ELWYN B. ROBINSON DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
CHESTER FRITZ LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA
GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA 58202

PASTA COLLECTION

COLLECTION: OGL #1364

DATES: 1991-2000

SIZE: 1.5 linear feet

INTRODUCTION

ACQUISITION: The Pasta Collection was deposited in the Orin G. Libby Manuscript Collection by Frank D'Andraia, Chester Fritz Library, Director of Libraries, on June 1, 1998 (Acc.#98-2198) and in 1997 and 1998 (Acc.#99-2259).

ACCESS: Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Department of Special Collections.

HISTORICAL SKETCH

Durum wheat has been a staple of North Dakota agriculture. In 2004, North Dakota produced about 70% of the US durum crop. Pasta is an important product main from durum wheat. A bushel of durum wheat can make about 42 pounds of pasta. In 1997, 74% of Americans reported having between 1 and 5 packages of pasta in their kitchen at any given time. Pasta is now becoming a part of the North Dakota economy, with companies like Dakota Growers Pasta Company in Carrington, North Dakota, starting to produce pasta as well as the durum wheat.

Frank D'Andraia, a past Director of Libraries at UND, was greatly interested in the role of pasta in North Dakota. He began to collect a small collection of pasta literature for the Chester Fritz Library. D'Andraia was also active in promoting pasta in the community, and was a member of the steering committee of the Grand Pasta Party on the Prairie.

Due to the importance of pasta in North Dakota, Grand Forks hosted a Grand Pasta Party on the Prairie for several years. The first one was hosted in the summer of 1997. This was an event dedicated to celebrating pasta. The event included a pasta cook-off, demonstrations from pasta chefs, live music, local exhibits and vendors and a multitude of other events. The Grand Pasta Party was cancelled in 1999 due to lack of sponsorship and has never been rescheduled.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Pasta Collection consists of materials that relate to the pasta industry in North Dakota and throughout the world. The collection has documents from a member (Frank D'Andraia) of the Grand Pasta Party on the Prairie Steering Committee that includes minutes, agendas, advertisements, press releases and budgets from 1997 to 1999. This collection also contains some general pasta brochures, articles and recipes. An incomplete run of Pasta Journal, the magazine of the National Pasta Association, from 1994 to 2000 is part of this collection.

BOX AND FOLDER INVENTORY

Box 1
Folder

1. Correspondence: 1992-1997
2. Grand Pasta Party Steering Committee Materials (1997)
3. Grand Pasta Party Advertisements and Press Releases (1997)
4. Nodak Neighbor (October 1997): Article on 1997 Grand Pasta Party
5. Grand Pasta Party Steering Committee Materials (1998)
6. Grand Pasta Party Advertisements and Press Releases (1998)
7. Grand Pasta Party Steering Committee Materials (1999)
8. Winning Pasta Recipes: North Dakota Wheat Commission: 1991-1996
9. North Dakota Mill 75th Anniversary (1997)
10. E'Tempo di Ricette (Italian book)
11. Light & Healthy Pasta Recipes
12. Pasta Journal 1994 (Vol. 76, No. 3)
13. Pasta Journal 1995 (Vol. 77, No. 1-5)
14. Pasta Journal 1996 (Vol. 78, No. 1-6)
15. Pasta Journal 1997 (Vol. 79, No. 1-6)

Box 2
Folder

1. Pasta Journal 1998 (Vol. 80, No. 1-6)
2. Pasta Journal 1999 (Vol. 81, No. 1-6)
3. Pasta Journal 2000 (Vol. 32, No. 1-2)
4. Miscellaneous: Pasta Brochures
5. Miscellaneous: Pasta Industry Articles Grand Pasta Party T-Shirt

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