This Minnesota Landmark is 6 Times Bigger Than When It First Opened

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This Minnesota landmark is celebrating its 60th anniversary this month, and it is now six times bigger than when it first opened.

When you think of classic Minnesota landmarks, what comes to mind? Maybe Target Field or the IDS Tower in Minneapolis... the state capitol building in St. Paul... or even the Mayo Clinic Plummer Building here in Rochester are all classic Minnesota landmarks.

But THIS landmark in the Land of 10,000 Lakes is one that is 60 years old this month-- and is now a whopping seven times bigger than when it first opened its doors back in 1962. Do you know what it is?

It's the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP). Or, more specifically, Terminal 1 at MSP, which originally opened on January 13th, 1962. MSP noted the anniversary on its website earlier this month:

In 1962, the opening of Terminal 1 – with its signature folded-plate roof -- was heralded as a landmark event that would modernize the travel experience for the 1.8 million passengers who were being served annually. A key design component included placing passenger services on the upper level, and baggage claim and transportation services on the lower level.

Part of that original Terminal 1 are STILL in operation at MSP today. If you've been through Concourses E or F at MSP, you've been through them. Of course, they've been remodeled several times over the past 60 years.

In fact, MSP's entire footprint is quite a bit bigger than it was 60 years ago. MSP noted the increase, saying that "2.4 million square feet of interior space has been added since 1962, more than six times the size of the original structure."

Which makes sense, seeing as MSP said that over 39 million passengers used Minnesota's biggest airport in 2019-- just a little more than the 1.8 passengers the original MSP served back in 1962.

So, shout-out to MSP-- a Minnesota landmark that's been named one of the Best Airports in the World recently, too. It's no secret that we pride ourselves on great facilities like MSP here in Minnesota, right? And speaking of secrets, keep scrolling to check out five 'ghost kitchens' that aren't a secret in Rochester anymore, either.

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