Publisher's Note

Hungry Mind Bookstore founder-owner David Unowsky on the Spring 2025 cover of Minnesota History. Photo copyright (c) Steve Woit.

There are many exceptional articles in the new Spring issue of Minnesota History. Historic Fort Snelling expert Hampton Smith uncovers the role of dueling at the fort and a darker side of Colonel Josiah Snelling. Local historian Paul Nelson takes book lovers and others down memory lane as he traces the impact of the beloved Hungry Mind Bookstore and its visionary owner David Unowsky. Author Rebecca Rubinstein, a longtime election judge, presents a little-known history of voting registration in Minnesota. And PhD candidate Hayden L. Nelson reviews an important new book in Midwestern history, Gentlemen of the Woods: Manhood, Myth, and the American Lumberjack by Willa Hammitt Brown. 

• celebrate author F. Scott Fitzgerald as we mark the 100th anniversary of Fitzgerald’s best-known novel, The Great Gatsby;
• detail the brazen kidnapping of prominent banker Edward G. Bremer Jr.;
• highlight the Park Rapids Library and its transformation into the Giiwedinong Treaty Rights and Cultural Museum; and
• honor dedicated MNHS volunteer Ted Stamos.

New Releases

In May we publish two timely volumes that highlight lesser-known aspects of recent history. Ka F. Wong's book launches during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month at Historic Fort Snelling, the site where many of the people interviewed in his book were housed. T Williams's memoir releases this month and will launch in June at the Sumner Library in Minneapolis, known for its African American history and culture collection.

Enmity and Empathy: Japanese Americans in Minnesota during World War II 

Ka F. Wong
Drawing on personal interviews, archival sources, and historical literature, scholar and professor Ka F. Wong explores the courageous struggles of trailblazers who left the incarceration camps in the West and rebuilt their lives in the North Star State, overcoming hostility and hardship along the way.

“Allies are always important, especially in the face of war and racism. This book looks into dark days and demons, sharing the stories of victims and naming the heroes on both sides. Ka Wong offers us a significant contribution to an important and greatly underrepresented piece of US history.” —Linda Watanabe McFerrin, author of POST-Apocalyptic Valentine

Book launch, Ka F. Wong in conversation with Sally Sudo and Karen Tanaka Lucas, May 31, 1:30 PM, Historic Fort Snelling, St. Paul

Rewind: Lessons from Fifty Years of Activism

T Williams with David Lawrence Grant
An accomplished activist’s valuable stories and insights on navigating crises, building networks, and maintaining a commitment to community—from the foment of the 1960s to today—underscore the urgency of conversations about race.

“T Williams brilliantly reveals the story of his life and accomplishments in this compelling autobiography. If you’re curious about the evolution of racial and social justice in Minnesota’s Twin Cities, if you’re curious about the organizations that moved us forward, there is no better read. Williams was at the heart of much that transpired, and he takes us inside the building of organizations and the work with corporate and political leaders. . . . This personal and intimate story is a historical masterpiece.” —Alexs D. Pate, author of Amistad

Book launch on June 15, 1:00 PM, Sumner Library, Minneapolis

Events

Twin Cities Metro

05/17/2025, 10:30 AM, Molly Beth Griffin, Rings of Heartwood: Poems on Growing, Bell Museum, Minneapolis

05/21/2025, 7:00 PM, Ben Schierer, Perpich: A Minnesota Original, Magers & Quinn Booksellers, Minneapolis

05/31/2025, 1:30 PM, Ka F. Wong, Enmity and Empathy: Japanese Americans in Minnesota during World War II, Historic Fort Snelling, St. Paul

06/07/2025, 11:00 AM, Molly Beth Griffin, Rings of Heartwood: Poems on Growing, Picture Book Parade, Midtown Global Market, Minneapolis

Greater Minnesota

5/15/2025, 6:30 PM, Ben Schierer, Perpich: A Minnesota Original, Fergus Falls Public Library, Fergus Falls

05/17/2025, 1:00 PM, Greg Gaut, The War at Home: Minnesota during the Great War, 1914-1920, Fair Trade Books, Red Wing

05/24/2025, 12:00 PM, Frank Bures, Pushing the River: An Epic Battle, a Lost History, a Near Death, and Other True Canoeing Stories, Bemidji Woolen Mills, Bemidji

06/05/2025, 2:00 PM, Greg Gaut, The War at Home: Minnesota during the Great War, 1914-1920, Watonwan County Library, St. James

