Vikings in the Attic i Other Books by Eric Dregni PUBLISHED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA PRESS In Cod We Trust: Living the Norwegian Dream Never Trust a Thin Cook and Other Lessons from Italy’s Culinary Capital Midwest Marvels: Roadside Attractions across Iowa, Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Wisconsin Minnesota Marvels: Roadside Attractions in the Land of Lakes Vikings in the Attic In Search of Nordic America Eric Dregni University of Minnesota Press Minneapolis • London iii Unless credited otherwise, photographs were taken by the author. Copyright 2011 by Eric Dregni All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published by the University of Minnesota Press 111 Third Avenue South, Suite 290 Minneapolis, MN 55401-2520 http://www.upress.umn.edu Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Dregni, Eric, 1968- Vikings in the attic : in search of Nordic America / Eric Dregni. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-8166-6743-7 (hc : acid-free paper) — ISBN 978-0-8166-6744-4 (pb : acid-free paper) 1. Scandinavian Americans—History. 2. Scandinavian Americans—Social life and customs. 3. Scandinavian Americans—Anecdotes. 4. Scandinavian Americans—Humor. 5. United States—Civilization—Scandinavian influences. I. Title. E184.S18D74 2011 973'.04395—dc22 2010050107 Design and production by Mighty Media, Inc. Text design by Chris Long Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper The University of Minnesota is an equal-opportunity educator and employer. 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To my Dad, who taught me to appreciate all things Scandinavian but not to take them too seriously (my Mom wouldn’t hear of it!) v This page intentionally left blank Only the dead are pure—and then, only in memory, never in fact. —BILL HOLM They’re all queer ducks except for you and me . . . but I kind of wonder about you. —GRANDMA EVIE These lonely signs on the western plains stand just east of Milan, Minnesota. A stabbur was donated as a thank-you gift from a Norwegian who was helped by residents of Milan during World War II. Contents Preface(cid:3)xi Acknowledgments(cid:3)xv Introduction: The Immigrants Arrive . . .(cid:3)1 “Food”(cid:3)15 We Are the Vikings(cid:3)43 Notable Nordics(cid:3)75 Politics, Scandinavian Style(cid:3)99 Points of Pride(cid:3)141 Uniquely Scandinavian(cid:3)171 Scandinavian Sanctuaries(cid:3)207 Festivals(cid:3)239 Notes(cid:3)261 Index(cid:3)277 ix