Dorothy Molter lived on the Isle of Pines in the remote wilderness canoe country of northern Minnesota for over 50 years, beginning in 1934. Serving up her secret root beer recipe using the purest water straight from Knife Lake, she provided thirst-quenching refreshment to thousands of adventurers, sometimes upwards of 100-200 folks stopping by daily. Between 1976 and 1986 Dorothy and her helpers brewed an average of over 10,000 bottles of root beer per summer. Many knew Dorothy for her kindness, generosity and willingness to help others. Her training as a nurse was widely known amongst travelers to the wilderness and her location was pointed out on maps by outfitters to their vacationing clients heading into the lake country.
She quickly received the moniker “The Root Beer Lady” and “Nightingale of the Northwoods”.

Today, the Dorothy Molter Museum coordinates the brewing of “Dorothy’s Isle of Pines Root Beer”, and in the spring of 2023 I was honored with the request of bringing their 30th Anniversary Brew label to life, using the famed picture of hand on her hips, standing tall and proud in bibs and a bandana.

Credit: The Dorothy Molter Museum

Photo credits : Minnesota Digital Library

The wilderness in which Dorothy’s story is based in and the land the Museum is located on is part of a history that began generations before our time as the ancestral, traditional and contemporary land and water of the Ojibwe peoples in the ceded territory of the 1854 treaty boundary.


To learn more about this island, Dorothy Molter, and getting your hands on some of Dorothy’s Root Beer - you can visit the Dorothy Molter Museum in Ely MN, or visit their website here.

For more Dorothy nostalgia, pour yourself a cup of somethin good and give her life a cheers here and here.