Minnesota probably owes more to Scandinavians than to any other one foreign group. They came from countries where illiteracy was extremely low. Their traditions were of thrift, respect for both intellectual and physical effort, and interest in government, and they combined to an unusual degree love of individual freedom and talent for co-operating with their neighbors. Swedes, Norwegians, and Danes have cleared Minnesota's land, built up its agriculture and dairying, laid its railroads, endowed many colleges, organized and supported its co-operatives, and contributed outstandingly to the cultural and industrial life. During the 1880's their combined numbers made up half of all the foreign-born in the State. Now, when the proportion of the foreign-born has been reduced from 71 to only a little more than 15 percent, almost half of that number continues to be Scandinavian, and there is not an industry, profession, or art in which the repeated occurrence of Scandinavian names does not represent the part played by these people. In the field of politics Governors Lind, Johnson, Nelson, Olson, Congressman Lindbergh, and many lesser-known Scandinavian figures have had a large share in Minnesota's story.
Sweden's political, social, and religious unrest were undoubtedly important factors in bringing the first Swedes to America. In 1846 Peter Cassel brought his little party of 21 to Iowa, and to him the Middle West frontier apparently was a veritable land of Canaan. His series of American Letters, published in the local newspapers of Sweden and handed on from cottage to cottage, played a large part in the immigration of individuals before the great tidal wave got under way. Not only did these letters portray a land as fabulous as Marco Polo's own, but most potent of all was the appeal made by their descriptions of the democracy that obtained in the new country. Caste lines in Sweden were severely restrictive, and here was a land where everyone was a landlord and servants sat down to table with the masters. From the first, Swedes liked Minnesota and in a few weeks felt themselves Americans.
It is said that of all the foreign groups Swedes are the most readily assimilated. They came from rural districts and went at once to the land. More than two million acres in the State are said to have been cultivated by them. Later they came from the cities, and settled in St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Duluth to make up much of the bulk of the population. They endowed three colleges and sent thousands of their children to the State University. Although there is no county where they have not settled, their main stronghold is still where they early established it, in east-central Minnesota
Norwegians rarely settled in areas of Swedish concentration. The Norse were great favorites in the lumbering industry, and when they had made money enough in the timber they bought their farms in the Red River valley and in some of the southeastern counties. Their admirable a cappella choir singing has been one of the most original of their contributions. Two of the State's most distinguished artists, F. Melius Christiansen and O. E. Rolvaag, have come from the faculty of St. Olaf College at Northfield.
It is largely due to the Danes that Minnesota has achieved its enviable position as a leader in butter and other dairy products. Thousands who came into the State from Denmark after the Civil War brought with them a knowledge of dairying beyond anything the Americans had known.
They settled first in the southeastern part of the State, later in the north and now are fairly widely distributed. In religion, as in all their convictions, they were independent spirits and were aligned to a variety of denominations--Lutherans of two types (Inner Mission and Grundtvigians) Baptists, Methodists, and Adventists. The Danes have a strong predilection for self-help, and this has led them to organize many societies and to take a leading part in the development of the State's many cooperatives. Their folk school at Tyler is still widely used, and their home for Danish old people in Minneapolis is an eloquent witness to an understanding charity. Here both men and women are permitted to live as freely as they would in their own homes, and are even provided with weekly pocket money to assure a feeling of financial dignity.
Owing no doubt to their recent arrival, the Finns have clung most tenaciously to Old World traditions. Deeply suspicious of all imposed government, they have bent their energies to the building up of their own co-operatives, and with the Danes are responsible for Minnesota's outstanding success in this social experiment. Strong and well built, they have provided the State with some of its finest athletes. They were drawn to the northern region by the lumbering and mining industries, but for the most part have regarded these as only the temporary means whereby they will be able to purchase a little land--the dream of all Finns. Surrounded by their own people, their saunas, and a few cows, they strive to bring up their children in their cherished traditions of thrift and independence. With the Scandinavians, they strongly support temperance movements and have provided leaders in this cause. If those of the older generation still sing the folksongs and recite the charms of their childhood, it is only among their contemporaries, for to their American grandchildren these have little or no meaning.
Many nationality groups beside the Scandinavians have made contribution
to Minnesota's history, but the people have been
quick to discard their ancestral language, dress, and folk customs, for
those of the Americans whose standards of living they have
adopted.
