A Popular History Of Minnesota

by Risjord, Norman K.

• ISBN13: 9780873515313
• ISBN10: 0873515315
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-03-30
• Publisher: Minnesota Historical Society Pr

Summary

What do Paul Bunyan, Charles Lindbergh, and Jesse Ventura have in common? Minnesota, of course! In this book, historian Norman K. Risjord offers a grand tour of the state's remarkable history. This highly readable volume details everything from the glacial formation of the land to the arrival of the Dakota and the Ojibwe people, from Minnesota's contributions to the Northern cause during the Civil War to the key players in reform politics who helped sculpt the identity the state retains today. "A Popular History of Minnesota" highlights the historical significance of Minnesota's natural resources -- the bountiful north woods, the treasured iron ranges, the impressive Mississippi waterfall on which the Mill City was built. It details the powerful marks left on the state by such luminous figures as Oliver H. Kelley, founder of the national Grange movement, Hubert H. Humphrey, champion of civil rights, and Betty Crocker, aid to homemakers everywhere. Lively side trips outline noteworthy subjects, from the Kensington runestone to the devastating forest fires of the 1890s and 1920s, from the rise of the Mayo Clinic to the preservation of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Handy traveller's guides highlight historic destinations for readers who enjoy seeing where history happened. Fast-paced and informative, with generous illustrations, this is a must-read for newcomers and established Minnesotans alike.

Author Biography

Norman K. Risjord is the author of several books, including Wisconsin: The Story of the Badger State and a biography of Thomas Jefferson. He is professor emeritus of history at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
1 Of Ice and Early Man	5	(11)
The Great Meltdown
Early Humans
The Mississippian Tradition
VISITING HISTORY
2 First Nations	16	(11)
The Dakota People
The Ojibwe People
VISITING HISTORY
SIDE TRIP THE KENSINGTON RUNESTONE
3 Explorers and Fur Traders	27	(24)
French Explorations
The Arrival of the Ojibwe
The Age of the Voyageurs
Under the American Flag
American Explorations
VISITING HISTORY
4 From Wilderness to Statehood	51	(32)
Indian Cessions and White Pioneers
Minnesota Territory
Displacing the Native Inhabitants
The Fast-Moving Frontier
The Thirty-Second State
VISITING HISTORY
5 Minnesota's Two-Front Civil War	83	(28)
From Bull Run to Shiloh
Roots of the Dakota Conflict
The Dakota War
Vengeance
From Antietam to Appomattox
VISITING HISTORY
6 Empires in Green	111	(34)
From Prairie to Wheat Belt
Spring Wheat and Barbed Wire
The Grasshopper Plagues
Empire in Pine
Frederick Weyerhaeuser and the Passing of the Logging Frontier
James J. Hill and the Great Northern Railway
Empire in Rouge
VISITING HISTORY
SIDE TRIP Paul Bunyan
7 The Age of Reform	145	(34)
Ignatius Donnelly and the Politics of Reform
The Farmers' Alliance
The Rise and Fall of the People's Party
Dawn of Progressivism
Women's Suffrage and Prohibition
VISITING HISTORY
SIDE TRIP The Atlantic Crossing: An Immigrant's Story
8 The Birth of a Liberal Tradition	179	(28)
The Nonpartisan League and Wartime Repression
Birth of the Farmer-Labor Party
Progress and Poverty in the Booming Twenties
The Depression, the New Deal, and Farmer-Labor Leadership
Harold Stassen and New Model Republicanism
VISITING HISTORY
SIDE TRIP God's Fault or the Railroads'? The Cloquet Fire of 1918
9 Maverick in the Mainstream	207	(25)
World War II
Hubert Humphrey and the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
Hubert Humphrey and Civil Rights
The Ebb and Flow of a Liberal Consensus
The Ultimate Maverick
VISITING HISTORY
10 Minnesota Exceptionalism	232	(35)
The Mayo Clinic
"Which Way Is Ireland?": Lindbergh's Flight Across the Atlantic
Words and Music in the Twin Cities
The State Park System
The Boundary Waters
The Taconite/Reserve Controversy
VISITING HISTORY
Suggestions for Further Reading	267	(4)
Appendix: A Guide to Visiting History	271	(4)
Index	275