Swedish–American Historical Publications
Publication has been a primary goal of the Swedish–American Historical Society from the beginning. The original slogan adopted 15 January 1949 was "Established to record the achievements of the Swedish pioneers." Early newsletters reported a number of book projects under consideration. The Society's first book, A Pioneer in Northwest America, 1841-1858: The Memoirs of Gustaf Unonius, Volume I, was published in December 1950. This was preceded by the first issue of the Swedish Pioneer (now Swedish–American) Historical Quarterly in the summer of 1950.
In the years since the first Unonius book, the Society has published 25 more books covering a broad historical spectrum, including Unonius, Volume II, five histories, three biographies, three memoirs, three reference works, five books resulting from Society conferences, a book of essays, two books of letters and two bibliographies. Among the most successful books have been Letters from the Promised Land, by H. Arnold Barton, and Ingrid, by Ingrid Bergstrom. In 2010 the Society published its first novel: Shuttle in Her Hand: A Swedish Immigrant Weaver in America. In addition to its own books, the Society has distributed more than two dozen others as dividends.
Please take a look at our collection of books here in the Society's online bookstore.
The Swedish–American Historical Quarterly
The Quarterly, published now for more than 60 years, has been called "the most important and continuing source of information about Swedes in North America" and is cited frequently in books and articles. Its editors have included Paul A. Varg, E. Gustav Johnson, Franklin D. Scott, Arnold Barton, Raymond Jarvi, Byron Nordstrom, and, currently Mark Safstrom and Adam Hjorthén.
Interested in accessing historical issues of the Quarterly? Get access through Project Muse!
Swedish-American Studies
After 75 years of continuous production, The Swedish-American Historical Quarterly is now an annual publication, Swedish-American Studies, published through the University of Minnesota Press. This has been a dream that the Society’s publications committee, board members, and editors have been working toward for many years, and builds upon the recent improvements that have been made to the journal, such as introducing options for formal peer review and expanding our network of academic contributors in Sweden and across North America.
We are committed to maintaining the same level of content per year, yet in a higher quality academic annual format, as well as an expanded digital presence that will reach more scholars around the globe. We are proud of the fact that our journal has been in continuous publication since 1950 and this transition aims to expand rather than diminish that storied legacy.
Become a member here for access to Swedish-American Studies.
The Swedish–American Historical Society Newsletter-Glimtar
In this same spirit of refreshing, the Swedish-American Historical Society is now Glimtar. Meaning "glimpses" in Swedish, the new look presents feature articles around an issue theme, as well as news, in a several-page format that will fit on your shelves alongside Swedish-American Studies volumes. Glimtar provides the Swedish–American Historical Society a means of publicizing its activities as well as reporting on activities of members. It furthermore serves to promote fellowship among those with an interest in events related to Swedish–American life, culture, and history. Sign up for the newsletter here.
