Although never more than a small percentage of Minnesota's population, Jewish people have made remarkable contributions to the state in business, politics, and education. Jewish people from Germany arriving in St. Paul in the 1850s helped build the new territory. Immigrants from eastern Europe joined them in the 1880s, many of them driven from their homelands due to religious, cultural, political, and economic persecution. Taking advantage of opportunities in their new home, they established retail businesses in the Twin Cities and elsewhere. Many settled in small towns or walked the roads as peddlers. Some found homes in the Iron Range towns of Virginia and Hibbing, but the majority lived in Minneapolis and St. Paul. As they clustered in neighborhoods, founded synagogues, schools, and community organizations, and sought to create Jewish homes, they also sponsored a variety of philanthropic venture and gained local and national political offices. A hundred years later, the process was repeated when immigrants from Russia arrived to build on these traditions.
In addition to illuminating the experiences of everyday citizens, authors Hyman Berman and Linda Mack Schloff discuss community leaders such as activist Fanny Brin, rabbi and newspaper editor Samuel Deinard, and educator Dr. George J. Gordon in the context of local and international challenges to the Jewish community.