Heritage Circle Tour at Iron Street Distillery
2023-02-02 10:00 - 12:00 (America/Chicago) | Iron Street Distillery, 539 East St. Germain Street, St. Cloud, MN, 56304, United States
Heritage Circle members! We’d like to invite you to tour the new Iron Street Distillery, formerly the International Harvester building (ca 1928). The distillery tour will begin at 10am with lunch to follow.

Please RSVP to info@stearns-museum.org or call 320-253-8424 by Monday Jan 30 for the Thursday Feb 2 event! Hope to see you there!

Exploring History & Culture in Central Minnesota - Hmong Cultural Center
2023-02-04 11:00 - 12:00, 2023-02-11 11:00 - 12:00, 2023-02-18 11:00 - 12:00, 2023-02-25 11:00 - 12:00 | Zoom / Online
Learn about Hmong history and culture in Minnesota during a free February event series, “Exploring History and Culture in Central Minnesota – Hmong Cultural Center.” Hosted via Zoom each Saturday in February, this is a partnership project of the Benton, Morrison, Sherburne and Stearns county historical societies. The series seeks to create greater understanding and awareness of cultures that have been and still are part of central Minnesota and its history.
This year’s programming comes from the Hmong Cultural Center (HCC) in St. Paul, a nonprofit organization dedicated to celebrating and nourishing Hmong culture and to enhancing cross-cultural awareness. The programs will be presented by HCC’s director of programs, Dr. Mark Pfeifer, and executive director, Txongpao Lee. A traveling exhibit from HCC will be available for public viewing at each site on a revolving basis for two weeks in February.

February 4 – Hmong 101: Weddings & Funerals
February 11 – Hmong 101: Traditional Hmong Beliefs about Health and Medicine
February 18 – Hmong 101: Folk Arts Traditions
February 25 – Hmong 101: Minnesota Milestones

Registration is required. For more information and to register, visit or contact the Stearns History Museum at info@stearns-museum.org or (320)253-8424 or click here to register online.

Hmong Cultural Center Traveling Exhibit on view:

January 31 – February 16 – Morrison County Historical Society (2151 Lindbergh Drive South; Little Falls) and Stearns History Museum (235 33rd Avenue South; St. Cloud)
February 18 – March 1 – Sherburne History Center (10775 27th Avenue Southeast; Becker) and Benton County Historical Society (202 Second Avenue South, Sauk Rapids)

The 2023 event series is sponsored by Sourcewell, Wingnut Tattoo, Mid-Minnesota Federal Credit Union and Bezek Family Dentistry. Support also comes from the Hmong Student Organization at St. Cloud State University.

Memory Writers
2023-02-07 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-02-21 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-03-07 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-03-21 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-04-04 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-04-18 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-05-02 10:00 - 12:00, 2023-05-16 10:00 - 12:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Memory Writers is a writing group that meets twice a month on the first and third Tuesdays at 10:00 am. The group develop topics to write about and in turn shares those stories. This program is free to Museum members (non-members $7).
Questions? Call the Museum at 320.253.8424.

Breakfast Club w/ Tom Steman
2023-02-08 09:00 - 10:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Mark your calendars for a breakfast date with the history museum.
Join us the morning of Wednesday, February 8 for breakfast with St. Cloud State University Archivist Tom Steman. We will be exploring Central Minnesota’s connection with cartoon characters such as Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes gang as Tom discusses St. Cloud State alumni Ralph Heimdahl and his archival materials.
Please call the Museum at 320-253-8424 to register. The Breakfast Club program is free for Stearns History Museum members and $7 for nonmembers. We hope to see you there!

Civil War Roundtable: Unearthing Central MN History with Rob Mann
2023-02-14 15:30 - 17:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Meeting Overview: Come and hear about the findings of an archaeological dig at the site of William Warren’s ca. 1949-1853 cabin in Morrison County, near Royalton. William Warren was the son of an Ojibwe-French woman and an American fur trader. He arrived in the area then known as Two Rivers around 1849/1850 and built a cabin/trading post on what is today the McDougall State Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Morrison County. During this period, Warren was actively working on the manuscript that would become the History of the Ojibwe People, originally published by the Minnesota Historical Society in 1885. This book was and is important because as a person of mixed ancestry Warren was a cultural broker, who thus wrote the first history of the Ojibwe from an Indigenous perspective. Warren was also an interpreter and a legislator from the Minnesota Territory, serving in the Minnesota Territorial House of Representative in 1851.
Speaker: Rob Mann – professor of archaeology at St. Cloud State University and past presenter at the Central MN Round Table.
Meetings are held at the Stearns County History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud.
Note change in starting time:
3:00pm – doors open and opportunity to socialize and interact with fellow members
3:15pm – welcome and “new features”
3:30pm – speaker presentation
4:45pm – adjourn
For more information – contact Andy Ditlevson – aditlevson@gmail.com, 320-241-8477
Only exception to regular meeting time and location is the special December meeting. See details in schedule above.

