We have just come back from our annual trip to the Red Wing Pottery Convention. Every year there is an auction for members only and this year tough economic dishes drastically affected prices.

I especially noticed this with the lily pitcher and basin that has a key role in Shades of Darkness, Shades of Grace. In the novel, Kay describes the set as a stunning example of Red Wing craftsmanship and mentioned an asking price of nearly $1,500.

True for the late 1990s and early 21^st century, but the auction demonstrates how prices have cooled with the economy, housing market, etc. At the Thursday auction, two sets of the lily pitcher and bowl sold for $475 and $650 respectively. The prices will eventually come back, but like everything else in the current economic climate antique and pottery markets have taken a huge hit.

“Land of 10,000 Lakes” (Minnesota’s slogan) and the month of August (National Water Quality Month) is the perfect time to dive into water facts. A few quick facts about Minnesota’s many lakes are:

Voyageurs National Park (located in northern Minnesota) is the largest water-based park in the entire National Park System.

Number of Lakes in Minnesota:
Well over 10,000 with 11,842 lakes (each measuring 10+ acres)

Depths of Six Minnesota Lakes:
Lake Superior:             1,290 feet
Ten Mile Lake                209 feet
Lower LaSalle Lake        204 feet
Loon Lake                     202 feet
Rainy Lake                    161 feet
Leech Lake                   150 feet

Number of Natural Rivers and Streams:
6,564 (69,200 miles)

The lake pictured on the cover of Shades of Darkness, Shades of Grace is Lake Superior. one of the five Great Lakes. This chain of lakes is located in eastern North America on the Canadian/North American border.  Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth.

Minnesota Water Facts 

Rising gas prices, difficult economic times, and severe weather particularly in the Midwest are all affecting the 2008 tourist season. The state of tourism is also having a direct impact on the 2008 Presidential election.

According to The Christian Science Monitor, some 12 million people reside in what are known as Service Worker Centers, about 280 counties across the U.S. having a high concentration of service jobs but lower than average incomes. The Christian Science Monitor notes Barack Obama and John McCain are likely to place a strong emphasis on these counties in the fall, which have been battleground states in recent elections and ones both candidates will be fighting for in November.

Minnesota is one of those states, and because so many Service Worker Centers rely on tourism, it’s in voter’s interests to pay attention to these key areas during the campaign. Add to that the recent flooding in places like southern Minnesota and large swaths of Iowa, and the combination of issues becomes even more important.

The sub-plot of being politically aware and active in Shades of Darkness comes at a particularly important time in America’s history. During Campaign 2008 the Monitor is featuring Patchwork Nation, an endeavor going beyond the red state/blue state divide to write about “what issues matter in each of these communities, how the issues affect residents’ votes, and how the candidates tailor their messages to a particular audience.”

Follow the example of the Pierson family and go beyond the red and blue and get informed about just where your issues and concerns fit in, and how they may impact the election process.

One of the key plot points in Shades of Darkness, Shades of Grace, involves Red Wing Pottery, manufactured in the Minnesota town of the same name for nearly 100 years.

The matriarch of the Pierson family, Beverly, collects Red Wing Pottery and has gone into the antique business opening Past Treasures Antiques in downtown Wayzata, Minnesota. Red Wing had its origins in the rich clay discovered as the area was being settled in the 1860s. Over nearly 90 years the company would produce salt glaze pottery, utilitarian stoneware, art pottery, cookie jars, and over 100 patterns of hand-painted ceramic dinnerware. Much of the stoneware was marked with a distinctive red wing on the front, in later years the art pottery and dinnerware was stamped with a red wing on the bottom.

In the novel, Beverly and Bill Pierson give their son Paul and his bride Pamela, a blue tinted lily bowl and pitcher, a stunning example of Red Wing artistry. Officially advertised as “Ewers and Basins in blue tint” - the set was offered in the 1920s and 30s along with hundreds of other stoneware items for the household and farm. Because few of these gorgeous sets survived intact, in mint condition they are extremely valuable. Other Red Wing pieces mentioned in the book include Nokomis vases that were part of the art pottery line during the 1930s; cherry band pitchers which were manufactured during the same time period as the lily pitcher and basin; and cookie jars produced until the plant’s closing.

Red Wing Pottery is not only an integral part of Minnesota history; it also holds an important place within both American history and the pottery industry. In the early Twentieth Century, Red Wing Pottery was the largest manufacturer of pottery in the U.S. Red Wing Pottery ceased production in 1967, after a bitter strike permanently closed the plant. Ten years later in 1977, a group interested in collecting the pottery for both its beauty and historic significance founded the Red Wing Collector’s Society. Today, Red Wing is highly sought after by collectors and is often referred to as “the Cadillac of pottery”.

In 1984, John Falconer acquired the records, name, and legal rights of the Red Wing Stoneware Company and stoneware production resumed in Red Wing. Tom Woodruff purchased the company in 1998 and he and a team of skilled artisans proudly continue the tradition of producing excellent quality, American made, Red Wing Stoneware.

There are numerous web sites devoted to the history, preservation, and selling of Red Wing and some of the best are listed on the Resources page. More than a few Red Wing aficionados like Beverly Pierson have caught the collecting bug and developed spectacular collections of this beautiful pottery.

With gas prices at all time highs, people are re-thinking vacation plans. For a lot of us, this means driving shorter distances to locations closer to home. While Minnesota won’t be that destination for everyone, for those of you living in the Midwest and Upper Midwest, Minnesota offers a state with five distinct regions and experiences.

For tourism information, visit the Field Trips Minnesota Travel Companion which offers itineraries and unique ideas for educational, recreational, cultural, and social experiences.

Southeastern Minnesota includes Red Wing, home of the Red Wing Pottery featured in the novel. Offering a landscape of spectacular river bluffs and rolling hills, the Southeastern region includes two other unique communities prominent in the book - Northfield and Rochester.

The Native Prairies region of Southwestern Minnesota gives visitors a sense of the expansive prairie. There are also numerous opportunities to learn more about early settlers such as author Laura Ingalls Wilder. Then check out the new in the form of the Heritage Museum and Wind Power Learning Center.

Northeastern Minnesota includes magnificent Lake Superior, where my family spends a few, relaxing weeks each summer. Lake Superior is not only the largest of the Great Lakes; it also has the largest surface area of any freshwater lake in the world. The shores of Lake Superior grace the cover of the novel.

Northwestern Minnesota is the largest region, bordering the Dakotas and Canada. This is a great area for outdoor enthusiasts offering dense forests, many of our 10,000+ lakes, and bountiful native wildlife.   

The last area is of course, the Twin Cities. Two cities - Minneapolis and St. Paul reside next to one another, but with very different personalities. Everything from lakes and parks to professional sports, theater, art galleries, shopping, great dining, and beautiful architecture abound here. *NOTE: The GOP Convention converges on the Twin Cities from August 30-September 5, 2008.

This summer Minnesota welcomes you!