Franklin Family Days
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Dates: Nov. 27, 2009, Nov. 28, 2009, Nov. 29, 2009
Time: Noon to 4 p.m.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
Tour the new exhibit "Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World" with hands-on activities, music and performances about Franklin's electrifying past.
Craft Activities, daily, noon to 4 p.m.: Make a 2010 Almanack using a replica Franklin common press, a set of pipe-cleaner spectacles and a printer’s cap from folded newspaper.
Exhibit Activities, daily noon to 4 p.m.: Join a museum interpreter in the "Electricity Party" area for "circle shocks," a static shock transferred around a ring of joined hands, and demonstrations of how lightning works with "Franklin's Bells" and the "Thunder House."
Dance Party, daily 12:30 and 1:30 p.m.: Join costumed instructors Jane Peck and Judith Eisner of "Dance Revels Moving History" for a dance party and lesson in colonial-era dance moves.
Meet Ben Franklin, Friday, noon and 1:30 p.m.; Saturday, 1 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 4 p.m.: Franklin, as portrayed by actors Christopher Lowell and Shawn Hoffman, will talk about his life and what made him tick.
Ben Franklin: "Still, Healthy Wealthy and Wise," Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m.: Head to the 3M Auditorium for Christopher Lowell's special theatrical presentation complete with audience Q & A.
Musical Experiments, Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m.: Douglas R. Ewart and the Inventions use a variety of objects including skis, tennis rackets, vinyl records and CDs to create music for this unique performance. Plus, learn about Franklin's own invention called a glass armonica, a musical instrument made of glass bowls.
Colonial Music Jam, Sunday, 2 p.m.: Join musician Judith Eisner and the "Moving History Ensemble" for a classical music performance using instruments from Franklin's day.
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Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Opening: November 27, 2009
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
You know about Benjamin Franklin’s famous experiment with a kite, a key and some lightning, but did you also know about his rebellious youth? That he pioneered wind surfing and invented swim fins? That he helped found the nation’s first hospital, was an environmentalist and charted the Gulf Stream to assist in ocean travel? In many ways Benjamin Franklin is the founding father nobody knows – misunderstood because of the sheer breadth and diversity of his accomplishments. Discover the many ways Franklin has affected our world today in the new exhibit, “Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World,” on display at the Minnesota History Center, Nov 27, 2009-July 4, 2010.
Presented by Xcel Energy with additional support by Medtronic Foundation. Media support provided by Star Tribune, KARE 11 and WCCO Radio.
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Inventive Women: Portraits of Scientists and Engineers from the University of Minnesota
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Opening: November 27, 2009
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
View photographs of women faculty at the University of Minnesota's Institute of Technology, taken by Nancy G. Johnson, a fine-art photographer who works at the Institute. Johnson, who has exhibited at galleries around Minnesota, notes "In a college that houses 395 faculty, only 39 are women. There are so many problems to solve, so many things that need to be invented. Benjamin Franklin said, 'Energy and persistence conquer all things.' It will take all of us – men and women – to come up with the ideas and solutions to help our world flourish."
This exhibit is offered in conjunction with "Ben Franklin: In Search of a Better World" on view concurrently at the Minnesota History Center.
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Exhibit Reception, 'Inventive Women'
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Dates: Dec. 1, 2009
Time: 5 to 8 p.m.
Fee: Free
Meet Nancy G. Johnson, photographer for the exhibit "Inventive Women: Portraits of Scientists and Engineers from the University of Minnesota" and learn about the women scientists featured. Johnson will respond to audience questions.
This exhibit is offered in conjunction with "Ben Franklin: In Search of a Better World" on view concurrently at the Minnesota History Center. For more information visit http://www.mnhs.org/benfranklin.
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Storyboats
Mill City Museum, Minneapolis MN
Closing: December 31, 2009
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.; Also July and August, Monday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Fee: Free
Building friendships and encouraging conversations is the goal of ceramic artist Anna Metcalfe's work. In "Storyboats" on display at Mill City Museum from Sept. 20 to Dec. 31, 2009, she explores personal interactions with the Mississippi River.
In June of 2009, Metcalfe joined rangers from the National Park Service, staff from Wilderness Inquiry and Dakota elder Alameda Rocha for an event on Boom Island in Minneapolis. After traveling in a canoe, the participants drew and wrote about their river memories on a paper template. Metcalfe then transferred the drawings and writings onto porcelain canoes specially designed for each of the stories.
A selection of the porcelain boats will be on display in the museum's Rail Corridor. The exhibit is free, but does not include museum admission of $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and college students, $5 for children ages 6-17 and free for members of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Going Places: The Mystique of Mobility
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Closing: January 4, 2010
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
The American passion for mobility has shaped Minnesota. Travel back through time to celebrate the promise of the new, reflect on the consequences of the past, and debate and dream of ways of moving transportation into the 21st century. "Going Places," part of the Minnesota History Transportation Network, is funded in part by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) through the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Hazel Thorson Stoick Stoeckeler: A Retrospective
James J. Hill House, St. Paul MN
Closing: January 17, 2010
Hours: Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.; Sunday 1 to 3:30 p.m. Closed major holidays.
