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Family Fun on the Rails, Learn About Minneapolis Railroad History at Mill City Museum Family Day

Enjoy railroad-themed activities while learning about how railroads and Minneapolis grew up together.

Visitors can take a short tour to see railroad features in the Washburn A Mill and hear stories about working the rails at the Minneapolis mills. Families will taste foods made from historical railroad dining car recipes in a cooking demo by Rae Katherine Eighmey, an award winning writer and cook. They will also be able to go on a scavenger hunt to learn more about trains in Minneapolis history.

(Photograph Collection, Postcard ca. 1910)

Kids can build a paper boxcar like the 1879 St. Paul and Pacific boxcar on display in the museum’s Rail Corridor, use blocks to build a roman arch like those on Minneapolis’ Stone Arch Bridge and use the wooden trains, trucks, and boats of the "To Market to Market" exhibit to discover how wheat goes from field to table.

Built within the ruins of the Washburn A Mill, a National Historic Landmark, the award-winning Mill City Museum chronicles the flour milling industry that fueled the growth of Minneapolis. The story comes to life through the eight-story Flour Tower, Water Lab, Baking Lab and other hands-on exhibits.

The museum is located at 704 S. Second St. in Minneapolis. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. For more information, call 612-341-7555 or visit www.millcitymuseum.org.

The Society’s calendar of events is posted on the Internet at events.mnhs.org/calendar. The web site also has information about all of the Society’s programs, museums and historic sites. To request a free guide to museums and historic sites, call 1-800-657-3773.

The Minnesota Historical Society is a non-profit educational and cultural institution established in 1849 to preserve and share Minnesota history. The Society collects, preserves and tells the story of Minnesota’s past through museum exhibits, libraries and collections, historic sites, educational programs and book publishing.

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