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I just finished Lynchings in Oklahoma: Vigilantism and Racism in the Twin Territories and Oklahoma, 1830-1930 by Charles Clark Kiktode.

I found the book very informative, and, at times, surprizing. For example, I had assumed when I chose this book that the lynchings described would be racially motivated - most were - however, I had been unaware that crimes like horse theft would lead to mob violence and lynching.

I was disappointed that little information was included about the broader social context that these events occurred in. For the most part, the author listed the known lynchings that occurred with as much information he could find about those particular cases.

Whoa, Caralen, what timing! I just finished my local lore book as well.

Old Crow Wing: History of a Village By Sister Bernard Coleman, Sister Verona LaBud, and John Humphrey. (Originally published 1967. Republished 2000.)

Since this is printed locally and there's no ISBN to link to, allow me to quote a couple of things about the book itself...

BACK COVER BLURB: The Village of Crow Wing was on of the first settlements in greater Minnesota. Established near the mouth of the Crow Wing River on the east back of the Mississippi, this is its story from the initial beginnings to its eventual demise and final rebirth as Crow Wing State Park.

NOTE FROM THE 2000 EDITOR: The story as written here was originally published over three decade ago by two Catholic Sisters and a Brainerd historian. These three spent countless hours pouring through manuscripts, interviewing, and digging through archives in museums across the state. Theirs was truly a labor of love. Some of the writing may not necessarily be seen as correct or proper phrasing or usage, or may seem just a bit "bumpy." It is with respect for their work, however, that we have taken no liberties with the original copy except for a few spelling corrections for clarification, and an addition to the back of the book to bring readers somewhat up-to-date. A few of the original photos are no longer available, so some replacements have been made to keep the book as visually appealing as possible.

As far as my reactions to this book, give a me few days. Frankly, I'm pooped from working overtime at work and am still not out of the woods yet. (Which ties right in with my region in Northern Minnesota!) So, I'll be back to write a few sentences about what I liked and learned.

Let me get my couple of criticisms out of the way. The editors' 'update' at the back-of-the-back was so lacking, I don't know why they bothered. It was basically a paragraph that can be summed up as, 'Oh, by the way, you can visit the site at Crow Wing State Park.There is one original building and a restored church.' Not even directions to the park or how to contact them. Visiting the state park years ago is how I found out about this ghost town. There is a bit more info listed at the park's official webpage, and an informative article about the Red River Trail by Minnesota Conversation magazine.

The other, major, thing this book was lacking was a decent map. There is a state map of various areas of cession by the Native Americans and the treaty years. Considering how this whole region was depandant on it's waterways, you'd think someone (in either 1967 or in 2000) would've put in a map that showed the local rivers and lakes constantly referred to in the text. I think both the authors and the recent editors assume 'everyone' knows the area. Then again, I'm a map fanatic, so I almost take it personally when maps are overlooked.

I read Wild and Wacky Lompoc by Harry J. Crompe.  It is a light-hearted collection of stories having to do with people and events in the community over the years.  It was not a serious history book, but in spite of that I was suprised to see how much I actually learned about the earlier days of the community.