Art gallery hours: Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.
Fee: Tours: $8 adults, $6 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
Hazel Thorson Stoick Stoeckeler has enjoyed a long and exciting career as an artist, professor at the University of Minnesota and world traveler. This exhibit highlights her 60-year career beginning with pieces from the Society's collection dating to the 1930s and ending with a series of watercolors that document her trips around the globe. These 40 small, exquisite images are accompanied with poems written by Elizabeth Weber and published in a book titled, "Porthole Views of the World." The exhibit runs October 10 through January 17.
Minneapolis Riverfront Then and Now, 1858 and 2008
Mill City Museum, Minneapolis MN
Closing: March 28, 2010
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.; Also July and August, Monday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Fee: Free
Photographer Jerry Mathiason and Mill City Museum embarked on a project during the state sesquicentennial in 2008 to document change on the Minneapolis riverfront, selecting historic photos from the state's early years (1850s-1860s) and taking photographs of the contemporary landscape from the same vantage points. The pairs of then and now photographs reveal the dramatic changes to the city during its first 150 years, including the disappearance of St. Anthony Falls, changes in transportation, bridge collapses past and present, the growth of a small village into a major city, and continually evolving uses of the Mississippi River.
The exhibit is supported by a grant from the St. Anthony Falls Heritage Board.
Home Place Minnesota
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
This 20-minute multi-media presentation uses voices, images and artifacts to bring to life a range of emotions about Minnesota as a home. Listen as Minnesota voices read from diaries, poetry and memoirs while photographic images and objects from the Society's collections help create a more complete story. For more information visit http://www.mnhs.org/homeplace.
Grainland/Boxcar
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
Grainland traces the journey of wheat and corn from farm to town to grain elevator. Children will enjoy climbing through a replica grain elevator where bins and chutes are replaced with steps and slides and curving nooks and crannies to explore. They can also hop into the vintage 1900 farmer's wagon loaded with grain for market or step into an authentic Soo Line boxcar. For more information visit http://www.mnhs.org/grainland.
Weather Permitting
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
Minnesotans do more than talk about the weather. They learn to cope with extreme temperatures, watch for signs of storms and generally enjoy the outdoors, whether boating on a summer's day, skiing down a hill or snowmobiling along trails through the forests. No matter the weather, it's always a nice day at the History Center when you visit the "Weather Permitting" exhibit. For more information visit http://www.mnhs.org/weather.
MN150
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
Visit the "MN150" exhibit at the Minnesota History Center and experience the people, places and things that helped shape our great state, including such obvious choices as our own Prince Rogers Nelson of Minneapolis and other, lesser know figures, such as Bradford Parkinson, inventor of the now ubiquitous GPS system. While you’re here, take the interactive quiz and see just how Minnesota-smart you are. Presented by Best Buy. For more information visit http://www.mnhs.org/mn150.
Fur Trade Beyond the Palisade
North West Company Fur Post, Pine City MN
Hours: Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day: Thursday through Saturday, Monday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Open holidays
Schools and tour groups by appointment.
Fee: $8 adults, $6 senior and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
Explore life in an early 1800s fur trade wintering camp. Learn about the global economy of the time, the lives of workers in the fur trade, cross-cultural communications, women's roles and archeological tools used to uncover information about the fur trade. Discover why a hat was the driving force behind the earliest European exploration and settlement of the region. Then try on various hats, including a stovepipe top hat made of felt. View a 24 foot long north canoe loaded with merchandise typical of the time. And try lifting a pack typical of what a voyageur would have carried.
Minnesota's Greatest Generation: The Depression, The War, The Boom
Minnesota History Center, St. Paul MN
Hours:
Museum and Stores:
Tuesday 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (free admission 5 to 8 p.m.); Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday noon to 5 p.m.
Closed Mondays except Monday holidays year round (open Martin Luther King Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day).
Library:
Tuesday noon to 8 p.m.; Wednesday through Friday noon to 5 p.m.; Saturday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sunday noon to 4 p.m.
Closed Monday, Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, and major holidays including the day after Thanksgiving.
Fee: $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17; free for children age 5 and under and MHS members.
This exhibit is the capstone of the Minnesota Historical Society’s Minnesota’s Greatest Generation project. It features more than 6,000 square feet of artifacts, interactive displays, and innovative multimedia experiences to reveal the lives and stories of the men and women who came of age during the Depression and World War II and who went on to create the phenomenal postwar boom. The exhibition relies substantially on first-person narratives drawn from oral history interviews, published memoirs, and reminiscences and letters in which a generation of Minnesotans narrates its own story, creating a fascinating collective autobiography in recorded interviews, images, film and audio. For more information visit http://www.mngreatestgeneration.org.
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