Well, I trained out East.

I think we're going to do a paella.

So a lot of seafood because of my training and my passion for the coast-- squid, a couple of scallops.

But other than that, you're talking locally-raised meats.

Go to the farmer's market.

- Is it lunch and dinner?

- Just dinner.

Don't dip your fingertips in there.

You'll-- you'll feel it quickly.

- Shrimp next.

- Yes, sir.

- Halibut.

- Then, we're going to add our rice.

Perfect.

That's deglazing.

- So is this recipe written down?

Do you have-- - No.

- PEI mussels.

Prince Edward Island, that is.

- Oh, there you go.

- Now grab the squid.

And then what I'm going to do here, actually, slightly burn the rice, which seems odd, but it gives a nice, crispy texture.

If someone from Spain, if they ate your paella and it didn't have a crispy bottom, would-- - They'd be like, "Oh, where are you from?"

- Right, exactly.

Nice-- nice try, American.

Pat you on the head.

This would be where I put it in the window and start, you know, banging my fist if it doesn't get run as fast as I like.

- And is it served right out of there?

- Yes, sir.

- Oh, my God.

That's it.

- 12 years ago, I don't know if I was ready.

I don't know if Winona was ready.

But it's ready now.

I'm just going to watch you, though.

I can't eat my own food.

- Why?

- I don't know.

- I just-- I just don't.

I like to cook hungry, if that makes sense, you know?

- The scallop is tender and really flavorful.

Come on.

As you said, there's a crisp to it.

That's-- it kind of needs to, huh?

- It'd be a little boring without it, I think.

- When people meet me on the street and they see the show, this is what they say to me.

"You eat a lot, don't you?"

It's like, "Yes, I do."

That's the best.

"Beetlejuice," "Reality Bites," "Stranger Things."

Okay, I'm not giving you a list of what's on Netflix tonight.

I am giving you a hint.

What actress was born in Winona?

Winona.

What actress?

Come on, people.

[upbeat music] - Well, if you didn't get this one, you're probably not a movie buff.

Winona Ryder.

She was born in Winona in 1971 and named after her place of birth.

Mom and Dad, thanks for not naming me 'Milwaukee.'

[cheerful music] - This is a first for me.

As long as I've been doing television, I've never been in a place that does this.

- We make violin, viola, cello, and then two versions of the bass bows.

- And is there a beginner bow?

– Kai Maurud: So, we have-- the variety that we have goes from the student all the way to the master line.

It's carbon fiber.

It's advanced engineering material.

- What's your background?

– Jeff Van Fossen: Aerospace engineering.

No one person has the skillsets to make something like this happen.

And it was really pretty serendipitous that three people came together, and then, were able to attract even more people to the mission.

- We mold everything back in the back.

And that's kind of the secret sauce that we keep to ourselves.

And then-- - And if I make a run for it, what are you going to do?

- [laughs] So everything's hand-sanded because quality is one of our biggest attributes at CodaBow.

And then we go into our finishing area.

So you're adding the final touches to it.

- Wow, what is that?

- It's a modified sewing machine, basically.

- She's a seamstress and a welder.

- Pang is our longest-tenured employee here.

How long have you been here, Pang?

- I think 21, 22.

- Oh, really?

- The hair is from Mongolian stallions.

She's getting it prepped to do the install into the bow.

And there it is.

Ta-dah.

- It's amazing.

- This is a master-level bow, which means this is the bow that would be preferred by somebody who's playing in a major symphony anywhere in the world.

[violin music playing] Probably 80% to 90% of players out there are what we would call bow limited.

They have greater potential in them that wants to come out, and they're limited by what connects them to their instrument.

- Yeah.

- We have something that'll connect you even better.

- This will get you past that limit.

- It'll get you past that limit.

- That's great.

- Who doesn't want to go past that limit?

- So we talked about the business boom in the early days of Winona.

And that was because of lumber and wheat.

Well, there was another industry that did really well here in the early days.

And that was an industry called the red light district.

[suggestive jazz music] That's right, there was a red light district here in Winona.

And it did well, well, thanks to the railroad and thanks to boat traffic.

I'm telling you, I guess, brothels were apparently very popular.

And the lights went out in the red light district in 1942.

And then, a lot of the places were torn down.

Some became bars.

And still others became people's homes.

Can you imagine?

Where do you live?

[i n falsetto] Well, never mind.

So I'm about to go into Yarnology.

And I thought, is there really a word or a-- What is yarnology?

Can I Google "yarnologist"?

– Gaby Peterson: It will get you nowhere but here.

- Yeah, exactly.

- It's the study of yarn.

- It is.

- Yes.

- So we did not know each other.

You think of business partners as being sisters, or girlfriends, or something.

And we had never met.

But the person who cut our hair said, "You each have the same dream.

"You talk about the same thing "when you're sitting in my chair.

You need to meet each other."

- Wow, that's amazing.

- As soon as we met each other, we knew we had truly the same dream.

- What did you call this?

– Kelly Momsen: Oh, this is a hank.

This is called a bullet.

- And these?

- Those are just like little mini hanks.

- This is hand-dyed, and they hand-dye it in this loop.

- Hand-dyed?

- Yes.

- Yes.

Machine dyed.

- Machine dyed?

- Yes.

- Your beautiful scarf that you're-- you, of course, made that?

- Um, I did not make this.

[laughter] I know.

- I saw, like, oh, my God.

Let's watch somebody do something.

- So you go through the front door, around the back, through the window, and out jumps Jack.

- And you could do this-- - --all day.

- Sleeping.

- Yes.

Yes.

- Without looking.

- Knitflixing is a thing.

People knit and watch-- binge shows on Netflix.

They knitflix.

- Do you ever knit for you?

- Yes.

- You do?

- All the time.

- Okay, wow, what a look.

She's kind of selfish, is what she's saying.

- I'm a selfish knitter, and I'm proud of it.

- Good job.

And then here?

- A huge part of our business plan is about building community.

Well, I think people need places to gather.

And what we found that surprised us was that people helped one another as they sat in community and taught each other and inspired each other.

- A lot of friendships have been made, definitely.

- Yeah.

- I bet.

- Yeah.

People just get into it, you know?

It's like yoga.

If knitting is your thing, you need it.

- Very serious conversation.

[laughter] [upbeat music] Winona, Minnesota, a river city of 26,000 people built on a sandbar, is a river city that I will never forget.

- There's nowhere else I'd rather be The heart and soul of community's right here - Urinology.

Did I say urinology?

Yeah, I did.

Ugh!

[laughter] - Where?

New England.

[stomping feet] - Ever done an interview like this, John?

- I have, but it wasn't for this show.

- Edit that out, will you?

- "John McGivern's Main Streets" thanks the following underwriters... [light music] - Remember when the American Dream was being able to say, "I made that, I built that"?

Wouldn't it be great if your kids and grandkids chose a career that provides that kind of pride with good pay but without a ton of student loan debt?

A four-year degree is n't the only path to success.

We need talented people to make and build on main streets everywhere.

Skilled work isn't a thing of the past.

It's a bright future.

[exciting music] - I'm on my way Oh, it's time to hit the road I'm on my way This is the freedom I live for [gentle acoustic music] - In Southeastern Wisconsin, there's a village... With something for everyone.

It's everywhere you look-- On every street, behind any door you open.

And we want to share it with you.

You just gotta see Greendale.

- Additional funding is provided by the Friends of Plum Media and the Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Thanks, friends!

- I read in the paper that it's low tide.

That's what I read.

But this is ridiculous.