Odds and Ends We Still Need

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by

Wes Modes
in ,

Three days and counting.

watch

Here are a few odds and ends we still looking for:

  1. Parking. We still need a safe place to park the truck and trailer while we are on the river. Preferably in or very near Minneapolis or St. Paul. We will come get it in a month or so.
  2. Your local paper. I need to send out press releases to let people know we are coming down their river and that we come in peace and want to talk. If you live along the Upper Mississippi, what local papers do you read?
  3. A portable USB scanner. I need a small scanner to image photos and documents from the people I am interviewing.
  4. Boat insurance. This is surprisingly hard to get for a home-built wooden-hulled houseboat. The arguments about the historical significance of shantyboats seem unable to sway intractable insurance agents. If you know where I can insure the Secret History shantyboat, please tell.
  5. Old folks. I’d love to talk to an older generation who may still remember communities of shantyboaters living on the river. So far I’ve met awesome young and not-so-young folks with amazing stories, but if you know elders whose memories go way back, please put me in touch.

Have any of these things, or leads?  Contact us lightening quick.

Comments

3 responses to “Odds and Ends We Still Need”

  1. Brice Hughes Avatar
    Brice Hughes

    http://www.thehawkeye.com The Hawkeye newspaper in Burlington, IA is an excellent local paper in Southeast Iowa.

  2. Greg Oneil Avatar
    Greg Oneil

    Hey just heads up about insurance, if you contact private agents in coastal sailing towns what are used to wooden boats (think northern) you may have some luck. Check in mystic Conn, port townsend Wa, belfast or camden Maine. I live in port townsend and there must be about 100 home built wooden craft in the works. and any of them that end up in the marina (much of them) get insurance.

  3. Deb Lynch Avatar
    Deb Lynch

    http://www.winonadailynews.com
    Born and raised in Winona on the river! I think you quest is the bomb! Live in Rocheport, MO now right on the Big Muddy. Check out the Winona paper. As far as I know there are still some houseboats in the sloughs around Winona. Old river history here! Good Luck! Safe travels. I’ll be following this adventure.