It’s been a year of transformation on North House Folk School’s campus. From the moment the little yellow house took to the road, it’s taken many months and many hands to complete the Welcome Center, North House’s new building on Highway 61. Now, the finish line is in sight—the Welcome Center is officially opening to the public on Thursday, September 19, with a Community Open House from 5-7 pm. It’s a day to celebrate the many Cook County residents who were involved in the building process and have helped frame the future of the school.

“This project was truly the work of our community’s hands,” said Executive Director Greg Wright. “From the white pine milled at Hedstrom Lumber to excavating, electric work, and more done by local contractors, the Welcome Center has been a community-built project from start to finish.”

 Welcome Center

Once open, the Welcome Center will include a new and expanded School Store on the main level, two new classrooms, accessible public restrooms, and an elevator. At the Community Open House, folks are invited to step through the doors for the first time and explore the new spaces. North House will serve free cake from Crosby Bakery, and attendees can enter a free drawing for a basket of handcrafted goods by North House’s artisan instructors. Upstairs in the Loft Classroom, several of the school’s instructors will be on-site as part of the Folk Artisan Marketplace, featuring handcrafted items from basketry to beadwork to weaving. 

Folk Artisan Marketplace 

The celebrations continue in the Red Building as North House’s woodworking shop is converted into a food and music hall. The Crooked Spoon and TABLA Bake Lab will be on campus with food for purchase from 5-7 pm, with Eric Frost providing music. 

 Great Lake Swimmers

Community members are invited to stay for a celebratory concert at 7 pm under the big top tent. As part of Unplugged, Ontario band Great Lake Swimmers and Duluth band The Penny Peaches will perform an acoustic set on Thursday night. Concert tickets are available at northhouse.org, with pay-what-you-want tickets available. Unplugged festivities continue throughout the weekend, with Great Lake Swimmers returning on Friday night, as well as a free family concert and clogging workshop on Saturday morning with the Roe Family Singers. 

 Roe Family Singers 

“We hope that anyone who wants to join will come down to campus for food, music, and celebration,” Wright said. “We’re grateful to everyone who has been a part of the Welcome Center build, and we look forward to a future of connecting people with craft, community, and the Grand Marais harbor.”

Editor's Note: This article incorrectly listed the Cook County Co-op as a food vendor during the open house in the original messaging, which has since been updated.