Bohemian Flats - Bohemian Flats Currently

Bohemian Flats Currently

On the University of Minnesota West Bank, several Lipa Slovak Dancers gather by the Mississippi River for demonstrations on Bohemian Day (August 20). Their music and dancing fill the air on the grounds of the previous Bohemain Flats below the Washington Avenue Bridge, which once housed immigrants from the Bohemian region of Eastern Europe.

Bohemian Day was organized by artists and Bohemian Gera Pobuda to celebrate the traditions as well as the immigrants who lived in the Bohemian Flats during the first three decades of the 20th century. These immigrants included Czechs, Slovaks, Germans, Scandinavians, Irish, and Italians. The Lipa Slovak Dancers dress in traditional costumes all made by a woman from Slovakia. The Lipa Slovak group is named after the national tree of Slovakia, the linden tree in North America. They perform several times per year at events such as Czech festivals and the Festival of Nations.

The organizers want to remember the Bohemian Flats and its residents and also want to talk about the American immigrant experience in general.