Year: 2025

Three older women smile at the camera while wearing festive Christmas hats and scarves inside a museum-like space, with vintage displays and a large carved figure visible behind them.

Cold Weather Can’t Stop Christmas Cheer at Peterson’s Beloved Holiday Festival

Hardy community members won’t let a cold snap keep them from celebrating Christmas in Peterson! John Weiss reports on this local holiday tradition of Norwegian treats, Santa visits and music that continues to bring the community together.

Illustration: "Going to Conference" in the book The Circuit Rider A Tale of the Heroic Age by Edward Eggleston (left). Portrait of Father John Lewis Dyer (right). (Acquired through Public Domain)

Where Frontier Faith Took Root: Lenora Methodist Church and Its Circuit-Rider Origins

Written by Amy Jo Hahn, this story traces the influence of Methodist pastor John Lewis Dyer, his influence on building the Lenora Methodist Episcopal Church and the frontier faith that shaped a rural Minnesota community.

A combine harvester cuts through a field of mature soybeans while unloading grain into a tractor-pulled wagon beside it, creating a cloud of dust on a sunny day.

Regional Soybean Production: Understanding What Happens When the Top Buyer Stops Buying

An in-depth look at how halted Chinese soybean purchases, falling prices and a $12B relief fund are reshaping farming across the Midwest.

Black-and-white group portrait of twelve young men in dark suits posed around a wooden table, likely a student organization from the early 1900s. A banner reading “Duodecim” rests beneath the table. All are clean-shaven with neatly combed hair, photographed indoors against a plain studio backdrop.

Poet Richard Eberhart Remembered

John Torgrimson shares the nearly forgotten story and literary legacy of Austin native and U.S. Poet Laureate Richard Eberhart.

sunshine streams through the clouds with an American flag on the left

Youth and Creativity: Watching Talent Grow

Root River Current’s 2025 review of youth arts stories.

Six Canada geese glide across a calm river lined with autumn trees, their orange and gold foliage mirrored in the still water.

Essay | Summer, Spring, Winter and Fall, Water Calls to Us

A reflective essay by John Weiss exploring our deep connection to water in all its beauty, its warnings and the vital role it plays in our landscape and lives.

A young girl wearing sunglasses, a pink hoodie, gloves, and colorful boots tosses a piece of firewood into a blue wood cart outdoors. She stands on a large pile of split logs next to evergreen trees, with bright sun shining behind her and a red barn in the background.

Essay | Putting Up Firewood: A Family Affair

Just in time for holiday gatherings…Greg Schieber’s original essay about putting up firewood for the winter, from memories of his own youthful years to the help lovingly shared by his own kids today.

Wide view of Stockholm’s waterfront with bridges, walkways, and historic buildings under a partly cloudy sky, with people walking and biking along the water’s edge.

Essay | The Pursuit of Happiness

Touring from Gothenburg to Stockholm, John Torgrimson explores firsthand why Sweden ranks among the world’s happiest nations – and has some “caring and sharing” observations for the holidays.

A musician wearing glasses and a plaid shirt plays an acoustic guitar on stage inside a warm, wood-paneled venue. He faces an audience of older adults seated at small tables, listening closely under soft string lights.

Celebrating Creativity!

A photo gallery of Root River Current’s recent celebration of regional arts and artists featured in stories published in 2025.

Large group of people of all ages standing in line at a church or community-center buffet, filling their plates with Thanksgiving-style food in large roasters. The room is bright and busy, with casseroles, turkey, salads, and desserts laid out on long tables. The scene shows a warm, friendly small-town gathering.

Essay | Bringing Back Takkefest: Rushford Community Rebuilds a Beloved Thanksgiving Tradition

Kristin Burdey shares her story of reviving a beloved community holiday dinner and the healing it’s brought to families who’ve recently closed their Rushford-area restaurant businesses.

From Ski Trails to Hiking Paths, Heat is Reshaping Recreation and Our Attitudes

A warming climate presents growing challenges for outdoor recreationalists, including trail users. The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk has this overview heading into another year of winter recreation.

Display case featuring Brevet Brigadier General Judson W. Bishop’s Civil War sword, informational placard, and small U.S. flag at the Fillmore County History Center in Fountain, Minnesota.

Civil War Hero Judson W. Bishop, Instrumental in Building Fillmore County’s Future

On the occasion of Veterans Day, Laney Smith uncovers the story of Chatfield’s Judson W. Bishop whose legacy includes Civil War leader, engineer, newspaperman and visionary who helped shape Fillmore County, Minn.

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