This handy travel guide presents the locations and texts of 254 historic markers, 60 geological markers, and 29 historic monuments in all corners of the state and is the perfect traveling companion for your next road trip.

81 maps and 150 historical photographs take you from the "Little Switzerland" of southeast Minnesota to the Red River oxcart trails of the northwest, and show you why this state is such a fascinating place; includes history, anecdotes and landscapes of the towns and countryside along 14 major highways.

Due to popular demand, these classic guides to the highways and back roads of Minnesota and Wisconsin are back in print. The unique purpose behind these previously hard-to-find travel companions is to explore the history of towns along the most well-traveled highways in both states. The reader will learn the stories behind the road signs -- not only why towns formed where they did and how they were named, but also local anecdotes, historical accounts, and personal glimpses. Each volume is enlivened by maps, illustrations, and historical photographs. Among the fascinating stories is that of Hibbing, Minnesota, which at one point had to be moved several miles because of its location atop rich deposits of iron ore; later this same town gave birth to the Greyhound Bus Line. Another story describes how the young Jefferson Davis fell in love with Zachary Taylor's daughter, Sarah Taylor, on Pine Island in Wisconsin. Sarah died of malaria three months after their marriage, leaving Davis heartbroken. Shortly thereafter, he moved to the South, where he later gained lasting fame as president of the Confederate Army.

"Construction plans for the reroute of Highway 55 through south Minneapolis sparked an environmental movement that pitted activists against public authorities in one of the most dramatic episodes in the city's history. Mary Losure was there: as a reporter for Minneapolis Public Radio she witnessed the neighborhood's transformation from a quiet street to the center of an emotionally charged standoff. Fueled by idealism and anger, a diverse coalition of Native Americans, neighborhood residents, and young anarchists banded together to try to stop the highway expansion. Beginning in 1998, this group sustained protests for more than a year and eventually faced an unprecedented show of force by law enforcement." "Through her detailed account of this struggle, Losure explores the roles of ecoanarchism and grassroots activism in the age of globalization. This subculture, brought to the spotlight during protests over the World Trade Organization in Seattle and Genoa, has been largely undocumented in the mainstream press. With a practical reporter's eye, Mary Losure portrays the activists' experiences and the establishment's view of them, ultimately revealing the power of the existing order and the fragility and absolute necessity of dissent."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Driving on Highway 61 through Minnesota provides a rare opportunity for one to see virtually every type of landscape in the North Star State. Along the highway's path are pastoral farms and towering bluffs, as well as the largest of the Great Lakes, Lake Superior. There are picturesque small towns and populous cities, yet stretches of the highway have been abandoned. Despite Highway 61's east-west counterpart Route 66 getting more attention, the north-south byway is arguably the most fascinating stretch of road in the country. Throughout the highway's history, music lovers, foodies, and thrill seekers alike have discovered its fun and uniqueness. The 1,400-mile highway signals where the West begins and has a fabulous history that can be traced from the civil rights movement to the development of various genres of music, including jazz, blues, and alternative rock. Famous Americans such as Mark Twain, Bob Dylan, Jessica Lange, and even Kermit the Frog keep the highway in the national psyche.