OUR PORTFOLIO
It is a wonderful account of two families and finally of one. The pictures are wonderful. The writing is a pleasure to read, the work of a good historian with empathy for his subject.
When I first talked to Matt, I knew I’d found the right guy. He chronicled our African-American family history from ancestors in the 1700s through grandkids in the 21st century. Furthermore, he helped develop a multi-generational theme, making the book more interesting and fun to read. Relatives and friends were fascinated, and one even said it was ‘magnificent.’
What a wonderful book! Every page I’ve read is of real interest.
Some examples of Private Historian books:
All Things Are Possible
A boy who grew up in a crowded ranch house cut grass, set bowling pins, and delivered newspapers to pay for college, then started a small contracting company. He began by installing sewer and water mains on weekends, telling his men: You get paid when I get paid. Fast forward four decades, and he heads a nationwide construction conglomerate. Along the way, he came to believe anything was possible if you dared to try, and commissioned a personal history to tell the story of how he did.
Out of Iceland
This story begins with a bang! A volcano explosion in Iceland in the 19th century sent the Asbjornson family to Minnesota, where it battled the same Long Winter that Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote about. The family survived and moved to Montana, where it carved out a living in wheat country selling and fixing tractors during the Depression. One descendant started a garbage pickup business while still a boy and went on to found a major manufacturing company. Today, he sends his Private Historian-written family history books to the Montana teens he gives college scholarships.
An Immigrant Forges a Future
In 1895, a Scandinavian immigrant started a blacksmith shop to make horseshoes. Fast forward 125 years, and the business is forging parts for jet fighters and nuclear power plants! The firm also is beating the odds by staying family-owned. The immigrant’s great-grandson hired Private Historian to write a company history with a twist. The book paid tribute not to the owners, but the employees who for decades have cut, hammered, heated, treated, and shipped metal.
Founders of Faith, Founders of Industry
This saga begins with the family's forefather peddling through the snow in New England. He went on to help establish Chicago’s first synagogue and blaze a trail as a city official. His relatives, by birth and marriage, started one company that produced raw materials for millions of cars and appliances and another that changed what Americans wore.
From Prairie to Prominence
The account of a family that built a magazine and film empire in the 20th century. Our research revealed what we always hope for in a family history: a forgotten chapter. In their first years in America, family members tried sodbusting on the Plains. They met with bitter winters and defeat, but trekked to a young, dynamic city and climbed to success.
Master Builders
The story of a family that started and ran two building companies over two centuries. The family rose from immigrant workers to construction moguls through daring and ingenuity. We were fascinated to learn how tricky it can be to construct even the simplest structure. You can see this family’s work in granite, steel and concrete in towers, train stations and bridges across America.
Finance and Faith
A biography of a household name. This farmer’s son, armed with a knack for calculations and powerful faith, founded a financial giant. As his business grew, he bounced between paralyzing bouts of exhaustion and booming success. It was humbling to help write this book about a man who toiled in an industry that seems staid. In reality, his financial instruments drove the expansion of the American West.
Letters from a Young Man
A collection of letters from the scion of an old family. Out of college, he toured the world, writing to his mother and photographing Europe’s capitals, the Holy Land, British India, and Japan. He depicted countries rebuilding from war and struggling with ancient hatreds. The letters were riveting—at one point, he witnesses a murder. We were proud to take part in this book’s creation, turning archived letters into a format that ensured his descendants would read them for generations.
Two books on Chicago neighborhood history that Matthew Nickerson wrote for sale at stores:
Lake View
How Lake View grew from America’s celery capital to a blue-collar German neighborhood to the affluent urban locale it is today. Here is Matt, talking about the book on Chicago’s WGN TV station.
East Lake View
A sequel to Lake View that spotlights the popular Wrigleyville and Boystown neighborhoods in East Lake View. Matt was honored to have both Lake View and East Lake View published by Arcadia Publishing.
Here are articles Matthew Nickerson wrote for the Chicago Tribune’s Sunday history page:
On the eve of Facebook’s 2012 initial public offering, Matt took a look back at an even bigger event—the great Sears IPO of 1906. It changed the history of Sears, Chicago, Goldman Sachs, the retailing industry, and the nation itself.
Death and bloodshed once marked celebrations of the Fourth of July. A Chicago Tribune campaign changed how America marks its national birthday.