Gus Young Brought Bowling to Edina

The large sign above the Grandview-area bowling alley featured a spinning bowling ball and pin that said “Biltmore Lanes,” but the Edina hotspot was more commonly known as Gus Young’s. And it’s no wonder. Gus Young was the larger-than-life personality behind the business, and “full of optimism, ideas and daring,” according to the Gustavus Adolphus College Hall of Fame, where Young coached the basketball team to a three-year championship run, 1954-1956. He brought that spirit to Edina, where he built what Minnesota Bowling called “one of the most modern bowling centers in the Twin Cities at the time” with 32 lanes, automatic pin-setters, lighted telescores, and a pro shop operated by Twin Cities bowling legend Leo Mann. Ever the entrepreneur, Young started bowling leagues in area high schools, and students bused to Biltmore Lanes for physical education classes. Mothers dropped their children off at the onsite nursery and bowled in daytime leagues. Billiards and a 3.2 pub attracted a nighttime crowd. With bowling at the height of its popularity, Young soon opened a second bowling alley, Southdale Lanes, near Southdale mall. “Gus was a decent bowler, but his contribution to the sport went beyond his skills,” wrote Randy Ooney for Minnesota Bowling. “Gus believed in the value of youth sports, whether it be bowling, basketball, baseball, and since it was the ’60s in Edina, I suppose I should mention hockey.” Young died in 1977. Today, Starbucks customers drive through what was once the bowling alley. Davanni’s was built in the former parking lot. But Gus Young lives on in a street that bears his name: Gus Young Lane travels by what once were 32 lanes of fun in Edina.  & For more views of Edina landscapes past and present, visit the “EdinaScapes” exhibit at the Edina History Museum, now showing through December 31. For more info about the show, a partnership with the Edina Art Center, see edinahistoricalsociety.org.