April is an exciting time in the State Archives. The month includes two weeks that are relevant to archival collections. National Library Week (April 7–13), promoted by the American Library Association, raises awareness of the importance of libraries and their staff to our communities. National Library Preservation Week (April 22–28) raises awareness of preserving items held in library collections across the country.

This year’s theme for National Library Week is “Libraries = Strong Communities.” With this in mind, a couple of unique examples from our library collection stand out.

First, the oldest cataloged item in our library collection is a 1749 published report related to the Hudson’s Bay Company. This is a beautiful example of mid-18th century publishing. Entitled Report from the Committee Appointed to Enquire into the State and Condition of the Countries Adjoining to Hudson’s Bay and of the Trade Carried on There, the report deals with the land granted to the Hudson’s Bay Company, which included parts of present-day North Dakota that fell within the bay’s drainage basin. The trade in furs and skins is noted, as well as other aspects of trade with Native Americans in the region.

It is fascinating to consider that when the report was published, Great Britain and France still vied for control of North America. George Washington was a teenager, and many of our nation’s Founding Fathers were still children — some not even born yet.

Pages 216-217 of Report from the Committee Appointed to Enquire into the State and Condition of the Countries Adjoining to Hudson’s Bay and of the Trade Carried on There (1749). Photo by Daniel Sauerwein

Another unique book in our library holdings is The Kindergarten Book (1906). At first glance, one might think this book deals with educating youngsters, but its subject matter is not as innocent as the title implies. It was a publication of the Kindergarten Club, a group of powerful political figures in early North Dakota history. Signatures in the front of the book include Judson LaMoure, one of the first legislators in North Dakota. The Club also included North Dakota politicians Alexander McKenzie and Jerry Bacon, as well as Govs. Louis B. Hanna and Elmore Sarles.

The book is full of poetry and boisterous drinking songs set to popular melodies of the day. The contents of the book denote a group of men who engaged in raucous partying, drinking, and gambling, and perhaps some behind-the-scenes power politics.¹

Pages 28-29 of the The Kindergarten Book (1906). Photo by Daniel Sauerwein.

While we actively engage in preservation of items every day in the Archives, one special activity that some staff engage in is book repair. Sarah Walker, head of reference in the Archives, wrote an earlier blog post on what goes on when the repair group gets together. She noted that it is not a service provided to patrons, but is something the staff does to keep heavily used materials in our collections accessible for future generations as long as possible.

Repairs usually involve gluing loose pages back in place, or shoring up binding, but some are more involved and require the rebinding of the book with special tape. Books deemed too fragile for such repairs are instead housed in phase boxes to protect them from as much wear and tear as possible. The repair efforts do not restore the book completely, but are important to keeping the documented information around for future generations.

As you can see, the State Archives is more than individual pieces of paper or photographs. We also have books that illustrate the changing political history of North Dakota. When those books show signs of frequent use by researchers and need some love and attention, our staff does what it can to keep them around and available for years to come. Each spring, a season of growth and rebirth, we look forward to new additions to our State Archives collection and to repairing items in need.

¹¹ “Kindergarten Club Records, 1906, 1971 Collection Overview,” Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections, Chester Fritz Library, accessed April 1, 2019, https://apps.library.und.edu/archon/index.php?p=collections/findingaid&id=858&q=Kindergarten+Club.

There’s an old cliché that “history is written by the winners,” and it’s an uncomfortable fact that the winners — culturally, socially, and economically — have mostly been men. The result is a historical narrative biased toward men’s deeds with an often deafening silence surrounding women’s accomplishments. Women, however, have always been a part of making history. In recent years women’s stories have come to light and are adding to, if not rewriting, part of our shared history. Here are just a few remarkable women from North Dakota’s past.

Dr. Fannie Dunn Quain
Dr. Fannie Dunn Quain (1874–1950) was North Dakota’s first licensed female physician. As a young woman, she worked multiple jobs to save money to go to medical school. She graduated from the University of Michigan in 1898 with a doctor of medicine degree. After moving to Bismarck, she became a prominent figure in the area and was elected Burleigh County’s superintendent of schools. She had an active private medical practice for many years, but later turned her efforts to organizing the North Dakota Tuberculosis Association.

Linda Slaughter
Linda Warfel Slaughter (1843–1911) accompanied her husband, a military surgeon, to Fort Rice in 1870 (http://blog.statemuseum.nd.gov/blog/linda-warfel-slaughter-bismarck-pio…). After moving to Fort Hancock, near Bismarck, she effectively filled the role of postmaster, although technically her husband held the position. She was a prolific newspaper columnist, Bismarck’s first teacher, Burleigh County’s first superintendent of schools, a leading figure in the woman suffrage movement and an organizer of the Ladies Historical Society, which later became today’s State Historical Society of North Dakota.

Minnie Craig
In 1923 Minnie Davenport Craig (1883–1966) was elected to the North Dakota House of Representatives. Ten years later she became the first woman speaker of a state House of Representatives in the nation. She ultimately served six terms in the North Dakota legislature and was a Republican National Committeewoman for North Dakota from 1928–1932.

Florence “Tree Tops” Klingensmith
Florence Anderson Klingensmith (1904–1933) had an insatiable appetite for speed. Inspired by Charles Lindbergh, Klingensmith learned to fly, earning the nickname “Tree Tops” when she became North Dakota’s first female licensed pilot. She persuaded local Fargo businessmen to donate money for a plane in exchange for free advertising space on it. She bought a Monocoupe named Miss Fargo in 1929. Now licensed and with her own plane, she set out to break flying records. In 1931, over four hours, she completed 1,078 loop-de-loops, an average of four loops per minute. She did exhibition flying, and won international air races against men and women. In 1933 she tragically lost her life during a race in Chicago when a faulty wing caused her plane to crash.

Scattered Corn
Scattered Corn (1858–1940) was a respected Mandan seed keeper and daughter of the last corn priest, Moves Slowly. With no successors, his medicine bundle came to Scattered Corn, who did her best to continue the traditions and maintain the accumulated wisdom of generations. Over hundreds of years, Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara gardeners had developed vegetable varieties appropriate for northern climates. Scattered Corn shared her knowledge about native agriculture and Mandan traditions. Seedman Oscar Will began selling corn seeds originally sourced through Scattered Corn in his seed catalog. Ethnomusicologist Frances Densmore recorded Scattered Corn singing ancient prayer songs. Because of Scattered Corn’s generosity, many aspects of Mandan agricultural traditions have been preserved for future generations.