What do our myths say about us? Why do we choose to believe stories that have been disproven? David M. Krueger takes an in-depth look at a legend that held tremendous power in one corner of Minnesota, helping to define both a community’s and a state’s identity for decades. In 1898, a Swedish immigrant farmer claimed to have discovered a large rock with writing carved into its surface in a field near Kensington, Minnesota. The writing told a North American origin story, predating Christopher Columbus’s exploration, in which Viking missionaries reached what is now Minnesota in 1362 only to be massacred by Indians. The tale’s credibility was quickly challenged and ultimately undermined by experts, but the myth took hold. Faith in the authenticity of the Kensington Rune Stone was a crucial part of the local Nordic identity. Accepted and proclaimed as truth, the story of the Rune Stone recast Native Americans as villains. The community used the account as the basis for civic celebrations for years, and advocates for the stone continue to promote its validity despite the overwhelming evidence that it was a hoax. Krueger puts this stubborn conviction in context and shows how confidence in the legitimacy of the stone has deep implications for a wide variety of Minnesotans who embraced it, including Scandinavian immigrants, Catholics, small-town boosters, and those who desired to commemorate the white settlers who died in the Dakota War of 1862. Krueger demonstrates how the resilient belief in the Rune Stone is a form of civil religion, with aspects that defy logic but illustrate how communities characterize themselves. He reveals something unique about America’s preoccupation with divine right and its troubled way of coming to terms with the history of the continent’s first residents. By considering who is included, who is left out, and how heroes and villains are created in the stories we tell about the past, Myths of the Rune Stone offers an enlightening perspective on not just Minnesota but the United States as well.

Third-generation Norweigan-American Rolf M. Nilsestuen summarizes hundreds of pages of documented evidence and proves conclusively that Norwegians were in Minnesota in 1362. The book includes works by Holand, Landsverk, and Hall, as well as a series of articles by Dr. Richard Nielsen that refute every negative argument and attest every word and symbol with new evidence from medieval documents. The Kensington Runestone Vindicated exposes the hoax perpetrated by Wahlgren and Wallace and reveals the shameful neglect of this matter by the Smithsonian Institution. With a liberal dose of common sense, human understanding, and Scandinavian wit, Nilsestuen brings this somewhat esoteric subject down to earth. Contents: Introduction; History; The Discovery; The Evidence; Weathering; Mooring Holes; Norse Artifacts; The Mandans; The Verendre Stone; Additional Finds; The Inscription; The Runes; The Numerals; Wahlgren; Wahlgren vs. The Evidence; Vikings in America; Other Critics; Dr. Erik Molke; Birgitta L. Wallace; Olof Ohman; Summary; Conclusion; Epilogue; The Runestone vs. the Smithsonian; The Newport Tower.

Controversy about the so-called Kensington stone, found in Minnesota in 1898 - whether it is an authentic Rune stone left by Pre-Columbian explorers from Scandinavia.

Hired by the king of Sweden to authenticate an odd stone unearthed by a Minnesota farmer, Sherlock Holmes soon finds himself investigating theft and murder as well.

In 1898, a farmer in northwestern Minnesota unearthed a large stone engraved with what appeared to be Norse runes carved in 1362. Could medieval Scandinavians have penetrated deep into mainland North America over a century before Columbus discovered the New World? Does the stone provide evidence that forces a rewrite of American history, or was it merely a well-executed hoax? In the absence of written records documenting a Norse expedition into Minnesota, most historians have dismissed the Kensington Runestone as a forgery. However, Kehoe approaches the question holistically. She examines not only historical and literary evidence, but also brings in data from archaeology, geology, linguistics, and biological anthropology. She concludes that the stones authenticity should not be dismissed as readily as it has been so far, even if that means re-thinking deeply ingrained ideas about contact between Europeans and indigenous Americans.

These are the first words in a rigorous translation of the 1362 memorial poem inscribed on the Spirit Pond runestone, found on the coast of Maine in 1971. This translation climaxed a decade of histor¬ical investigations by authors Johnson and Westin in which they address a 450 year-gap in North American history between the 1492 voyage of Columbus and the Vinland voyages of Leif Eriksson and Thorfinn Karlsefni shortly after 1000 ad. After the Vinland voyages the Greenlanders developed a lucrative trade in North American furs, marketed in Norway and taxed by the king. But after 1300 a cooling climate caused the Green¬land merchants to migrate to North America and the trade died. To regain the trade and expand his empire, in 1356 King Magnus of Norway and Sweden sent his son, young King Haakon VI, on an expedition to North America with Commander Paul Knutson. The inscrip¬tions on the Spirit Pond and Kensington runestones enable the authors to recon¬struct the fascinating story of Magnus and his expedition, more than a century before Columbus left the shores of Spain.