Barberry war: Why the USDA spent more than 50 years trying to eradicate this thorny bush in Minnesota
The common barberry is an introduced plant species that was once grown as a popular ornamental bush throughout the northern half of the US.
MNopedia
From the land of sky-blue waters, a history of Hamm’s beer
Hamm’s was brewed in Minnesota for well over a century.
Minnesota conservationist Ernest Oberholtzer worked to protect the Boundary Waters
In the summer of 1909, Oberholtzer had his so-called “3,000-mile summer.” His goal was to travel the major canoe routes of the Rainy Lake watershed.
In 1953, a major inter-state prostitution case centered on northeast Minneapolis’ John’s Bar
By mid-1956, John’s Bar had lost its license, and 110 men and women had been convicted of violating the Mann Act.
How taconite became a viable commercial product
Identified in the late 19th century, it took the depletion of natural iron ores in Minnesota for low-iron taconite to come to the fore.
How the Twin City Lines bus strike transformed transit in Minneapolis and St. Paul
The strike provided the opportunity for public acquisition of the company and dramatic service improvements.
At its peak, the Oliver Iron Mining Company operated 128 mines across the Iron Range
Oliver mines were originally clustered on the eastern end of the Mesabi.
‘The Paradise of Minnesota’: The history of Whitewater State Park
The park’s official creation dates from 1919, though no land was purchased until 1921. By 1926, despite few roads and minimal park facilities, 40,000 visitors came.
Opioids trial, 1952: The downfall of Hennepin County Coroner Russell Heim
Federal drug agents had become curious about the unusual number of prescriptions for morphine and other narcotics that Heim issued from his 12 West Lake Street office.
When Gov. Orville Freeman declared martial law in Albert Lea during a packing plant strike, he didn’t just target strikers
Freeman also ordered the plant closed.
Minnesotan Albert Henry Woolson was the last surviving Civil War veteran
When Woolson enlisted in the Union Army as a private at Okaman on October 10, 1864, he was fourteen years old.
How snowmobiles launched Polaris into a nationally known company
Minnesota’s snowmobile industry was born in January 1956, when a mechanic named David Johnson assembled a prototype of a snow-going vehicle in the garage of Polaris Industries, a small machine shop in Roseau.
For almost a century, Malt-O-Meal has been made in Northfield
John S. Campbell grew up in a milling family and often ate bland hot wheat cereal. He decided to make a new breakfast food with more flavor that was easier to prepare.
Before Martha Dorsett could become Minnesota’s first female attorney, she had to get the law changed
Martha Angle Dorsett pushed bills at the Legislature that opened up legal practice to all women.
In the midst of a national rowing craze, the Minnesota Boat Club brought the sport to St. Paul
By the late 1860s, rowing had become a national craze, with professional rowers in the spotlight as the country’s first sports celebrities.
The Minneapolis-founded American Indian Movement responded to the needs of urban American Indians
It grew into an international movement whose goals included the full restoration of tribal sovereignty and treaty rights.
The 1985 Hormel strike was one of Minnesota’s most contentious labor disputes
The strikers, members of United Food and Commercial Workers’ Local P-9, cited a wage freeze, dangerous working conditions, and a wage cut as the reasons for the strike.
A bill for woman suffrage was passed by the Minnesota Legislature in 1870. It was vetoed
Senator William Lochren of Rochester protested that the governor could not legally veto a constitutional amendment bill. But an amendment vote never happened.
On June 15, 1920, a Duluth mob lynched three black men
A grand jury indicted thirty-seven white men for rioting and/or murder. Only eight, however, were tried.
Remember the game ‘Cootie’? It was made in Minnesota
Herbert W. Schaper was a mailman in Minneapolis and a fisherman who made his own lures. One day, he added six legs to a lure that he had whittled and called it a “Cootie.”
