Minnesota Historical Society

Minnesota Historical Society The Minnesota Historical Society preserves Minnesota's past, shares our state's stories and connects people with history in meaningful ways.
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The Minnesota Historical Society is excited to announce a new partnership with the Little Falls Area Chamber of Commerce...
06/01/2026

The Minnesota Historical Society is excited to announce a new partnership with the Little Falls Area Chamber of Commerce & Tourism!

This partnership will expand tourism and visitor engagement efforts at the Charles Lindbergh House and Museum just in time for the 100th anniversary of Lindbergh’s historic transatlantic flight in 2027.

The Lindbergh House historic site is anticipated to open for the 2027 season beginning May 21, 2027.

During World War I, families began to hang flags in their windows that displayed a gold star for each relative killed in...
05/25/2026

During World War I, families began to hang flags in their windows that displayed a gold star for each relative killed in military service. The title "gold star mother" was used unofficially to describe a woman who had lost a child in service until the national organization American Gold Star Mothers, Inc., was established in 1929.

Many Minnesota mothers claimed membership, and local Minnesota chapters followed. On this Memorial Day (weekend), we honor the sacrifices of our soldiers and their families throughout our country's history.

Learn more about Gold Star Mothers in Minnesota in our MNopedia page: https://mnhs.info/3P8duws

Image: Golling, Benjamin C. Gold Star Mothers Club. 1935. Minnesota Historical Society. Saint Paul, MN.

05/21/2026

Calling all Minnesota artists!

The Minnesota Capitol Art Exhibit Advisory Committee is now accepting proposals to be displayed in the 3rd Floor Exhibit Gallery of the State Capitol for the 2028 calendar year.

Meet , one of the many inspiring artists who submitted a proposal back in 2019, and was chosen to display her exhibition, “122 Conversations: Person to Person, Art Beyond Borders – The Archive.”

Learn more about proposal requirements and timelines at https://www3.mnhs.org/caeac-call-for-proposals

Applications close on June 15, 2026.

During World War II, many committees and institutions came together to assist with the relocation of Japanese Americans ...
05/20/2026

During World War II, many committees and institutions came together to assist with the relocation of Japanese Americans from the concentration camps established by the US government. One such committee was the St. Paul Resettlement Committee, which was established after the International Institute of St. Paul received letters from Japanese Americans in US concentration camps who wanted to relocate to Minnesota.

The committee was vital in coordinating services for the Japanese Americans leaving the camps, and the local YWCA and YMCA offered short-term stays for single women and men. In order to meet their goals, they had to raise funds from Japanese Americans living in St. Paul, local churches, and generous community members. Although they dissolved in 1952, the work of the St. Paul Resettlement Committee had a direct and positive impact on the lives of Japanese Americans, many of whom stayed in the Twin Cities after the war's end and made their new homes in Minnesota.

Learn more about the St. Paul Resettlement Committee in our MNopedia article: https://mnhs.info/4nNJ9jt

Thirty years ago today, the had a grand re-opening in a new building. We’d like to share a little bit about what built ...
05/18/2026

Thirty years ago today, the had a grand re-opening in a new building. We’d like to share a little bit about what built up to the memorable day!

Between 1975 and 1986, about 750,000 refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos resettled in the U.S. In December 1975, G...
05/16/2026

Between 1975 and 1986, about 750,000 refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos resettled in the U.S.

In December 1975, Governor Wendell Anderson established an Indochinese Resettlement Office, which became the Refugee Programs Office in 1981. It coordinated the efforts of federal and voluntary agencies that sponsored refugee families and helped them adjust to their new homes.

These photographs from Jane Kramer document some of these refugees’ stories, included in her collection: “Photographs and Stories of Refugee Women: Perseverance, Dignity, Strength, Hope, and Peace.”

Image 1: Kramer, Jane. Peace 2. 2004. Minnesota Historical Society. Saint Paul, MN
Image 2: Kramer, Jane. Peace 1. 2004. Minnesota Historical Society. Saint Paul, MN

, May 13, 1956, Elvis Presley performed at the Minneapolis Auditorium for a crowd of 3,000. Check out these photographs...
05/13/2026

, May 13, 1956, Elvis Presley performed at the Minneapolis Auditorium for a crowd of 3,000. Check out these photographs from the Minneapolis Star Journal Tribune from that evening.

Images: Minneapolis Star Journal Tribune. 1956. Elvis Presley concert at the Minneapolis Auditorium. Minnesota Historical Society. Saint Paul, MN.

Women gained the right to vote with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920. In the years leading up to ratifica...
05/12/2026

Women gained the right to vote with the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920. In the years leading up to ratification, suffragists traveled across the country, holding rallies and meetings like the one pictured here in Rice Park in St. Paul in 1914.

In commemoration of the country’s 250th anniversary, a national tour in the Golden Flyer II–a restored 1916 Saxon car is retracing the suffragists’ cross-country travels, including a stop at the Minnesota State Capitol at noon on May 15.

Learn more about the passage of the 19th Amendment in Minnesota in our MNopedia article.

https://mnhs.info/4eIv04C

Image: Woman suffrage meeting at Rice Park, St. Paul. 1914. Minnesota Historical Society. Saint Paul, MN.

05/11/2026

Happy Statehood Day, Minnesota!

On May 11, 1858, Minnesota became the 32nd state. Through July 5, there are two handwritten original documents of Minnesota’s state constitution on display at the .

Why two copies? Because Republican and Democratic delegates to the 1857 constitutional convention insisted on them. Learn more about the history behind our state constitutions at the Minnesota History Center!

In 2019, May was proclaimed as American Indian Month in Minnesota to honor and recognize the vibrant and diverse America...
05/07/2026

In 2019, May was proclaimed as American Indian Month in Minnesota to honor and recognize the vibrant and diverse American Indian community.

Last year, a permanent Tribal Flag Plaza was created on the Minnesota State Capitol grounds to represent the 11 federally-recognized Tribal Nations. The Plaza includes each Tribal Nation’s flag, plantings selected by each Tribe at the base of each flagpole, and Minnesota-sourced granite pavers and benches. Together, these elements create a lasting place of recognition, respect, and acknowledgment of the government-to-government relationship between the State of Minnesota and the sovereign Tribal Nations.

The request for a Tribal Flag Plaza was initially raised during the 2021 Governor’s Tribal Summit, and this project was developed in close coordination with Tribal Nations, the Minnesota Legislature, and the Department of Administration to bring this collaborative vision to completion.

Image: Tribal Flag Plaza on the Lower Mall of the Minnesota State Capitol grounds. Photo taken by Rosa Wells.

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345 Kellogg Boulevard W
Saint Paul, MN
55102

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