The finish is located in Canal Park, near Grandma's Restaurant, which is next to the highly visible Aerial Lift Bridge.

[3] Scott Keenan, a member of the North Shore Striders running group, had the idea to start a marathon from Two Harbors to Duluth but was turned down by local banks and businesses in 1976.

[4] The newly opened Grandma's Restaurant was the only local business that would sponsor the then-fledgling event, providing $600 out of a race budget between $600 and $1200.

[13][14] Bjorklund wore leather shoes for most of the race which proved to be slippery, changing them into a pair with "more bounce" in front of a supper club called London House in Duluth.

[17] Aid stations in the 1977 through 1980 races offered water and a sports drink called ERG, which stood for electrolyte replacement with glucose.

[21][22][23] Grandma's Marathon is now run by almost 20,000 participants every year, has nearly a $2 million operating budget and is credited with increasing tourism within the city of Duluth.

[27][28] After high numbers in the 1990s and 2000s, 2009 was the first time in 15 years that all of the 9,500 available spots were not filled, leading to a deficit in the race budget.

Executive director Scott Keenan suggested that the economy was the main reason for the downturn in participants.

[36][37][38][39] In 1986, an eight year old named Erin Seitz was volunteering at an aid station at Grandma's Marathon and was injured when a van struck her.

[50] In 2020, Grandma's Marathon added a woman to its official logo in a move organizers said was "long over-due.

Race officials monitored the spread of COVID-19 in the state, and as the count of infected grew in St. Louis County, concerns mounted.

[52][53] In 2023, Grandma's Marathon announced the Running to Common Ground program which offers 500 discounted entries to underrepresented communities and cultures.

Early Saturday morning, the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, kicks off, sending more than 7,000 runners south on Scenic Route 61 to Duluth.