Bill Jamerson: Up In The U.P.

Up in the U.P. was an hour-long program of songs and stories about growing up in the iron mining towns of Michigan's Upper Peninsula during The Great Depression. These stories are similar to the experiences of the immigrant miners of the Mesabi Range in Minnesota. Dressed in costume and with guitar in hand, Jamerson performs original songs and tells stories about how the immigrants came to America, what they found when they got here, how they adapted to the new world and what life was like working in the mines. He sings songs about pasties (the miners favorite lunch), drilling for iron ore, thimble berries (which grew along the Lake Superior shore), sailing schooners that transported the ore, ski jumping which was brought by the Norwegians and songs about the Finnish culture with their love of saunas. The program is as informative as it is entertaining, and is family friendly. This program took place at 10 locations in the LARL Region from September 5 to September 8, 2017.