Partner Organizations: University of Minnesota, Minnesota Digital Library, Minitex.
The Ojibwe language, like many other indigenous languages, is endangered. Most current speakers are over the age of 65 and probably fewer than a thousand speakers of Ojibwe in the United States learned it as their first language.
The Onamia Municipal Hall is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building was in need of a historic structures report / conditions analysis to provide restoration and management goals for the property. Currently the building is experiencing interior wall condensation, plaster erosion, water intrusion, energy loss, electrical system issues, and spalling of exterior mortar. The report documents current conditions, provide appropriate approaches to the treatment of existing problems, and outline a scope of future recommended work.
Two storms in July and August of 2010 caused the east wall and gables of the historic North Peterson Barn, a structure on the Andrew Peterson Farmstead listed on the National Register of Historic Places, to collapse. The already deteriorating barn required stabilization to preserve what remained for eventual restoration. The firm of Hansen Hometech was contracted to carry out the stabilizing process.
Conservators completed a detailed Condition Report for a 90-year-old 1919 Waterous Fire Engine owned by the Pine River Fire Department. The extent of original finish present is unusually extensive in an engine of this age and the Pine River Fire Department was advised to maintain as much of the original finish as possible. They were also advised to improve the storage/display environment as necessary to provide optimal conditions, which will benefit the long term preservation of this significant object.
To add and enhance arts and cultural heritage programming by hosting an Irish Dance company and constructing new display cases and wall hangings to better view the Open Class exhibits.
The Dakota Language Project will print 400 Early reader Dakota language readers and 400 comic books in Dakota. A web page will also be created for Dakota language with a youth focus. Two Dakota language consultants will be hired to teach the Dakota language to the people of the Prairie Island Indian Community.
To create a permanent, outdoor historical art sculpture, and honor the legacy of female contributors to agriculture in a new venue, "Women in Agriculture Day."
MNHS continues to build a culture of evaluation. An evaluation manager leads institutional evaluation capacity building and provides technical assistance and support to staff who evaluate ACHF projects and programs. An evaluation associate in the Education and Lifelong Learning division facilitates evaluation efforts, specifically in K-12 education and public programs. Three interns and numerous volunteers continue to support evaluation work.
To preserve and make available the early issues of the Range Facts, a weekly newspaper that was published from 1934 to 1941 by W.A.Fisher and edited by George A. Perham, It covered the Mesabi and Vermilion range towns as well as adjacent rural areas and gave extensive coverage to state, county and local affairs, sports, social news, farming, obituaries and Depression programs. Copies were not sent to the Minnesota Historical Society until 1942 when the Virginia Daily Enterprise assumed ownership.
Partner Organizations: Council for Minnesota Archaeology, Minnesota Archaeological Society.
Radiocarbon dating is an important technique in modern archaeology since it provides objective information about the calendar age of archaeological objects and sites. Through this partnership, the Society's existing archaeological collections were mined for organic samples suitable for radiocarbon dating.
The objective of this grant is to prevent the Ojibwe language loss, to increase and enhance the understanding of the American Indian language, to ensure positive reinforcement of the self-image and sense of identity with the empowerment of American Indian children. This will be done by offering and participating Ojibwe language competitions with other colleges, as well as, by offering immersion camps, fluent speakers in the classrooms, and language tables. Additionally, the youth will visit maple sugar and wild rice camps.
The Minnesota Historical Society manages 26 historic sites and museums across Minnesota. Recognizing an opportunity to work more collaboratively with organizations where historic sites are located, the Society developed programs to expand history education and programming and elevate the level of professionalism in local history organizations.
This funding enabled site staff across the state to host workshops to train history professionals and work with local historical agencies to assess and update collections.
The Minnesota Historical Society manages 26 historic sites and museums across Minnesota. Recognizing an opportunity to work with organizations where historic sites are located, the Society is collaborating with local historical organizations around the state to assess and improve their service to the public.
Inert museum storage was created for the ethnographically and historically significant Helbing Collection of American Indian Arts and Crafts as recommended in a museum assessment.
Partner Organizations: Winona County Historical Society and Theatre du Mississippiona
Winona County Historical Society and Theatre du Mississippi will partner to produce a new interpretive program for the Historic William Bunnell House in 2015. They will conduct research to produce an hour-long script based on the lives of families who lived in the house and the period they lived there. This new program will create a purpose for a house museum which has been languishing.
MNHS and the Minnesota State Fair Foundation increased awareness and knowledge of Minnesota history by providing quality programming for visitors to the Great Minnesota Get-Together. In 2016, new content was added to the Minnesota State Fair History Walking Tour brochure, including a wide array of diverse images of people at the fair. Audio and visual content was also available through the tour's smartphone component, and staff presented audio/visual content via social media throughout the fair.
The Legislature created the Statewide Survey of Historic & Archaeological Sites to provide opportunities to expand our understanding of historic and archaeological sites statewide.
Projects are defined by an oversight board and are conducted through competitive-bid contracts.
This funding supports and ensures the success of the ACHF-funded Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants Program. The Society seeks out potential grant applicants, leads statewide grant-writing workshops and webinars, and helps applicants with technical information critical to submitting a successful grant application, as well as supporting recipients throughout the life of their projects.
Through a competitive process, the Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants Program awards grants to historical organizations statewide to support projects of enduring value for the cause of history and historic preservation. Each of the more than 500 active historical organizations in Minnesota serves an important role in preserving significant stories of the people and events of Minnesota.
As required by law, the Minnesota Historical Society appoints a citizen advisory panel, the Historic Resources Advisory Committee, to guide grant decisions for the program.
The project included documenting all existing interpretive panels and markers of the U.S. - Dakota War in the MN River Valley and researching potential sites for new interpretive panels or markers. The end result is a written document with an inventory of existing marked U.S. - Dakota War sites in the MN River Valley, research of unmarked sites and an overall strategy of which sites could be marked to better tell the story. The report will provides guidance in telling a more complete story of the U.S. - Dakota War of 1862 through interpretive markers.
To upgrade the fair’s stage lighting and provide arts and cultural performances and demonstrations. The Wilkin County Fair will enhance their lighting system on the Free Stage. The fair’s plan is to make the stage a major part of the fair and offers dance, polka, jazz, bluegrass, folk swing choir performances, along with educational demonstrations, such as spinning llama wool.
To hire a qualified historian to complete an evaluation to determine eligibility for listing in the National Register of Historic Places for the Woman's Club of Minneapolis.
