Cookbooks and memorabilia from school events or major anniversaries can provide lists of graduates, sometimes with addresses. That list was updated in 1990 for the Alden All-School Reunion. And even if lists of graduates were not in the cookbook, the recipes have the names of the women who contributed them, again people placed in time at a particular location. Genealogical periodicals sometimes publish lists of students who attended particular schools. Several years ago the Minnesota Genealogist , the Minnesota Genealogical Society's quarterly, included lists of school board members, teachers and pupils from Altona School District 31.
Newspapers report on sports teams and students winning deportment, penmanship or citizenship awards.
Some papers in smaller communities include art work by students, articles written by students, and pictures of graduates in the spring. School boards in Minnesota are required to publish minutes of their meetings in the 'official' newspaper. Because board members are elected officials, campaigns for school board can make interesting reading. Even financial records can provide clues. Those who served on school boards or in official capacities often had children in the school.