5 miles
N.E. of Silver Bay at the Junction of Highways 1 and 61
surrounded by Tettegouche State Park and only one-half mile from
the Baptism River.
Population:
unincorporated
History:
Illgen City has been typified by a well known sign on
Highway 61 which says "Illgen City population 4, room for lots more."
Illgen City was named for the Illgen family who settled the area in
1924. When the new Highway 61 opened in January 1925, the family built
the Aztec Hotel. The hotel was about 70 x 70, and built in the style of
the Mayan Indians from Ucatan, Mexico. The hotel had twelve rooms
upstairs, a large lobby, dining area and bar on the main floor. There
was no electricity until 1937, so they had their own light plant. There
was no refrigeration, so they cut their ice at the mouth of the Baptism
River. The Aztec Hotel was the halfway stop for people traveling the
North Shore from Duluth to Grand Marais and Canada, for thirty years.
Unfortunately, the Aztec Hotel no longer exists.
