New Book Honors the History of Crookston

MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - July 22, 2013 - PRLog -- The newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s Images of America series is Crookston from local author Kristina M. Gray. The book boasts more than 200 vintage and modern images chronicling the growth and change of this Minnesota city.

Crookston was first settled in 1872, organized in 1876 and incorporated in 1879. By 1880, the enterprising young town known as the “Queen City of the Northwest” had 1,500 inhabitants. Its location on the Red Lake River and in the fertile Red River Valley secured its tenure as the Polk County seat.

Crookston first served the northwest as a trading center, then as a grain shipping point, a lumbering center with large sawmills, a brewery and liquor distribution base, a railroad hub with terminal facilities, a roundhouse and office headquarters. It was also a banking center of the prospering northwest. By 1915, Crookston’s population of over 8,000 people made it the 14th-most-populated city in Minnesota. Images of America: Crookston allows readers to glimpse Crookston’s past by showcasing vintage images that depict the identity of the city.

Highlights of Crookston include:
•   Rarely seen images from Crookston’s past, such as photos of Crookston’s racetrack east of town, the lumber mill, brickyard factory, the old Water Works and Power Plant and other industries that have long been forgotten.
•   Information on the founding fathers of Crookston such as E.M. Walsh, Bernhard Sampson and William Anglim.
•   Showcases recognizable landmarks of the city, such as the two stone pillars on Barrette Avenue and Central and the WWI memorial on the UMC campus.
•   A portion of the author’s profits from the sale of the book will be donated to the Polk County Historical Society.

Available at area bookstores, independent retailers, and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at (888)-313-2665 or online.  

Arcadia Publishing is the leading publisher of local and regional history in the United States.  Our mission is to make history accessible and meaningful through the publication of books on the heritage of America’s people and places.  Have we done a book on your town?  Visit www.arcadiapublishing.com/.