St. Cloud Area Genealogists - "All Ears: Incorporating Oral History into your Genealogical Research" with Brendon Duffy
2023-02-21 19:00 - 20:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Would you like to learn how to better use interviews in your family history? Genealogist Brendon Duffy will present “All Ears: Incorporating Oral History in Your Genealogical Research” for the St. Cloud Area Genealogists on Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 7 p.m. at Stearns History Museum (235 33 rd Ave S., St. Cloud). The presentation will be offered both in-person and synchronously online and will be recorded for members and registered guests.
After conducting interviews for nearly two decades, Brendon Duffy will share tips for how to prepare for, conduct, record and preserve an oral history interview. Most important, he will discuss how they can be useful to you in your genealogical research. Some unique oral history resources will also be explored. Brendon Duffy is the archivist at CentraCare and earned his Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University in 2018. He is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and a board member of the St. Cloud Area Genealogists.
Free for SCAG members, $7 for non-members (to register email kmsauer@ymail.com)
To learn more about becoming a SCAG member, and to register, please contact Brendon Duffy (duffyroots@gmail.com).

Hops & History: Unsolved Mysteries & Miracles of Stearns County w/ Caitlin & Eric @ Beaver Island
2023-03-09 17:30 - 19:00 | Beaver Island Brewing Company, 216 6th Ave S, St. Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Save the date for the first Hops and History of 2023! Caitlin and Eric will be talking about any interesting or unsolved mysteries/miracles they could find in their research of Stearns County. From miracles at Grasshopper Chapel to unsolved bank robberies and other true crimes. If you liked our last H&H program with Dean Klinkenberg (Mississippi River Mayhem), then this is another one you may enjoy!
Join us March 9, 2023 5:30pm @ Beaver Island Brewing Company. $10/person, Museum members are free. Call us or click here to register!

Civil War Roundtable: History of The Lost Cause with Ian Schroeder
2023-03-14 15:30 - 17:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Meeting Overview: The American Civil War is surrounded by vast mythology. Indeed, it is far to say that there are two independent versions of the war. On the one hand, there is the history of the war, the account of what, in fact, happened. On the other hand, there is what historian Foster Gaines calls the “Southern interpretation” of the event. This account, “codified” is generally referred to by historians today as “the Lost Cause.” This version, touching almost all aspects of the struggle, originated in Southern rationalizations of the war. It then spread to the North and became a national phenomenon. In the national mind, the Lost Cause represents the popular history of the Civil War; it has been, to a large extent, substituted for the actual history of the war. As his presentation, we’ll have the chnance to examine the genesis of the Lost Cause, it’s central tenets, and contrast these with the actual history of the war.
Speaker: Ian Schroeder – a lifelong history buff with a Masters Degree in Public History from St. Cloud State University.
Meetings are held at the Stearns County History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud. This meeting will take place on Tuesday, March 14 at 3:30pm (doors open at 3)
Note change in starting time:
3:00pm – doors open and opportunity to socialize and interact with fellow members
3:15pm – welcome and “new features”
3:30pm – speaker presentation
4:45pm – adjourn
For more information – contact Andy Ditlevson – aditlevson@gmail.com, 320-241-8477

Whippersnapper Hour: Dear Diary
2023-03-18 10:00 - 11:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Learn about history through hands-on activities! This time, we are diving into diaries, newspapers, photographs, and letters from the SHM archives! Help us gather clues from old documents to solve a mystery!
Students will even get to create their own diary to take home and tell their own stories. Recommended for kids ages 7-13.
Call the Museum to register or click here to register online!

St. Cloud Area Genealogists - Hidden Treasure in St. Cloud with Tom Steman
2023-03-21 19:00 - 20:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Have you ever considered the archives of a university as a place for genealogical research? St. Cloud State University Archivist Tom Steman will present “Hidden Treasure No More: Genealogical Resources at St. Cloud State” for the St. Cloud Area Genealogists on Tuesday, March 21, 2023 at 7 p.m. at Stearns History Museum (235 33rd Ave S., St. Cloud). The presentation will be offered in-person and synchronously online and will be recorded for members and registered guests.
Steman will show primary resources from the archives that can be used to find genealogical information including yearbooks, commencement programs, oral histories, students newspapers, and WPA biographical sketches. In addition, Tom will provide tips to search other Minnesota academic institutions online. Tom Steman has been the University Archivist at St. Cloud State University since 2007. He has transformed the SCSU Archives into a place to find and use information about St. Cloud State, its campus, people and long history. He is proud of his deep family roots in Stearns and Meeker Counties.
Free to SCAG members and $7 for non-members (to register email kmsauer@ymail.com)

