Minnesota Historical Society Books - True Crime

Minnesota Historical Society Books - True CrimeA Murder on the Hill: The Secret Life & Mysterious Death of Ruth Munson Author: Roger Barr Rich in period detail and fascinating anecdotes, A Murder on the Hill constructs a procedural investigation worthy of a high profile case. Readers see for themselves what it is like to winnow important information from a flow of rumors, tips, and leads. What emerges is a remarkable view of a racially and economically divided time in the not too distant past.

A Murder on the Hill: The Secret Life & Mysterious Death of Ruth Munson
Author: Roger Barr

Rich in period detail and fascinating anecdotes, A Murder on the Hill constructs a procedural investigation worthy of a high-profile case. Readers see for themselves what it is like to winnow important information from a flow of rumors, tips, and leads. What emerges is a remarkable view of a racially and economically divided time in the not-too-distant past. The murder of a working-class white woman in a Midwestern city was sensationalized by journalists due to racial prejudice; as a result, the historical record offers glimpses into the lives of dozens of individuals whose story might have otherwise been ignored all—like Ruth—trying to scratch out a living in a Depression-ridden, segregated city.

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Murder in Minnesota
Author: Walter Trenerry

Features some of the state's most infamous criminals—a collection of fascinating and disagreeable characters usually ignored by historians. They live again in these pages as the conniving, clever, mad, or pitiful creatures they were. Fifteen chapters—involving both well-known and obscure practitioners of the deadly art—tell the stories of Ann Blansky, the only woman hanged in Minnesota; the famous Younger brothers, who with the James boys robbed the Northfield bank in 1876; the six Arbogast women of St. Paul, who kept a murderous secret that still remains undisclosed; and many more.

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Augie's Secrets: The Minneapolis Mob and the King of the Hennepin Strip

Author: Neal Karlen

Mixing careful research with long suppressed family and community stories, Neal Karlen, Augie’s cousin’s grandson, who always considered him a great-uncle, tells the real story of the seamy underside of Minneapolis, where Jewish mobsters controlled the liquor trade, invented the point spread in sports betting, and ran national sports gambling operations. Even after Mayor Hubert H. Humphrey supposedly cleaned up the town, organized crime quietly flourished. And Augie was at the center, observing it all.

Last Entry Point: Stories of Danger and Death in the Boundary Waters

Author: Joe Friedrich

Hypothermia, lightning strikes, high winds, medical emergencies, miscalculations—the dangers are real in canoe country. Last Entry Point shares tales of tragedy and near-tragedy in the Boundary Waters while offering guidance on how to avoid worst-case scenarios.