Curt Brown
Columnist
Minnesota HistoryCurt Brown is a former reporter for the Minnesota Star Tribune who writes regularly about Minnesota history.
Latest from Curt Brown
Minnesota History: Ad man turned Paul Bunyan into a folklore icon
Still largely unknown 66 years after his death, William Laughead helped popularize perhaps the biggest name in American folklore.
October 19, 2024
Minnesota History: James Griffin used persistence to blaze a trail for St. Paul’s Black police officers
Said Griffin, namesake of Central High’s stadium and the St. Paul police headquarters: “I had to fight for everything I got.”
October 5, 2024
Minnesota History: For Granite Falls doctor who tested thousands of kids for TB, new recognition is long overdue
Kathleen Jordan battled tuberculosis in Minnesota children with energy and guile.
September 21, 2024
Minnesota History: A New Ulm baker wearing a blanket fell to friendly fire in the U.S.-Dakota War
Jacob Castor was accidentally shot by fellow settlers who “mistook him for an Indian.”
September 7, 2024
Minnesota History: Columbia Heights memorial will honor fallen WWII airman 80 years after his death
“Biggest thing we ever did before he went in was a trip to Chicago in 1937 to see our first baseball game and ride on the El,” his brother said.
August 24, 2024
Minnesota History: Mayo Clinic physician-scientist forged cardiovascular breakthroughs in flight, space
Dr. Earl Wood led a brilliant career at Mayo, stretching from World War II into the 1980s.
August 10, 2024
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Baseball historians remember career of legendary Minnesota pitcher Walter Ball
He was good enough to play in the majors, historians say, if there hadn’t been a color line.
July 27, 2024
Vaudevillians played musical chairs, personally and professionally, in 1930s Winona
A new book by a retired Winona music teacher tells the tale of four musicians whose lives became intertwined in surprising ways.
July 13, 2024
Girl, 13, took charge amid 1925 storm chaos on Minneapolis lake
Her aunt and toddler cousin were killed, but rather than letting the trauma paralyze her, the young teenager put her Girl Scout first-aid training to action.
July 3, 2024
Pioneering bird-in-hand magician went from Mankato to stages around the world
Jack Kodell bought his first trick at a Minneapolis magic store in 1941.
June 15, 2024
As global war loomed, the McLaughlins of Bloomington preached peace
The couple spearheaded the peace movement in the Twin Cities in the mid-20th century.
June 1, 2024
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