Heritage Circle Tour - St. Cloud Community Outpost
2023-03-23 10:00 - 12:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Heritage Circle members, we’d like to invite you to another special tour in the community! This time, we’ll be visiting the St. Cloud Rotary Community Outpost with the Greater St. Cloud Public Safety Foundation.
The visit will consist of a presentation with Q & A and then house tours. Please RSVP by calling the Museum, or emailing info@stearns-museum.org. You can also click here to register online!
The Community OutPost team collaborates with residents, community groups, businesses, and St. Cloud State University, to assess community needs; build and maintain relationships; and improve access to needed health, wellness, and other services. The outpost was built in 2017 and is the first of its kind in the state. South side residents have said that it has brought positive change to their neighborhood.
Photo courtesy MPR News

Civil War Roundtable: That d__n old google eyed snapping turtle - George Gordon Meade Col. Gary Colberg
2023-04-11 15:30 - 17:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Meeting Overview – Since Gettysburg has been covered so well by so many, be ready to learn about General Meade before and after that historic battle in am audience participative presentation. This unique, interactive presentation on General George Meade was originally presented to the prestigious Civil War Round Table of DC. In this presentation we review Meade as a young man at West Point to the end of the Civil War. What is there to the rumors that he abused his own soldiers when he lost his temper such as the “Peach Tree” incident? How was this general in combat? What about the famous “Cropsey incident” where a correspondent printed fake news in the newspaper (see Libeler of the Press photo)? What was it that he did that identified him to Lincoln as a “fighting general”? I also go into Meade and the Battle of the Crater during the Siege of Petersburg and his controversial and not as well-known decisions there. Two or three volunteers will be sought to have fun and participate as it is much more interesting. Civil War props such as Union and AOP flags, keppie cap, Brigadier General’s frock coat, saber, and shackles will also be on display.
Speaker: Gary was inspired to become a Civil War reenactor after researching his Great-Grandfather who served for three years in the 20th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry Volunteers. While serving in the Army National Guard in a unit with lineage and honors back to the 1st Minnesota, he joined the 1st Minnesota Regiment and started his Civil War reenacting hobby. After being mobilized and deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan multiple times he retired as an Army Reserve Colonel with 37 years of service. After his military retirement he continued to serve, working in the Pentagon and DC area as a Senior government supervisor, working with two and three star generals, and Deputy Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter. While working in DC he started reenacting again at the 150 th Gettysburg reenactment. He has participated in Living History and battle reenactments at Gettysburg, Antietam, Cedar Creek, Bristoe Station, Appomatttox and over 50 other battlefields. With the Civil War Impressionist Association (CWIA) he developed an impression of Major General George Meade that become in high demand in the Eastern Theater. One reason the CWIA has been so successful might be because they go beyond the normal Living History presentations, doing historically correct vignettes to help spectators feel like they are witnessing an actual event on a battlefield. The CWIA won the prestigious Visitors Choice Honorable Mention Award in 2022 at the Jamestown, VA Military Through the Ages reenactment. In support of DoD, Gary custom tailored a tour of the Gettysburg battle for non-commissioned officers. In addition, he led a tour of “the Crater” at the Petersburg National Battlefield. Gary is now retired, lives in White Bear Lake, Minnesota where he reenacts as a Private with the First Minnesota, and does Living History presentations as both Generals Meade and Hancock.
Meetings are held at the Stearns County History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud. This meeting will take place on Tuesday, April 11th at 3:30pm (doors open at 3).
Note change in starting time:
3:00pm – doors open and opportunity to socialize and interact with fellow members
3:15pm – welcome and “new features”
3:30pm – speaker presentation
4:45pm – adjourn
For more information – contact Andy Ditlevson – aditlevson@gmail.com, 320-241-8477

Breakfast Club w/ Chris Schellinger - Avon Hills Folk School
2023-04-12 09:00 - 10:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Join us for breakfast! This time, we’ll be discussing the history of the Avon Hills Folk School with presenter Chris Schellinger. Save the date – April 12 at 9am.
Chris will be discussing the property, how it became a Folk School, and a little about the history of the ‘folk school movement.’ For clarification: this program will be held at the Museum in the galleries as usual. Breakfast Club “On The Road” will return again later this summer.
Questions? Give us a call – 320.253.8424
Breakfast Club is free to Museum members and $7 for nonmembers. Register by calling the Museum or click here to register online.

