... will be discussed here; including information on books authored or edited by MC/MNR staff, books published by the magazine, other documents related to the magazine, periodicals published now that provide some similar information, and such. Below is a very rough preliminary start... There is much more to each of these categories than I have so far.
1. Magazines published in the region with similar content:
Michigan Natural Resources magazine provided a great service to the People of Michigan and there's really noting to replace its mix of natural history, conservation, and other articles about Michigan, especially in a well-designed, advertising-free magazine of high print quality - at least in Michigan.
Fortunately there are still some magazines - many also with long and distinguished histories themselves - that will also appeal to the sort of person who likes MC/MNR. They're not the same, but still good. Some of those people who contributed to MNR have in the past contributed, or even now contribute to these.
I've worked to track down information on any good Great-Lakes area publications first, later further afield. There are a few state conservation departments still putting out good magazines, and cheaply, as you can see.
1a. Michigan magazines published with similar content:
The North Woods Call newspaper ("Michigan's conservation sentinel since 1953") continued a long history of informing readers of Michigan conservation-related news, opinions, and stories. Sadly, a new publisher worked hard to continue the paper's quality and depth of reporting on Michigan conservation issues, stories, and editorials for several years but was unable to continue due to small budget, staff, and health issues. Some back issues are available on the UM library website.
Woods and Water News is another tabloid-format news magazine aimed at hunters, fishers, gatherers. Along with the many advertisements showing electronic gadgetry you shouldn't take into the woods or on the waters, ORVs and SUVs driving where they shouldn't, and of course real estate ads, there's also some articles relating to conservation, natural history, Michigan in general, legislation of note, and actual hunting and fishing.
The Michigan United Conservation Clubs (MUCC) publishes Michigan Out of Doors magazine, which has a lot of interesting content amongst the usual SUV and ORV ads.
1a. Great Lakes area magazines published with similar content:
Note how many of the states continue to publish high quality magazines - while I don't know of any that have privatized equivalents that haven't degenerated into consumerist 'lifestyle' magazines more suitable to a shopping mall's lounge than an outdoorsman's camp. Here's an article on how Michigan, which used to be a conservation leader in the country, has fallen (or been pushed) to 47th place in funding.
Ontario Nature magazine is of interest to us. it used to be called "Seasons", back when the organization publishing it was called the Federation of Ontario Naturalists (now it's called Ontario Nature'). It's become more of one of those 'modern' media-flashy magazines with lots of 'lifestyle' advertising than an educational publication, but still with looking at or subscribing to.
One excellent regional analog to MC/MNR is the Minnesota Conservation Volunteer. Best of all, the while run of issues back to its start in 1940 are available as PDF downloads! And it's still available in paper subscription, too. After I saw an issue in Minnesota in June 2012, I immediately subscribed (subscription is by 'donation'). It's published by the Minnesota DNR. You'll see very similar content and style here, and some of the Michigan authors who wrote for MC/MNR also wrote guest articles in MCV. Great art, too!
Another magazine in this style from a neighboring state is Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine, published by the WI DNR. Subscriptions are only $9/year! They have some online content going back to 1996 at present. I have a few issues of this magazine from the early 1940s; maybe I'll add them to the site eventually.
Here's an article from 1954 about the Wisconsin Conservation Department, from the Wisconsin Magazine Of History Archives.
Ohio's got the Wild Ohio magazine from the OH DNR's Division of Wildlife. $10/year! Back issues on PDF, including (maybe one at a time?) as far back as 1958!
And in Indiana, it's the Outdoor Indiana Magazine, published by the IN DNR! Back issues to 1996 at present. $12/year!
1c. Other magazines published with similar content:
New York has the New York State Conservationist magazine, published by the NY DEC.
And New Hampshire has the New Hampshire Wildlife Journal.
Maine's got the Maine Fish and Wildlife magazine, though I'm unsure of it's status (in summer 2012 the 'latest' issue is spring 2011). This press release tells of its history and change to a computer-only format as of 2009, though the PDF versions are indeed very nicely designed. However, it's also easier to let a web-only format wither and die (no paid subscribers to answer to)...
Here's a blog article entitled "State conservation magazines well worth subscription price". It's from the southern US, and the 'replies' are littered with spam, but the title is, of course accurate!
Searching "state conservation magazine" or variants on the web will find you others...
2. Books by MC/MNR staff:
Contributors to MC and MNR magazine published numerous books over the years, some derived from magazine content, some entirely different. The following are a few titles to start; will fill out more later.
Warbach, Oscar (Ozz): Mother Nature's
Michigan.
Bradt, G. W and Charles E. Schafer: Michigan
Wildlife
Sketches
My new friends were barefoot by John Gray. - A story
of growing up in the upper Peninsula town of Sagola during
the 1920's. Available for sale and as online text from the
Ralph Secord Press of the Menominee County
Library (many other interesting titles too!)
Russell McKee: Great Lakes Country (New York: Thomas
Y. Crowell Company, 1966)
Russell McKee: Up North (195pp., 2008. ISBN 0981593402. A
collection of 14 short stories cleverly connected and set in
the Great Lakes Region in the early 1900's. Illustrations by
Rick Cunningham, Wooly Bear Press, East Lansing, MI Phone
517-339-2416.)
3. Books that were published by MNR magazine:
Will compile a list of books published by or in close relation to MNR over the years (with links to MNR magazine information on them) later. Particularly in the late 70s-early 80s MNR published a series of fine books on Michigan nature, hunting, history, and a superbly detailed atlas of Michigan counties.
One example, Ozz Warbach's Mother Nature's Michigan, from his long-running series of very detailed illustrations showing satirical views of nature and nature-goers, is still available from the State of Michigan.
3. Books by significant contributors to MC/MNR, or
referencing the magazine frequently:
Rough for now, and very minimal. Will add dates, publishers,
annotations, etc. later.
Norman F. Smith: Michigan Trees Worth Knowing. Most
of these are versions of the original articles that were
published in MC in the 1940s.
Helen M. Martin: They Need Not Vanish
William B. Botti, Michael D. Moore: Michigan's State
Forests; A Century of Stewardship.
Petersen, Eugene T.: Hunters' Heritage; A History of
Hunting in Michigan.
Dave Dempsey: On the Brink; The Great Lakes in the 21st
Century.
Dave Dempsey: Ruin & Recovery; Michigan's Rise As a
Conservation Leader.
Theodore J. Karamanski: Deep Woods Frontier; A History
of Logging in Northern Michigan (Great Lakes Books).
Poindexter, O.F, H. M. Martin, S.G. Bergquist: Rocks and
Minerals of Michigan.
4. Archival material relating to MC/MNR:
Ozz Warbach's drawings, for example, are in the archive of Michigan.
5. Articles in other publications from MC/MNR staff:
You'll Always Get Home, by Russell McKee, in Natural History v.87 no. 7 (August-September 1978) (on page 795 of the PDF)
How to build a fire, by Russell McKee in The Minnesota (Conservation) Volunteer, November-December 1973. (PDF)
Website by Robert Liebermann | © and last edit:
2016.11.25
location: http://michiganconservation.net/related.htm