Now available online is an extensive bibliography of the history of the Upper Peninsula.

A long-time project by Russell Magnaghi, director for Center of U.P. History, Portals to the Past: A Bibliographical and Resource Guide to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula covers a vast array of topics, ranging from ethnic studies, Native Americans, and even an area on the paranormal. The bibliography is available to anyone and can be accessed through the NMU archives website.

“I started the bibliography in 1978, when I first taught the history of the U.P. as a syllabus for a course on the history of the U.P.,” Magnaghi said, “There was no textbook on the history of the U.P., so all the information was scattered among different sources, so I created it so my students could have this information on hand.”

Magnaghi had previously worked for the National Park Service, where he said their role was to educate the public. With that view in mind, he spent years on increasing the size and making additions to make a full list of the history of the U.P.

“It took a lot of work but the finished product is more than rewarding,” Magnaghi said. “This is the first time that any collective bibliography on the complete history of the U.P. has been completed by anyone.”

Troy Henderson, associated with the Center of U.P. History, worked on editing the bibliography and formatting it into a PDF so it could be put online.

“I also looked deeper into certain topics that could be expanded, trying to get in as many sources as possible,” Henderson said. “While being a comprehensive bibliography, we still can make additions and updates every once in a while whenever new sources are located.”

The bibliography is currently 154 pages long, with an array of sources such as books, articles, and journals.

“The goal was not to just make a list but rather getting the information out there,” Magnaghi said. “While the bibliography is very inclusive, the information is mostly of historical value.”