Ralph Secord Press
Upper Peninsula Region of Library Cooperation
1615 Presque Isle Ave.
Marquette, MI 49855
906-228-7697


The following  books were reproduced and hardbound by the Ralph W. Secord Press.

Books with asterisks may now be read online in full text by clicking on the title. These books have been digitized to approximate the format of the printed books.

The Ralph W. Secord Press is owned and managed by the Upper Peninsula Region of Library Cooperation (UPRLC).   The Ralph Secord Press provides historical works related to the Upper Peninsula. The press is named in honor of Ralph W. Secord, Michigan's 1975 Librarian of the Year, founder and guiding spirit of both the press and Mid-Peninsula Cooperative until his retirement in 1981. 

Print copies of  Ralph Secord Books may be purchased by contacting UPRLC.  Because the books were originally reproduced by the Ralph Secord Press from manuscripts or out-of-print text, the quality of print varies depending on the text available at the time of printing.

Book prices may change depending on cost of printing and binding.

RALPH SECORD PRESS BOOK LIST

Book Title and Description

Price

*ALL ABOARD! Along the Tracks in Dickinson County by William Cummings. - A compilation of articles concerning railroading in the early days of the Upper Peninsula.

$30

ALPHA-MASTODON AREA. - A 50-year history of the Alpha-Mastodon area in Iron County, Michigan 1914-1964.

$24

AROUND THE BLUFF AND THROUGH THE YEARS. - An informal history of Greenland Township.

$50

*BACK TRAIL, OR, AN UPPER PENINSULA BOYHOOD by George E. Christensen. - Personal narrative in which author describes his childhood, youth and young manhood spent in Michigan' s Upper Peninsula during the 20' s and 30' s. (Cloth Cover , Paper Cover)

$29

CENTENNIAL HISTORY OF MENOMINEE COUNTY by Hon. E. S. Ingalls. - A collection of historical memories put together on the anniversary of the U. S. Declaration of Independence in 1876.

$24

*COPPER COUNTRY ADVENTURE by Ethel C. Brill. - Sixteen-year-old Stephen finds villainy and treachery when he arrives in the copper country of Michigan' s Keweenaw Peninsula in 1846 to look after his deceased uncle' s mining interests.

$34

*DIARY OF LEWIS YOUNG WHITEHEAD: Father of the Menominee Range 1833-1908. - A biographical sketch, diary, letters, news articles and miscellaneous papers on the life of the discoverer of the first mine of the Menominee Range.

$26

*DIARY OF SOREN KRISTIANSEN - Lake Michigan Schooner Captain 1891-1893. A day to day account of an early sailor' s life on Lake Michigan.

$23

DIRECTORY OF THE CITIES OF IRON MOUNTAIN AND NORWAY, MI 1902-1903. - A reprint of the 1902-1903 city directory as it appeared in 1902 and 1903.

$35

EARLY DAYS IN THE UPPER PENINSULA. - A collection of short articles on life in the Upper Peninsula at or before the turn of the century reprinted from the Michigan Pioneer Historical Collection.

$27

ESCANABA MICHIGAN, U.S.A. THE IRON PORT OF THE WORLD by Walter Nursey. - A history of Escanaba' s growth with a description of its industries, resources, commercial position, climate and topography.

$27

AN ETHNIC HISTORY OF DELTA COUNTY. - A collection of articles on 14 ethnic groups represented in the population of Delta County.

$24

GOGEBIC, ASHLAND: Midsummer Wanderings in Northern Wisconsin & Michigan, compiled by Edward Roberts. - (1985 reprint of the 1886 original published by Poole Bros., Chicago.) Exciting travel guide traces rail tour from Milwaukee to Ashland, through Michigan�s Upper Peninsula. Includes a brief description of Milwaukee, Sheboygan, Manitowoc and Appleton. Describes Upper Peninsula in areas in and around Gogebic County, including Lake Gogebic, Ironwood, Bessemer and Watersmeet. (Paper cover - Saddle Wired)

$24

GUIDA DEGLI ITALIANI DEL COPPER COUNTRY. - A directory of Italians living in the Copper Country during the period 1900-1910. Text in Italian.

$28

THE HISTORIC JOHNSON FAMILY OF THE SOO by C. H. Chapman and others. - A collection of articles on one of the U. P.' s most important families reprinted from the Michigan Pioneer & Historical Collection.

$31

HISTORY OF THE GARDEN PENINSULA OF MICHIGAN by Thomas Edward Jacques. - A modern historical collection of facts and information concerning the Garden Peninsula of Michigan.

$28

HISTORY OF THE NORTHERN PENINSULA OF MICHIGAN AND ITS PEOPLE by Alvah L. Sawyer. - It's mining, lumber and agricultural industries. Three volumes - 1070 pages.

$153

HISTORY OF THE UPPER PENINSULA OF MICHIGAN by Unknown - A full account of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan's early settlement; its growth, development and resources; and extended description of its Iron and Copper Mines. 550 p.: 8 1/2 x 11 in.

