Customer Reviews

History of the Finns in Michigan (Great Lakes Books)

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I bought this book as a reference. It sounded dreary, but I figured it would answer occasional questions.

Instead, it was quite fascinating in a variety of ways. It dealt with the background of Michigan's Finnish immigration (the first and biggest 19th c. migration stream), the decline of the tar trade as sailing ships became obsolete, the dreadful winters and crop failures of the late 1860s.

The settlement of small communities is detailed -- interesting to Upper Peninsula people. I had to stop before the meaty chapters on the Apostolic Finns and the politics and purposes of the 20th c. cooperative movement, headquartered in Superior, Wisconsin. Its relics can be seen throughout Finnish rural areas of Upper Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

Probably the author's bi-cultural perspective, being a native of Finland transplanted to Suomi College in Hancock, Michigan, makes this such an interesting book.

This book is a classic, one of those books that simply becomes "the Bible" of its topic. There has been recent additional work in this field -- about Finns who live in Michigan -- and none of it stands up to scrutiny, especially when compared to this.

If you are a Finn in Michigan or are interested in studying them, this is the book to buy.