One hundred years of remarkable Minnesota stories are brought together for the first time in Minnesota’s Twentieth Century. A collection of writings and interviews that originated with the popular feature “A Century of Stories” in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, this book reveals the progress of a courageous, industrious people and their changing state.

In Minnesota’s Twentieth Century, we read personal stories: of the Prohibition-era cab driver selling moonshine on the streets of St. Paul; of the Hill sisters’ struggle to survive the Great Depression in western Minnesota; of the effects of two generation-defining World Wars; of the “Iron Lady,” influential Chisholm journalist Veda Ponikvar; of Clarence Forester of north Minneapolis, who fought in the Spanish Civil War; of the Vietnam War, and its meaning to a soldier returning home in 1968 and to a war-torn relocated Vietnamese family; and of the experiences of the state’s most prominent politicians, renowned athletes, and notorious criminals.

We also read of the century’s tragedies and social dramas: the Milford Mine disaster of 1924, racial discrimination and the struggle for equality, and the farm crisis of the past two decades and its continuing effect on Minnesota’s rural communities.

Lavishly illustrating these recollections are indelible images—contemporary photographs of the storytellers, as well as historical views of street scenes, prohibition arrests, and landscapes—that reflect the transformations of the past one hundred years.

Minnesota’s Twentieth Century is rich with the sound of Minnesota voices. It is a book for history buffs, lovers of regional lore, and anyone who is moved by vivid tales of hardship and heroism, happiness and humor-a perfect end-of-the-century memento for Minnesota readers.

Published by the University of Minnesota Press in cooperation with the St. Paul Pioneer Press.

Awards

$19.95 paper ISBN 978-0-8166-3429-3
224 pages, 122 b&w plates, 8 X 10, 2001