Oak Savanna Park History Scavenger Hunt
2023-04-29 13:00 - 16:00 | Sherburne History Center, Becker, 10775 27th Ave SE, Becker, MN, 55308, United States
The Fox House. Clitty Lake. A gas station that doubled as a home, office, hotel, railway station and general store. Discover all this and more during the Oak Savanna Park History Scavenger Hunt! Bring your history detective skills to this free, self-guided, family-friendly event. Explore a beautiful park setting while learning more about architecture and natural history in Central Minnesota.
Pick up a scavenger hunt form and get started at the Sherburne History Center in Becker, Minnesota (10775 27th Avenue Southeast). The hunt runs 1-4 p.m. on Saturday, April 29, 2023. A special bonus for the day,
courtesy of the Sherburne History Center, is a free folk concert by local musician, Dennis Warner, and craft- making activities at the museum. The folk concert and craft-making activities start at 2 p.m. Bring your friends and family to spend the afternoon enjoying history and culture!
For more information and to register https://www.rethos.org/classes or contact Ann Marie Johnson, Rethos Central MN Education Coordinator based at the Stearns History Museum at CentralMN@rethos.org or 320-253-8424. Rethos is pleased to partner with The Stearns History Museum for Central Minnesota education programs. This project has been financed in part with funds provided by the State of Minnesota from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the Minnesota Historical Society.
Rethos web link: www.rethos.org/events
Image of Fox House, 2000. Photo courtesy Sherburne History Center

Civil War Roundtable: Was the Civil War about Slavery? Yes, No, and the Path to Yes with Dr. Mark Jaede
2023-05-09 15:30 - 17:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Meeting Overview: Although the Civil War unquestionably led to the freeing of enslaved African Americans, there is ongoing debate in popular culture about whether we should think of is as a war about slavery. Broadly, there is a tendency for those who sympathize with the North to characterize it as a noble war to free slaves, and for those more aligned with the South to call it a heroic but doomed struggle to preserve states’ rights and Southern culture. This talk will explore the shortcomings of both generalizations and consider the question of who really freed the slaves.
Speaker: Dr. Mark Jaede is a professor of history at St. Cloud State University
Meetings are held at the Stearns County History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud. This meeting will take place on Tuesday, May 9th at 3:30pm (doors open at 3).
Note change in starting time:
3:00pm – doors open and opportunity to socialize and interact with fellow members
3:15pm – welcome and “new features”
3:30pm – speaker presentation
4:45pm – adjourn
For more information – contact Andy Ditlevson – aditlevson@gmail.com, 320-241-8477

Hops & History: A Brief History of the Undergarment with Amy and Caitlin
2023-05-11 17:30 - 19:00 | Third Street Brewhouse, 219 Red River Ave N, Cold Spring, MN, 56320, United States
Join the museum’s own Amy Degerstrom and Caitlin Carlson as they use the collection of the Stearns History Museum to tell the “brief” story of how what we wear underneath our clothes has evolved in the last few centuries.
This time, we’ll be at Third Street Brewhouse in Cold Spring.
As usual – $10 for nonmembers; Museum members are free (bring cash for the bar). See you there Thursday, May 11 @ 5:30pm.
Register online HERE.
Questions? Call us at 320-253-8424.

Whippersnapper Hour: Adventures in Radio
2023-05-20 10:00 - 11:30 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Whippersnapper Hour allows kids to learn about history in a fun, hands-on environment!
At this month’s Whippersnapper Hour, we will perform and record our own radio play! Students will learn about the power of radio during the Great Depression and World War II, and will then rehearse and perform their own version of “The Mysterious Case of the Magic Milkweed.” We hope to see you there!
$5 per child nonmembers, free for Museum members. Recommended for kids ages 7-13.

Breakfast Club: "Burma-Shave: The Rhymes, the Signs, the Times" with Bill Vossler
2023-06-14 09:00 - 10:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
Join us for another Breakfast Club at the Stearns County History Museum! This meeting will feature Bill Vossler, author of “Burma-Shave: The Rhymes, the Signs, the Times”.
Local writer Bill Vossler tell the story of this unique Minnesota company, which went from rags to riches thanks to its unique roadside advertising technique. Between 1925 and 1963, these signs were seen all across the country.
For thirty years, the series of six signs posted along roadways were an icon of American life. The little jingles that touted a brushless shaving cream entertained travelers across the country. Many of us who lived during those thirty years could recite favorite jingles by rote. Then super highways and the hectic pace of modern life made them obsolete. Still, for those of us older than thirty-five, Burma-Shave signs are part of our history and treasured childhood memories.
Wednesday, June 14 @ 9am

At War & At Home: The WWII Experience
2023-07-08 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-07-09 11:00 - 16:00 | Stearns History Museum, 235 33rd Ave S, St Cloud, MN, 56301, United States
We’re bringing back our annual WWII weekend! More information to come later in 2023, but for now we wanted to let you all know the dates.
You can expect the Museum to be full of family-friendly activities, reenactors, interactive exhibits, and a lot more.
We hope to see you there July 8 & 9! Register online here: Saturday (Day 1), Sunday (Day 2)
Download Flyer Register Now
