TITLE: DREAM CATCHER

Shannon grew up in Embarrass, MN on the Iron Range. All four of her grandparents immigrated from the west coast of Finland to northeast Minnesota where the landscape resembled Finland and there was work in the mines. At the turn of the century in Finland, only the eldest son in a family could inherit the family land. Other family members were left with nothing so they moved to find a better future.

Shannon loved living in the woods growing up but she had dreams other than working in the mines so after graduation, she eagerly left for college. SELECT VIDEO LINK HERE, 12:42 MINUTES

TITLE: ERODING BOUNDARIES

Barbara’s paternal grandparents immigrated from Rome, Italy along with 5 of their 6 children to Minnesota. Giuseppe Moroni was a musician and a shoemaker by trade. He formed the Italian Band in Eveleth. The Oliver Iron Mining Company paid for artistic and academic endeavors in the mining towns on the Iron Range. Giuseppe Moroni’s children all played musical instruments as well. To read more of the Moroni history in an article written by his grandchild, Christine Moroni, select the button below. Another granddaughter, Barbara Moroni, did not marry an Italian but a Finnish young man who grew up in a Finnish community on the Iron Range.

READ ARTICLE BY CHRISTINE MORONI SELECT LINK

TITLE: ENTANGLEMENT

Toivo’s father, b. 1877 (Karl) Charles Fredrik Räikkälä, had his name changed by the United States government to Johnson upon arrival in the US. Toivo’s parents settled in Embarrass, MN where Toivo was born and met his Finnish wife Helen Nevala. Most immigrants at that time married within their ethnic group. Toivo and Helen’s children, third-generation Finns, married non-Finns whom they met in college. Instead of working in the mines, Toivo was a socialist-inspired co-op man who managed several during his career. Finns turned to co-ops as a means of providing for themselves separate from the mining companies.

VIEW JOHNSON FAMILY TREE SELECT LINK

TITLE: BEHOLDEN

Bill Erzar worked for mining companies his entire career after returning from 4 years in the Air Force. He worked for U.S. Steel primarily in the area of instrumentation and electronics repair for process control. His grandparents came from a small town near Ljubljana, Slovenia to Ely in 1909 to work in the mines. His family has always been involved with the union and Bill is a proud union man. The unions sponsored most of the social events in the strong union town of Ely. His father got fired 3 times, twice for union organizing and once for trying to start a Slovenian library. SELECT VIDEO LINK HERE 10:17 MINUTES

TITLE: STRONGER PROUD

Raymond Syrjanen was born in Embarrass, MN, and was 31 years older than his cousin Shannon Johnson Hannigan. Like Shannon, Raymond’s parents and grandparents were all born in Finland before immigrating to Embarrass, MN. Raymond and many of his cousins and uncles worked in the iron ore mines on the Vermilion Range. Raymond spoke about mining accidents from his own and his father’s experiences while working there. He was proud of his work in the mines but felt the mining companies cared more about losing their property and tools during the mining accidents than the miners’ lives. SELECT THE VIDEO LINK HERE 9:14 MINUTES

TITLE: UNCOVERING MEMORIES

Seraphine has lived in Ely and worked in the mines his entire career. His paternal grandparents were from Northern Italy and his maternal grandparents immigrated from Croatia (Yugoslavia). He said that the mining companies in the early days tried to keep miners from talking to each other so they put miners together who spoke different languages. This prevented unionizing since the miners were treated poorly and without safety procedures in the underground mines. Seraphine only worked in the open pit mines and saw many nearby mines close during his career. He said the town of Ely was dying and that he didn’t believe that tourism alone could save it. SELECT VIDEO LINK HERE, 3 MINUTES

TITLE: SHIFTED GROUND

This young woman is an advocate for protecting the environment and is against the proposed mining of copper and nickel near the Boundary Waters in Minnesota. The waste produced by copper-nickel mining can be toxic, and if not properly managed, it can leach into groundwater supplies and contaminate drinking water. There is a history of water pollution found near nickel mines, in which heavy metals contaminate waterways, harming aquatic life and public health. However, nickel is crucial for the transition to clean energy as it is used in batteries for EVs. The industry is facing environmental challenges with its water use as well as its greenhouse gas emissions. READ ABOUT MINING CONTROVERSY