This book is a collection of 100 year old glass plate negatives, found in the barn of a farm my folks purchased, near Wadena Minnesota. The images were created by a photographer who lived and worked on this farm in the early 1900's named Fred Kurz. It has been a 20 year project - on and off - to scan, restore and reproduce these images. As a photographer who loves traditional process, history and rural life, this was a real treasure to find. Working on each image was like traveling back in time to see when communities and families were close and when the work days were long and conveniences were few. The original plates were in pretty rough shape having been sandwiched between the pages of newspapers and almanacs and exposed to the ever changing harsh climate changes of Minnesota. Many were broken and badly damaged, however like so many other projects, the process is often as rewarding as the destination!