The Grain Merchants: An Illustrated History of the Minneapolis Grain Exchange [Hardcover]

Dave Kenney (Author), Walter F. Mondale (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 31, 2006

In the fall of 1881, just one year after Minneapolis surpassed St. Louis as the nation's leading producer of flour, twenty-one prominent businessmen met in the basement of a fledging bank to create one of the Mill City's most enduring commercial enterprises. Known originally as the Minneapolis Chamber of Commerce, the Minne­apolis Grain Exchange provided a market for most of the grains grown in the rich, dark soil of the Upper Midwest, particularly the much-prized spring wheat. Throughout the decades, buyers and sellers on the trading floor engaged in elaborate rituals that helped move farmer's grain to the consumer's table. As its members traded thousands, then millions, then billions of dollars in cash grains and futures, the exchange grew into one of the premier grain markets in the world. It's been 125 years since the city's first generation of business leaders--millers and manufacturers, bankers and railroad men--founded the Minneapolis Grain Exchange. What began as an essential element in the making of modern Minneapolis, as well as personal and philanthropic fortune, continues to play a vital role in the city's and the region's economic success.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dave Kenney is the author of several books on Minnesota his­tory, including the state textbook Northern Lights: The Stories of Minnesota's Past, which won the Minnesota Book Award. He holds a B.A. in political science from St. Olaf College and an M.A. in broadcast journalism from the University of Missouri- Columbia. His articles on state and regional history have appeared in MPLS.ST.PAUL Magazine, Minnesota Monthly, Minnesota Medicine, and Minnesota Law and Politics.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 216 pages
• Publisher: Afton Historical Society Press (October 31, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890434744
• ISBN-13: 978-1890434748
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 9.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #691,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dave Kenney is a freelance writer specializing in Minnesota history. After earning degrees from St. Olaf College and the University of Missouri-Columbia, he established a career in television news--first as a reporter in Asheville, North Carolina and Norfolk, Virginia, and then as a senior writer for CNN in Atlanta. In 1997, Kenney moved back to Minnesota to begin a new career as a writer of books and magazine articles. His articles on state and regional history have appeared in Minnesota Monthly, Mpls-St. Paul, Minnesota Medicine, and Minnesota Law & Politics. His books for Minnesota Historical Society Press include Northern Lights; Minnesota Goes to War; Twin Cities Album; and Twin Cities Picture Show. He also has chronicled the histories of several significant Minnesota institutions including Gustavus Adolphus College, the Minneapolis Grain Exchange, the Minnesota Telecom Alliance, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and the Northern Star Council of the Boy Scouts of America. He is a two-time winner of the Minnesota Book Award. Dave Kenney is married to Nancy Lebens, an editor with Minnesota Public Radio. They have two daughters.