Field Note

On April 3, 2024, Local History Services staff was in Owatonna, Minnesota for the 2024 Minnesota Main Street Conference, focused on the theme "Main Street 4 Point Approach™: Organization, Design, Promotion, and Economic Vitality."  The conference attracted individuals and organizations keen on revitalizing historic downtowns and commercial districts. It took place at various locations in downtown Owatonna, including Foremost Brewing, as shown above.

No Local History News Next Week

Please note that Local History News will not be published May 1, 2024. A full robust edition of Local History News will return to your inboxes on Wednesday, May 8, 2024.  

Heritage Preservation Grants

Large Grant Deadline
Pre-applications for the Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants large grant round (requests over $10,000) will be due Friday, May 31, 2024. This is a required part of the large grant application process. Contact the Grants Office with questions.

Small Grant Deadline
The next small grant deadline (requests of $10,000 or less) for the MHCHG program is Friday, April 12, 2024.

MAY Grants Open House
May 2 - Online: The Grants Office will hold a virtual Grants Office Open House using Google Meet from 2 to 3:30 pm in order to provide additional grants support to our communities. We encourage people to RSVP to Gillian with a short summary of what you want to talk about and she will try to ensure that someone helpful will be available. Learn more »

Additional Funding Sources »
Heritage Preservation Grants YouTube Playlist »

From the Blog

This week's blog post is from Acme County Historical Society. Have a blog? Let us know!

Let’s Bring the Meeting to Order: The Organizations and Clubs of the Women of Cokato
Women in the 1890s - 1930s battled social stigmas, pegging them as physically and mentally inferior to their male counterparts. Unable to vote, most women could not hold certain jobs, or participate in sports, the majority of women were molded from birth into the role of housewife. As a result, many women found their education and skills neglected and underutilized by society.

For women seeking to unearth their buried talents, clubs provided them with an avenue to address social and political issues near to their hearts. The same was true for the women of Cokato. Continue Reading »

More MN Blog posts

• On Einar’s Easel - Robbinsdale Historical Society
• Old Scrap Book Item from 1964 - Brandon History Center
• Mixed Blood theater spotlights Iron Range culture -  MN Brown
• Appearances Count - Woodbury Heritage Society
• Breaking the silence: a new documentary grapples with the Holodomor’s legacy in Minnesota - U of MN Libraries
• From the President: April 2024 - Danish American Center
• Embracing Community from Afar: ASI’s Virtual Maker’s Morning - American Swedish Institute

From the Tube

This week's post is from the Pipestone County Historical Society. Have a video channel or podcast? Let us know!

More MN Tube posts

• March of the Governors: Al Quie - Ramsey
• Introduction to Tribal Records Department - Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
• BookEnds: Rick Hilles - Wadena County Historical Society
• Fr John Markoe a Pioneer for Racial Justice - White Bear Lake Area Historical Society
• Bus ride - Phyllis Wheatley Community Center
• Patty Wetterling: "Dear Jacob" - Stearns History Museum

Heritage Preservation YouTube Playlist »

Job Opportunities

Minnesota Historical Society's Job Announcement, Internship, Fellowship, and Volunteer Opportunity pages.

LOCAL

• Environmental Review Program Manager - Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office, St. Paul, MN
• Head of Website & Digital Engagement - Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN
• Lead Gallery Assistant - Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN
• Traveling Exhibits Logistics Coordinator (Includes Fabrication) - Minnesota Children's Museum, St. Paul, MN
• We Are Water, MN Coordinator - MN Pollution Control Agency, St. Paul, MN

REGIONAL

• Operations Manager - Cable Natural History Museum, Cable, WI
• Museum Curator - Cedarburg Art Museum, Cedarburg, WI
• Collections Move Technician, Geology - Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, WI
• Weekend Clerk - North Dakota Heritage Center and State Museum, Bismarck, ND
• Collections Technician - National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium, Dubuque, IA
• Custodian - Siouxland Heritage Museums, Sioux Falls, SD

NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

• Tour Guide - Volo Auto Museum, Volo, IL
• Development Database and Operations Manager - Chicago Children's Museum, Chicago, IL
• Assistant Director for Marketing and Communication - Krannert Art Museum University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL
• Gardener - Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Nashville, IN
• Groundskeeper - Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Nashville, IN
• Historic Site Manager - Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, New Harmony, IN
• Out of School Time Educator - Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Indianapolis, IN
• Historical Site Interpreter - Angel Mounds, Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, Evansville, IN
• Historical Site Interpreter - New-Harmony, Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites, New Harmony, IN
• Associate Director of Experience & Education - Minnetrista Museum and Gardens, Muncie, IN
• Imaging Supervisor - Warren County Records Center & Archives, Lebanon, OH
• Museum Presenter - Monroe County Museum, County of Monroe, Monroe, MI
• Collections Manager/Associate Preparator - Muskegon Museum of Art, Muskegon, MI
• Museum Assistant - Dearborn Historical Museum, Dearborn, MI
• Administrative Coordinator - Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear, Empire, MI
• University Archivist And Director Of Special Collections - Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA
• Manager of Community Learning and Engagement - Sheldon Museum of Art, Lincoln, NE
• IT Support Specialist - Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, MO
• Archives Technician - National Archives and Records Administration, Spanish Lake, MO
• Historic Preservation Specialist Architectural Historian - Missouri Department of Transportation, Jefferson City, MO
• President and Chief Executive Officer - Royal Ontario Museum Foundation, Toronto, ON
• Visitor Experience Associate - Manitoba Museum, Winnipeg, MB
• Museum Coordinator - Virden Pioneer Home Museum, Virden, MB

INTERNSHIPS/VOLUNTEERS/FELLOWSHIPS

• Museum hosts - Lake Minnetonka Historical Society, Lake Minnetonka area, MN
• Museum Education Assistant Internship - State Historical Society of Iowa, Des Moines, IA
• Summer Special Collections Internship - State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City, IA
• Summer Internship - Museum of Danish America, Elk Horn, IA

Additional Job Postings in the Field »

Do History Here

Image used with permission. From the collections of the Ely-Winton Historical Society.

Submit your history organization's news and events to localhistorynews@mnhs.org.

Unearthing our History and Forging Our Future
April 27 @ 12 to 3 pm - Duluth:  MN Association of Professional Employees - Historian Rachleff will tap his Duluth experiences and research to talk about past critical regional coalition-building efforts that offer models, inspiration and wisdom for forging labor’s future. Rachleff was involved in the mid-1980s Hormel strike and the mid-2000s Northwest Airlines mechanics strike, writing a book about the first struggle. An engaging storyteller, Rachleff has also researched how marginalized and oppressed groups have participated and led the way in the labor union. Location: Duluth Labor Temple. Picnic lunch, music and program. Cost: Free. Learn more  »

Panel Discussion: All Politics is Local - The Surprising Power of County Government
May 2 @ 7 to 8:30 pm (CDT) - Minneapolis & Online: Hennepin History Museum - This event will feature three former Hennepin County commissions, a former Hennepin County administrator, and The Theater of Public Policy and will showcase the often-overlooked role of county government in our everyday lives.  From managing hospitals, libraries, public infrastructure, and many other little-seen operations, our county government has taken on projects that were once the domain of other government entities. Cost: Pay As You Can. Learn more  »

Tour: Swing into Spring 2024 Tour: Anniversary Adventure 
May 4 @ 12 to 4 pm - Winona: Winona County History Center - This self-guided tour invites participants to explore a series of locations throughout the city, including Winona Athletic Club, Winona Lake Park Bandshell, Winona Public Library, Minnesota State College Southeast, WNB Financial, and the Upper Mississippi River Refuge at Prairie Island Park Kiwanis Pavilion. Each site celebrating an anniversary offers a unique blend of activities, special tours, storytelling, games, and more. Cost: $12 members/$15 nonmembers. Learn more »

Presentation: The 1980s Farm Crisis: Bankruptcies, Protests, and Memory in Stearns County
May 8 @ 9 to 10 am - St. Cloud: Stearns History Museum - The 1980s was more than the vivid colors and glorious fashions we remember now. Join Cory Hoolo, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, as he revisits a harrowing period that not only affected farmers and their families in Stearns County, but around the entire country. Cost: Free members/$7 nonmembers. Learn more »

Presentation: Riding the rails north – the Orphan Train story in Minnesota
May 18 @ 7 pm - Stillwater: Washington County Heritage Center -The Orphan Train Movement transported urban children from the East to the Midwest in the 1800s, aiming to provide them with stable living situations. Approximately 5,000-6,000 children were sent to Minnesota between 1882 and 1892. This program, considered an early form of foster care, will be explored in-depth, including its national background and controversies. Attendees will learn about the movement's impact and decide if it was a success or a tragedy. Cost: Free. Learn more »

Tour: Girls Just Want to Have Fun Bus Tour
June 21 @ 12 to 6 pm - St. Cloud: Stearns History Museum - Ladies, celebrate the Summer Solstice by joining the museum for a fun and tasty afternoon in the southeastern part of the county! Tour and summer picnic at Fairhaven Mill Park; Tours and tastings at Millner Heritage Winery in Kimball. Cost: $65. Learn more »

Explore Minnesota - State of MN's Tourism website
Listings: History & Heritage Events | Historic Exhibits | Lectures & Workshops
Submit an event »

Continuing Education

Highlighted Museum: Northfield Historical Society Museum, Northfield MN.
Photograph by McGhiever, distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 license.

