A grand tour of the North Star State's geographical, political, and human history, including travelers' guides to historic destinations.

Winner of a Spur Award, presented by the Western Writers of America (WWA), for the Best Western Nonfiction Historical Book. Renowned historian Annette Atkins presents a fresh understanding of how a complex and modern Minnesota came into being in Creating Minnesota. Each chapter of this innovative state history focuses on a telling detail, a revealing incident, or a meaningful issue that illuminates a larger event, social trends, or politics during a period in our past. A three-act play about Minnesota's statehood vividly depicts the competing interests of Natives, traders, and politicians who lived in the same territory but moved in different worlds. Oranges are the focal point of a chapter about railroads and transportation: how did a St. Paul family manage to celebrate their 1898 Christmas with fruit that grew no closer than 1,500 miles from their home? A photo essay brings to life three communities of the 1920s, seen through the lenses of local and itinerant photographers. The much-sought state fish helps to explain the new Minnesota, where pan-fried walleye and walleye quesadillas coexist on the same north woods menu. In Creating Minnesota Atkins invites readers to experience the texture of people's lives through the decades, offering a fascinating and unparalleled approach to the history of our state.

The acclaimed history is brought up to date through placement of the political, economic, social, and cultural developments since 1963 within the larger context of national and international events

Volume 1 covers Minnesota's early development from the days of French exploration and trade with American Indians through territorial times to the eve of statehood in 1857. Volume 2 continues the story from 1858 to 1865, with emphasis on the state's participation in the Civil War and the Sioux Uprising (Dakota Conflict) of 1862. Volume 3 completes the chronological record with a comprehensive picture of Minnesota politics from 1865 to 1925. Volume 4 focuses on special topics such as iron mining, public education, the Chippewa (Ojibway), election procedures, and a dozen outstanding Minnesotans. Includes a consolidated index to Volumes 1-4.

Text and pictures portray the history of Minnesota from the Ice Age to the present.