Easy & free access to Mississippi Valley Historical Review

In my September 21st blog post, I mentioned The Mississippi Valley Historical Review. I had a couple inquiries about where to find this journal. The answer is simple and many old issues can be accessed via your home computer for free. Several of those are listed below. You can also check Worldcat.org to see if a library near your home carries all back issues. A large public, historical, or university library may also have the back issues. I am in favor of those in-person visits because you may find other gems that are not yet digitized. Issues that are out of copyright may have a cost to use online.

• Archive.org
• Books.Google.com
• HathiTrust.org
• JSTOR.org
  
 

I found these three interesting articles for free on JSTOR:

New journal focuses on Midwestern history

About 27 years ago I discovered bound back issues of the Mississippi Valley Historical Review while browsing the stacks at the Macalester College library in St. Paul. I spent many hours reading through them. Then I reached a point where this publication became The Journal of American History and the focus changed to nationwide rather than the regional publication I had loved. There is nothing wrong with JAH but I still wanted something more closely aligned with the middle of the country that wasn't directed only to one state. The original title existed from 1914-1964.

Fast forward fifty years to 2014 and a new publication of regional interest has emerged, Middle West

"No longer saved for generations, family heirlooms are being shed"

That is the title of an article in today's online Star-Tribune. I know from my own experience that not all family members want to hang on to furniture, dishes, and other items.

The sentences that really hit me are "Even highly personal items, such as scrapbooks, letters and photos, are now being shed. “We’re surprised,” Burley said. Empty the Nest sells those items to vintage dealers who buy in lots, turning mementos into artwork for others." and "Mueller has purchased other personal items, including vintage diplomas and handwritten love letters, which she plans to use, along with vintage maps, to create retro decor."