Public Impact Projects at Smaller Organizations  
April 25 @ 12 to 1:30 pm (CT) - Online:  National Endowment for the Humanities - Join the NEH for an information session on the Public Impact Projects grant program, which is aimed at smaller and mid-sized organizations with the objective to strengthen an organization's interpretive skillset for the public through the development or implementation of public-facing projects and programs, professional development, or internal evaluation or assessment. Awards are available up to $25,000. Cost: Free. Learn more »

Legal Issues in Collections Care: Abandoned Property
May 16 @ 11 am (CT) - Online: Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts - Sarah Kapellusch, Registrar at the Wisconsin Veterans Museum discusses what is abandoned property, when is something abandoned, how to identify your own abandoned property, and what to do with it once it’s been identified as such. Cost: Free. Learn more »

TIPS & TOOLS

• National Heritage Responders: Emergency Response and Salvage App is back for iOS users. (The Android version is coming soon) Download the app from the Apple Store »
  
  

Additional Educational Opportunities »

Funding & Awards

Public Impact Projects at Smaller Organizations  
April 25 @ 12 to 1:30 pm (CT) - Online:  National Endowment for the Humanities - Join the NEH for an information session on the Public Impact Projects grant program, which is aimed at smaller and mid-sized organizations with the objective to strengthen an organization's interpretive skillset for the public through the development or implementation of public-facing projects and programs, professional development, or internal evaluation or assessment. Awards are available up to $25,000. Learn more »

Wikimedia Foundation Grants
Grant programs for groups of individuals, Wikimedia affiliates, and non-profit organizations. 
Rapid Grants fund Wikimedia community members to organize projects throughout the year up to $2,000. Projects can include experiments or standard needs that don't need a broad review to get started.

News

Must See Museum – Meeker County Museum’s GAR Hall
KSTP - A new edition of Must See Museum brings Photojournalist Bill Medke to Litchfield’s Grand Army of the Republic Hall at the Meeker County Museum. Bill checked out the G.A.R. Hall’s tribute for the 159th anniversary of the Civil War. Watch video »

Six newspapers serving southwest Twin Cities metro area will publish last issue this week
Star Tribune – ...From a historical society sense ... it's one of the main ways that the county's story is told," said Lindsay Marshall, the Scott County Historical Society's executive director, adding that local newspapers highlight everything from community celebrations to residents who died.... Continue reading »

TaikoArts Midwest, Minnesota Latino Museum among culture groups eyeing new homes in St. Paul
Pioneer Press – A number of St. Paul-based arts and cultural institutions are seeking both private philanthropic donations and public dollars to open new public-facing centers.  Continue reading »

Civil War group honors the last Union veteran buried in each Minnesota county
Star Tribune – Jim Johnson started delving into genealogy in 2019 when he retired after 21 years in the U.S. Army and another two decades sorting mail at the Brainerd post office. "As I dug into my family tree, one document kept popping up and I couldn't figure out what it was," said Johnson, 65. Continue reading »

Three historical African American locations named to Minneapolis National Registry
The Minnesota Daily – The grant money will be used to create a study helping guide historic preservation in Minneapolis along with the nomination of at least three sites on the National Register. Continue reading »

Local View: Everyone's history is important, demands to be saved
Duluth New Tribune – As executive director of the St. Louis County Historical Society, I count myself fortunate to represent an organization that collects, preserves, and presents the county’s history. By connecting with the people who have called this area their home, we ensure the items their families thought were important are preserved. Just as important, the histories connected to those items are preserved, too. Finally, by presenting these stories, we help ensure they are always relevant and that more people are encouraged to preserve their own histories. This cycle helps to maintain and grow history. Continue reading »

Featured Book Stories of Danger and Death in the Boundary Waters by Joe Friedrichs. Minnesota Historical Society Press. Author Event Date: May 4 @ 6 to 8 pm Location: Drury Lane Books, Grand Marais, MN	Featured Article Minnesota History Defenders of business : the Minneapolis Civic and Commerce Association versus labor during W.W. I Volume 50, Issue 1, 1986	Featured Article MNopedia Somali Poetry in Minnesota Featured MNopedia Article
Minnesota History Organizations Directory  • County, Chapters, and Local • Statewide/Topical Historical • Regional History Coalitions • Professional Organizations	Minnesota Main Streets Reinvigorate your community's commercial district.	Preservation Specialists Directory Look up products or services.

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