Ampers

With the railroad expanding westward, Minnesota needed farmers and laborers to work in the new settlements along the railroad line. Minnesota State Board of Immigration member William Seeger advocated for a group of Russian Mennonites to come and live in the new settlement of Mountain Lake.

Many Minnesotans are familiar with our state bird, the loon, and state flower, the lady slipper. But did you know that milk is Minnesota’s state drink? Here’s how.

From the 1880s to the 1930s, the Finnish-language newspaper Uusi Kotimaa connected immigrant communities across Minnesota and the United States. Based largely in New York Mills, it served as a cultural lifeline for thousands of Finnish Americans.

In 1923, the University of Minnesota launched the Red Wing Project, an experiment to bring electricity to rural farmers in the state. This experiment, believed to be the first of its kind in the world, inspired 23 other states to conduct their own electrification studies and led to the establishment of the national Rural Electrification Administration.