$57

HOMEWARD BOUND by James Fennimore Cooper. - A 1988 reprint of the 1838 story of the sea.

$47

IRON MINES OF MENOMINEE COUNTY by E. S. Ingalls. - An attempt to interest investors and others in a railroad to connect Menominee and the Iron Range.

$24

ISLAND STORY, THE HISTORY OF ST. MARTIN ISLAND by Margaret Coppess. - The colorful story of an island in lake Michigan.

$24

JENNIE GERHARDT by Theodore Dreiser. - A romantic novel of the 1800' s originally printed in 1911.

$48

JOURNAL OF GEORGE FREDERICK SEIBERT 1879. - A journal of a walking trip in the Upper Peninsula in 1879 by Iron Mountain' s first druggist. Bound with a brief biographical sketch.

$23

KINGSFORD: THE TOWN FORD BUILT IN DICKINSON COUNTY, MICHIGAN by William Cummings.- A history of the city of Kingsford from the 1920's to the 1950's, compiled for the Kingsford Diamond Jubilee.

$55

*KISS EACH OTHER FOR ME: The Civil War Letters of Rufus Andrews 1861-1863 by Rufus Andrews. - A collection of letters written by a Civil War soldier to his wife and children in Stiles, Oconto County, Wisconsin.

$24

LEGEND AND THE LEGACY OF PERE MARQUETTE by Walter Nursey. - The story of Father James Marquette who, together with Joliet, discovered the Upper Mississippi River in June, 1673.

$20

*LEGENDS OF MICHIGAN by Littlejohn. - Cluster of unpublished waifs, gathered along the uncertain, misty line, dividing traditional from historic times.

$59

*LEONORA A CROWELL LETTERS 1882-1885. - A collection of letters written by the wife of an Iron mountain doctor shortly after ore was discovered on the Menominee Range.

$24

MEMORIAL RECORD OF THE NORTHERN PENINSULA OF MICHIGAN. - 1985 reprint of the 1895 original by The Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago. Biographical sketches of 19th century U. P. notable persons. Invaluable for genealogical workers and historians.

$64

THE MENOMINEE IRON RANGE by Walter Nursey. - Covers the history of the Iron Range, Norway, Iron Mountain, Florence, Crystal Falls and Iron River.

$64

*MENOMINEE REMEMBERED, 1982. Eight early residents of Menominee County recall memorable personal experiences.

$26

*MY NEW FRIENDS WERE BAREFOOT by John Gray. - A story of growing up in the upper Peninsula town of Sagola during the 1920' s.

$24

NELSON POWELL HULST by Ellis B. Usher. - Two articles reprinted by permission from the Wisconsin Magazine of History Vol. 7 1923-24. Nelson Powell Hulst, The Greatest American Authority on Iron by Usher & Pioneer Life on the Menominee Range by Mrs. Nelson Powell Hulst.

$48

PENINSULA PORTRAITS by Charles Symon. - A collection of articles written as feature stories for area newspapers and magazines. These stories are unusually rich in human interest.

$31

SKETCHES OF THE MENOMINEE RIVER by Lewis S. Patrick. - A history of the Menominee River and its earliest settlers.

$23

SOME UPPER PENINSULA PIONEERS. - A collection of short articles on Upper Peninsula Pioneers reprinted from the Michigan Pioneer & Historical Collection.

$29

SOUVENIR OF IRON COUNTY, MICHIGAN - Includes many pictures of Iron County residences, mines and businesses.

SUMMER ON THE LAKES, IN 1843 by S. M. Fuller - (1985 reprint of the 1844 original published by Charles C. Little and J. Brown, New York.) Personal narrative of a young woman' s travels in northern Michigan in 1843. Includes section on Mackinaw, Key-way-no-wut and various well-known Michigan historical figures.

$37

THIS LAND THE ONTONAGON: A History of Ontonagon County, Michigan by Bruce Johanson. - Most recent history of Ontonagon County available. Includes discussion of 1984 U. P. Shipbuilding Company situation. Includes numerous photos.

$34

TROUTING ON THE BRULE RIVER OR LAWYERS' SUMMER WAYFARING IN THE NORTHERN WILDERNESS by John Lyle King. - An early fishing trip by a group of Chicago Lawyers.

$38

A TRUE DESCRIPTION OF THE LAKE SUPERIOR COUNTRY by John R. St. John. - (1988 reprint of 1846 original). Contains much information regarding the location of copper mines, mineral regions and contains modes of assaying, treating, smelting and refining copper ores which were popular almost 150 years ago.

$27

THE WAY IT HAPPENED: Settling Michigan' s Upper Peninsula by Russell Magnaghi. - An interesting collection of articles written about the development of the Upper Peninsula.

$28

*WE KNEW DIFFERENT: The Michigan Timber Workers' Strike of 1937 by Debra E. Bernhardt. - A detailed account of the timber worker' s strike of 1937 originally written as a thesis for Wayne State University. Also available in large print.

$27