06/05/2025 , 6:30 PM, Greg Gaut, The War at Home: Minnesota during the Great War, 1914-1920, New Ulm Public Library, New Ulm

In the Media

Frank Bures, Pushing the River: An Epic Battle, a Lost History, a Near Death, and Other True Canoeing Stories, "When canoeing was king: Author explores a dream era for Minnesota racing," Minnesota Star Tribune

Frank Bures, Pushing the River: An Epic Battle, a Lost History, a Near Death, and Other True Canoeing Stories, Friends of the Boundary Waters podcast

Ben Schierer with Lori Sturdevant, Perpich: A Minnesota Original, "Former Fergus Falls mayor pens book on Gov. Rudy Perpich," WDAY TV / InForum

Patrick Strait, Home Club: Up-and-Comers and Comebacks at Acme Comedy Company, "Readers and Writers," Pioneer Press

Patty Wetterling with Joy Baker, Dear Jacob: A Mother's Journey of Hope, "Wetterling, Baker speak in Windom about their book, 'Dear Jacob,'" The Globe

Noteworthy

From June 5 to 7, multiple events in the Minnesota Historical Society's network will celebrate MNHS members and volunteers with a 20% discount on purchases. On Saturday, June 7, from noon to 2:00 PM, visitors to the Minnesota History Center may chat with MNHS Press authors and recent award finalists Jokeda "JoJo" Bell, Red Stained: The Life of Hilda Simms; Cathy Coats, To Banish Forever: A Secret Society, the Ho-Chunk, and Ethnic Cleansing in Minnesota; and Christopher P. Lehman, It Took Courage: Eliza Winston's Quest for Freedom, at "Meet the MNHS Press Minnesota Book Award Finalists." 

New in MNopedia

Ulrich, Mabel S. (1876–1945)

Mabel Simis Ulrich was a public health educator, physician, author, and public figure whose pioneering work in sex education propelled her onto multiple public health commissions in Minneapolis. She contributed to the cultural scene in Minneapolis through a bookstore that she owned, and headed the Federal Writers’ Project (FWP) in Minnesota under the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the 1930s.

Washburn A Mill

Washburn A Mill was one of twenty-six Minneapolis flour mills that lined the Mississippi River below St. Anthony Falls during the city’s industrial heyday. By the early 1900s, its company (Washburn-Crosby) was the leading flour miller in Minnesota. The historic building has had five reincarnations in its more than 150 years: an original mill (1874–1878); a rebuilt second mill (1880–1924); a renovated mill (1924–1965); a warehouse (1965–1990); and a museum operated by the Minnesota Historical Society (2003–present).

Forthcoming Releases

How to Draw a Tree 

Story by David LaRochelle, illustrations by Colleen Muske
Every tree is unique, and there are many different kinds. The pages of How to Draw a Tree show a wide array of species, with the name for each tucked into the illustrations, encouraging readers to slow down, appreciate, and learn.

Through direct questions and lively examples, award-winning children’s book author David LaRochelle invites readers to explore their natural surroundings. Colleen Muske’s whimsical, vibrant illustrations help readers see trees in a new light. Drawing a tree involves getting to know your subject before even picking up a pencil. The more you look, the more you see. Beyond an art or science lesson, this book encourages young artists to go outside and spend time in nature, exploring firsthand what they plan to draw.

Pub date: August 5, 2025; book launch, August 9, 10:30 AM, Red Balloon Bookshop, St. Paul

Martin Sabo: The Making of the Modern Legislature

Lori Sturdevant
Minnesota has long been acknowledged as the state that works. Its government has been celebrated, if occasionally contested, and has been emulated by other states for decades. But today’s modern, professional state legislature was not inevitable. In the late 1960s–early 1970s Minnesota took a giant step toward a state government that fairly represents all the state’s regions and populations, one that operates in public view. 

At the center of those changes was a modest young man from tiny Alkabo, North Dakota, Martin Olav Sabo. Sabo demonstrated an understanding of representative democracy and a quality of leadership that made him a highly effective catalyst for positive change. He spent his entire adult life in public service, but it was during his years as DFL minority leader and as speaker of the Minnesota House that he did his most transformative and enduring work—remaking legislatures for the better. 

Pub date: August 19, 2025; book launch, September 11, 6:00 PM, Hagfors Center, Augsburg University, Minneapolis

Did you know MNHS has a podcast?

Bestselling Backlist

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