In this all-new addition to the People of Wisconsin series, author Susan Mikos traces the history of Polish immigrants as they settled in America’s northern heartland. The second largest immigrant population after Germans, Poles put down roots in all corners of the state, from the industrial center of Milwaukee to the farmland around Stevens Point, in the Cutover, and beyond. In each locale, they brought with them a hunger to own land, a willingness to work hard, and a passion for building churches.

Included is a first person memoir from Polish immigrant Maciej Wojda, translated for the first time into English, and historical photographs of Polish settlements around our state.

Susan Gibson Mikos is a historic preservation consultant who lives in Shorewood, Wisconsin. Her other books include Kresy, a volume of photographs taken by geographer Louise Arner Boyd in the eastern borderlands of Poland in 1934. Over the past thirty years, Mikos has been active in several Polish cultural organizations, including the Polish Center of Wisconsin and Polanki, the Polish Women’s Cultural Club of Milwaukee.