Expert Essay: Teresa Peterson (Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota) and Walter LaBatte Jr. (also Sisseton-Wahpeton) examine the experiences of Dakota people in Mni Sota Makoce, their spiritual homeland.

Expert Essay: Thomas D. Peacock, member of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe and author of many books and articles on Ojibwe history and culture, reflects on the Ojibwe influence on Minnesota, from language, literature, and the arts to education, economics, and politics.

Theatre de la Jeune Lune was a theater company formed in 1978 in Paris by Dominique Serrand, Barbra Berlovitz, and Vincent Gracieux, all of whom studied at the École Internationale de Théâtre with Jacques Lecoq. In 1985 it moved to Minneapolis, where it grew to include actor and co-artistic director Steven Epp. The company was renowned for its ensemble work and experimental plays and won a Tony Award for best regional theater in 2005. After the economic recession of 2008, it found itself in debt and was forced to close.

In 1939, Frederick McKinley Jones patented the world’s first successful refrigerated transportation system. At the time, he was working for the Minneapolis-based company U.S. Thermo Control. Two years later, he released an improved version, the Model C, which revolutionized the agriculture and military industries.

On August 13, 1898, the Thirteenth Minnesota Infantry regiment led an American advance against Spanish forces holding the Philippine city of Manila. Their participation was crucial to the outcome of this important Spanish-American War battle.

Clark W. Thompson was a businessman and politician who founded the town of Wells, Minnesota, in 1870. As superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Northern Superintendency during the US–Dakota War of 1862, he was involved in crooked business practices and corrupt political dealings—a man of industry who used his position and power to build wealth at the expense of Native populations.

The Thorstein Veblen Farmstead is a historic landmark in Nerstrand, Minnesota. From 1866 until 1888, it was the primary home of Thorstein Veblen (1857–1929), a son of Norwegian immigrants who would become a world-renowned economist and social scientist. His most famous work, The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899), introduced the term “conspicuous consumption.” The ten-acre farmstead was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975, and designated a National Historical Landmark in 1981.

The Tibetan American Foundation of Minnesota is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization with members living in and around Twin Cities. Since its inception in 1992, it has transformed into a full-fledged social and cultural hub through events held at its headquarters, the Tibetan Community Cultural Center in St. Paul. It strives to preserve Tibetan identity, culture, and tradition, as well as to spread peace and compassion through social services in and around the Twin Cities.

When Congress enacted the Timber Culture Act of 1873, many hoped that giving settler-colonists deeds to public lands in return for growing trees would reshape the environment of the West. However, legal loopholes meant that most of the tree claims filed under the Timber Culture Act were never planted with trees. Fraudulent claims and wild speculation meant that the act was repealed less than twenty years after it was enacted.

Motivated by his desire for a reliable cafeteria breakfast at the Stillwater, Minnesota, factory where he worked, Charles P. Strite designed an innovative pop-up bread toaster in 1919. After Strite modified his commercial-grade model for home use, the Toastmaster quickly made its way into kitchens nationwide.

Minnesota’s scenic beauty, more than 11,000 lakes, and favorable summer climate have attracted tourists for nearly 200 years. The tourism industry flourished between World War I and 1930, when Minnesota developed its reputation as the Land of 10,000 Lakes and one of the nation’s premier summer vacation destinations.