Created in 1987, Mainstreet Radio held a mission of reporting specifically from rural Minnesota to all of Minnesota. With an introductory staff of Rachel Reabe, Leif Enger, and John Biewen, the group developed both long and short form news features as part of MPR Journal and Morning Edition broadcasts. As the years progressed, Mainstreet Radio expanded both in reporter contributions and programming, with memorable work from the likes of Mark Steil and Catherine Winter, amongst others. Beginning in the 1990s, Mainstreet Radio presented a monthly two-hour special, focusing on issues outside the Twin Cities metro. The varied Mainstreet Radio programming ran into the mid-2000s.
Mainstreet Radio presented a breadth of topics, providing an avenue for individuals from all walks of life to be heard. These efforts garnered numerous journalistic awards, including 65 national and regional awards in its first 10 years (1987-97).
Award-winning material in “special programs,” “series,” or “documentary” categories include Meth in Minnesota; Against the Grain; Dancing on Beat: Portrait of a Reservation Family; After the Flood; An Education in Diversity; Rekindling the Spirit: The Rebirth of American Indian Spirituality; Wilderness Truce: Ely 10 Years Later; Making the Grade: Rural schools the work; The Rural School Challenge; Broken Trust: Civil Rights in Indian Country; Gold: New Prospects on the Iron Range; and Articles of Faith.
Award-winning material in the category of “reporting” include Frog Music; Pumpkinland; Four Winds Treatment Center; Deer Hunting Weekend; Border Check for Poachers; Mille Lacs Fishing Launch; Loon Habitat; House Call Doctor; Geritol Frolics; Cartwright's Calendar; Ice-Fishing on Mille Lacs; Mercury Fillets; and A Place for the Wolf.
June 1, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio's Cara Hetland reports that creating a performance hall is not just design and construction...acoustical engineering has become a science all its own. With the opening of the Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science in Sioux Falls, the city's oldest high school is the shell of the country's newest and only multi-use center. It houses a children's science and discovery center, a visual arts center, and a performing arts center.
June 2, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio’s Marisa Helms reports on the Brainerd High School Choir and their year-end performance of Sarah Hopkin’s “Past Life Melodies.” All year long, the choir's been working on the unique piece featuring aboriginal sounds from Australia. The decidedly NOT-WESTERN music has been educational in all sorts of ways.
June 9, 1999 - First in a two-part series on Devils Lake, Mainstreet Radio’s Dan Gunderson reports on the changes that have taken place to lake in northeast North Dakota, which has risen nearly 25 feet in the past six years. The lake has no natural outlet to release water and above normal precipitation in recent years has raised the lake to levels not seen in recorded history.
June 10, 1999 - Second in a two-part series on Devils Lake, Mainstreet Radio’s Dan Gunderson reports on the concerns and plans for the lake in northeast North Dakota, which has risen nearly 25 feet in the past six years. Officials say with time running out, they are prepared to take drastic action. North Dakota officials say building an outlet now will control the water….but outlet plans have been stopped by opposition from Minnesota, Canada, and environmental groups.
June 22, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio’s Leif Enger reports that the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe are looking ahead at a future without gaming. Like many Indian tribes, the Mille Lacs Ojibwe got an enormous boost from gaming in the 1990s. Its two casinos brought in millions of dollars annually, and hundreds of new jobs. Now the Band is trying to broaden its economy.
June 28, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio's Cara Hetland reports on a product using processed cow blood as a blood substitute. It is in final trial stages and already in use in veterinarian clinics.
July 9, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio’s Leif Enger interviews Wayne Johnson, author of the crime novel "Don't Think Twice." The hero of book, Paul Two Persons, is a Ivy-League educated Chippewa, and owns a remote lodge on Lake of the Woods. Two Persons finds himself in serious trouble when he returns to the reservation he grew up on. The book relies heavily on the land and waters of northern Minnesota, and the traditions of the Indians who live there.
July 28, 1999 - A Mainstreet Radio special broadcast from the International Wolf Center in Ely. Rachel Reabe hosts a discussion about wolves with Bill Route, a wildlife biologist at the International Wolf Center; Ron Refsnider, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist; Mike Don Carlos, wildlife specialist with Minnesota DNR; and State Senator Gary Laidig.
July 28, 1999 - A Mainstreet Radio special broadcast from the International Wolf Center in Ely. Rachel Reabe hosts a discussion about black bears with Dave Garshelis, of the Minnesota DNR; Lynn Rogers, a bear researcher; and Bill Lea, president of American Bear Association. Program begins with a report on bears in Minnesota from MPR's Leif Enger.
August 5, 1999 - A Mainstreet Radio special broadcast of Minnesota Citizens Forum, live from FarmFest in Redwood Falls. In the first hour of program, Minnesota Farm Radio Network’s Tom Rothman hosts a discussion of the importance of a strong rural economy to Minnesota.