Death’s Door: The Truth Behind the Italian Hall Disaster and the Strike of 1913 (Second Edition) by Steve Lehto

Cover of the book "Death's Door: The Truth Behind the Italian Hall Disaster and the Strike of 1913" by Steve Lehto, Second Edition. Features a sepia-toned photograph of a cross-shaped shadow in a doorway.

Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Steve Lehto’s “Death’s Door: The Truth Behind the Italian Hall Disaster and the Strike of 1913 (Second Edition)” offers a detailed account of the 1913 Christmas Eve mayhem and the corruption behind the strike in the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan. The peninsula is located in the northwestern…

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Gentlemen of the Woods: Manhood, Myth, and the American Lumberjack, by Willa Hammitt Brown

Book cover of "Gentlemen of the Woods" by Willa Hammit Brown features an illustration of a lumberjack holding an axe beside a tree. The title and subtitle "Manhood, Myth, and the American Lumberjack" are displayed on the right against a plaid background.

Review by Mack Hassler                   “Therefore it was called Babel because there the Lord confused the language of all.” Genesis 11:9 A good scholarly writer is needed, especially when there are multiple voices on a topic.  Willa Brown began working on Gentlemen of the Woods for her dissertation at the…

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Piracy on the Great Lakes: True Tales of Freshwater Pirates by Mikel B. Classen

The image is a book cover titled "Piracy on the Great Lakes: True Tales of Freshwater Pirates" by Mikel B. Classen. The cover features a vintage photo of a ship's deck and railing, with an endorsement from author Sue Harrison at the bottom.

Reviewer: Sharon Brunner Mikel B. Classen’s “Piracy on the Great Lakes: True Tales of Freshwater Pirates” offers thought-provoking information about piracy, including attacking, robbing, and hijacking various types of watercraft and their crew. Piracy has occurred on the Great Lakes since the 1700s. Voyageurs in canoes transporting tons of furs…

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The Unsolved Mysteries of Father Marquette’s Many Graves by Jennifer S. McGraw

Review by Tyler R. Tichelaar Jennifer McGraw has compiled a treasure trove of information about Father Marquette’s life, burial, and various unburials and reburials in The Unsolved Mysteries of Father Marquette’s Many Graves. The story of Father Marquette’s graves—yes, multiple graves—ranges from his death in 1675 to the most recent…

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From Indigenous Names to Brockway Mountain — New historical reference books!

Indians and Other Misnomers of the Upper Great Lakes: The True Indigenous Origins of Geographic Place Names, by Phil Bellfy (Modern History Press, Ann Arbor, MI 2023), 154 pages pbk, $25.95. Brockway Mountain Stories: The History of Brockway Mountain Drive and Keweenaw Mountain Lodge, by Paul LaVanway (Mudminnow Press, Copper…

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Too Much Sea for Their Decks: Shipwrecks of Minnesota’s North Shore and Isle Royale by Michael Schumacher

Too much sea for their rocks by michael schumacher.

Reviewer by Sharon Brunner Michael Schumacher in his book Too Much Sea For Their Decks brought to life the remarkable history of shipping on the Great Lakes. He clearly delineated the perils faced by captains and the crews of shipwrecked schooners, wooden freighters, steel-hulled steamers, passenger vessels, whalebacks, and bulk…

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