Fairs

Barnesville Minnesota’s Potato Days, held August 26-27, has landed a spot on Reuters list of  the Top 10 Wacky U.S. Summer Events. Potato Days, a two-day festival celebrating the starchy vegetable, involves a French Fry feed and, of course, Mashed Potato Wrestling, where participants duke it out in a vat of spuds. Check out this video for a taste of how wacky this event truly is.

Luckily for us, we don’t have to wait until August to enjoy potato festivities here in the Twin Cities. Brooklyn Park hosts their 48th annual celebration of spuds, Tater Daze, this weekend at Noble Sports Park.  Festivities kick off Thursday night with a parade starting at 6 o’clock and run all weekend long. According to the website, Tater Daze is a festival to honor the humble potato as well as to celebrate the resiliency and sense of community Brooklyn Park has held through tough historic times.

Activities for this year’s Tater Daze include the parade, fireworks, and a carnival with rides and various attractions as well as soccer and softball tournaments, 5k walk/run, battle of the bands, BP’s Got Talent competition, and an art and vendor sale.  New features include a cooking contest and, of course, mashed potato wrestling! For more information regarding Tater Daze as well as a complete list of activities, check out their online Tater Daze Guide.

If you’re  looking for a fun family-friendly event for this weekend or simply want to try your luck in mashed potato wrestling, Brooklyn Park’s Tater Daze is plenty “a-peel-ing.”

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The food, the animals, the hats, the people, the food, the rides, THE FAIR!

Minnesota’s annual summer ritual is in full swing. Want to see something new? Before you go, sharpen your eye by looking at Susan Miller’s State Fair: The Great Minnesota Get-Together, full of fresh and funny images from all across the grounds. Can’t get there this year? Her book will take you on a whirlwind virtual tour, with joyous juxtapositions of the best of the best.

Come visit the MHS Press at the State Fair on September 5th at Carousel Park for Minnesota History Day!

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It’s Moose Madness this weekend in Grand Marais, MN (Oct 16-18), and there are tons of fun moose-related events going on all three days.

For the bookish, we recommend the poetry contest. Pick up an entry form in person at Moose Central (a.k.a. Grand Marais/Gunflint Trail Visitor Information Center at  13 North Broadway) and compose your very own moose haiku or limerick.

If you feel a need to get some constructive criticism on your work, you can read it at the Mocha Moose Cafe and Poetry Salon (right next door to the visitor center) at 9 PM on Saturday. All entries are due by noon on Sunday at Moose Central.

If you are unable to travel to Grand Marais this weekend, we would be happy to post (after reviewing–we are family friendly) your moose haikus in the comments.

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Visit us at Rain Taxi’s Twin Cities Book Festival this Saturday October 10th, at the Minneapolis Community and Technical College. The day long literary festival will feature notable writers including Robert Olen Butler, Laurie Moore, Nicholson Baker and Ruth Reichl.

Recent MHS Press and Borealis Books featured on our blog will be available for purchase at a 30% discount. For more information, read the Star Tribune article about the event.

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The Minnesota State Fair Foundation and the Minnesota Historical Society Press are proud to present an exhibit of photos by Susan Lambert Miller from her book, Minnesota County Fairs: Kids, Cows, Carnies, and Chow. The exhibit runs all twelve days of the Minnesota State Fair at the J.V. Bailey House which is south of the Space Tower.

Susan will be signing her books on Sunday August 30th from 10 a.m. to Noon and Wednesday September 2 from 10:00 a.m. to Noon. Books will be available for purchase at the Bailey House.

This week’s winner of the Minnesota County Fairs quiz is Margaret from St. Cloud! She figured out what was wrong with “The Potatoe Wagon”!

Have fun at The Great Minnesota Get-Together!

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We have winners from last week’s quiz. All winners will receive a copy of either Minnesota County Fairs or State Fair. The correct answer, as winner Jean put it, is ” The winning numbers are chosen where the rooster does his business.” That is absolutely right. Gross, but right.  Other winners include Penny from New Ulm, Daphne from Minneapolis, Duke from Red Wing, and Mr. Loman from St. Paul. Thanks to everyone for playing and congratulations!

Now, for this week’s quiz question. Again, send in your answer to info-mhspress@mnhs.org and we will draw a winner out of a hat next Wednesday. Your e-mail will not be used for any purpose other than to contact you if you win. Winners will be announced right here at 10000books.org next Wednesday, 8/26. Good luck!

 The quiz question is: What is wrong with this picture? 

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The Minnesota State Fair is starting in about three weeks on August 27th. In honor of our time-honored tradition, we will be giving away three copies of Susan Lambert Miller’s new book Minnesota County Fairs: Kids, Cows, Carnies and Chow and two copies of State Fair: The Great Minnesota Get-Together for the next three weeks–starting today.

But, of course, there is a catch. You must answer three county fair questions corrrectly. If you answer correctly, your name will be thrown into a hat next Wednesday, and we will draw for our five winners winners of the week. We will have more quiz questions the next two Wednesdays (August 12 and 19th) as well. Your answers need to be e-mailed to info-mhspress@mnhs.org by 8:00 AM Wednesday, August 12. Please put “Fairs” in the subject line.

Here we go!

#1. What is the name of this event?

#2 Identify the owner of these feet.

#3 What is the purpose of the knobs?

Good luck!

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MHS Press is please to announce the publication of our new book, Minnesota County Fairs: Kids, Cows, Carnies, and Chow by Susan Lambert Miller with an introduction by Shannon Olson. Susan is also the author of Minnesota State Fair: The Great Minnesota Get-Together.

Susan went to every county fair in Minnesota, except for three, which she hopes to visit this year. For this book, she was accompanied by her daughter Elizabeth who shares her experiences.

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