Collecting pieces of Minnesota's past for the future
About
The Minnesota Historical Society preserves and makes available a wide range of materials chronicling Minnesota's history and culture. The goals of the Collections Department are to collect and preserve; provide access and interpretation; and engage in education and outreach. This blog is a tool to share these stories and let people know what is happening in the department.
Lewis's Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech
Today is our beloved colleague Patrick Coleman's last day before retirement.
In honor of that, we present this Little Blue Book version of Sinclair Lewis's Nobel Prize speech, published in 1931. It was entitled "The American Fear of Literature."
The goal of Little Blue Books, which were cheap and widely available in the early 20th century, was to spread great literature and ideas as widely as possible, to as many people as possible. The size was such that they would fit into one's pocket.
Enjoy retirement and keep sharing those ideas, Patrick!
Baseball Player
This photo is of a St. Paul Saints baseball player signing baseballs in 1940.
It forms part of Minneapolis and St. Paul Newspaper Negative Collection.
Hair Jewelry
Every so often we need to pause and remember that this was a thing: hair jewelry.
These pieces, including matching brooch and the earrings, were made from the hair of the donor's mother and father in the late 19th century, probably around 1880.
Hair jewelry was very popular at that time both as a memento, hobby, and fashion.
Duck Boat
This green painted wood duck boat was made by John Freet of Parker's Prairie Boat Works located in Parker's Prairie, circa 1933.
MTV
Forty years ago this past weekend MTV came upon the cable scene. We have one item relating to MTV in our collection: a 1994 promotional booklet for MTV Latino, including several envelopes containing many full color, glossy promotional sheets describing the different shows on MTV Latino, in both Spanish and English and an autographed photo of Daisy Fuentes.
We have this because it was created by Uno Hispanic Branding, a Minneapolis firm.
Ice Cream
Dog Days
It's officially the Dog Days of Summer - those days associated with prolonged stretches of heat, drought, and supposedly mad dogs?
So thinking about dogs we share this drawing from 1910 by Alice Hoag.
It is sort of reminiscent "Pokey Little Puppy," isn't it?
Free Air
This is the first British edition of Sinclair Lewis's novel "Free Air." It was published in 1925 in this beautiful dust jacket.
It tells the story of a young woman traveling from New York to the Pacific Northwest by automobile in the early 20th century.
Freighters on Lake Superior
This painting by C.J. Nordmark, titled "Freighters on Lake Superior," show a landscape consisting of blue sky, a large body of blue green water, and a shoreline of blue violet rocks. In the distance near the horizon are two small ships; lights on the ship and light illuminating the sky suggest it is night. It was painted in 1925.
Celebrating ADA!
Today, July 26, is the anniversary of the signing of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA). This act ensures equal access and opportunities for people with disabilities.
This button was created to promote the ADA in 1990, the year it was signed into law.