tive, author Jannet L. Walsh carefully tells the stories that came from her extensive research into her Irish American heritage set in Minnesota and Ireland. Walsh's family was among the first to settle in a series of Catholic colonies established in 1876 by Archbishop John Ireland in De Graff, Minnesota. Her ancestors-farmers, stewards of the soil, and faithful Christians-were chosen to be part of the rural community in Swift County. Descendants of these settlers continue to live and work in the rural farming community in Swift County.