This is a book about the first men who started the Mountain Iron Mine. (Which was a big deal! It was the beginning of mining the Mesabi Range, which turned out to be the largest iron ore deposit in the world.\u00a0It is now an historic landmark & as it says in the National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Mountain Iron Mine<\/a>, “Minnesota steel was a significant factor in the decisive role this country played in the two World Wars.”)<\/p>\n I wanted to read this book because I knew the main character was Finnish like my great-grandfather & the story was set near where he settled in northern Minnesota. Arthur, the main character, was an early pioneer to the area & my great-grandfather came a bit later, but there are similar Finnish characteristics such as being a man of few words, being a good moral man & sisu of course! I am not sure if all Finns have an aptitude for building, but my family shares this with Arthur as well. Comparing the main facts on the two:<\/p>\n
| Arthur Maki aka Arvid M\u00e4kel\u00e4<\/th>\n | William Laitala aka Vitho Laitala<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n |
|---|---|
| Main character of Mesabi Pioneers<\/td>\n | My great-grandfather<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Born 1864<\/td>\n | Born 1878<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Came to the iron range 1891<\/td>\n | Came to Chisholm in 1903 (about 16 miles west of Mountain Iron)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Escaping the Russian military<\/td>\n | Escaping something too perhaps?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n One part of the book that I especially enjoyed was how well the Finn & the Indian got along. They had a lot in common:<\/p>\n
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