Five years in Minnesota. Sketches of life in a western state

Maurice Farrar was an Englishman authorized by Minnesota in 1880 to act as an Agent for the promotion of Immigration through lecturing in Great Britain. He spent five years in Minnesota during the late 1870s and, upon his return home, published this promotional work extolling the farming life there. The preface makes clear his intention of encouraging inhabitants of Britain to emigrate to a land seemingly unaffected by agricultural depression. His favorable review of Minnesota centers on Fairmont, in Martin County, which he describes as an "English colony" settled by natives of Great Britain from all walks of life. He then talks about the woods of Fillmore County and the town of Chatfield which he follows with a visit to a Chippewa reservation, White Earth. For much of the rest of the book, Farrar discusses sports, politics, and social life, finishing with a detailed exploration of factors that might induce one to emigrate. An appendix of agricultural crops, ploughing, appropriate housing and other practical information concludes this volume.
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