The Minnesota History Center is on Kellogg Boulevard in St. Paul. The attractive building is the home of the Minnesota Historical Society, and also houses a museum, galleries, research library, theater, store and a cafe.
The classic Roman-style building with red tile roofs has picture perfect views of St. Paul's Cathedral and the Minnesota State Capitol through the huge interior windows in the exhibition space.
Permanent collections
The museum has many significant objects from Minnesota's history, like one of Charles Lindberg's airplanes, and a can of Spam, on a purple silk pillow. The Spam is part of the MN150 exhibition of 150 quintessentially Minnesotan objects, gathered to celebrate Minnesota's 150th anniversary.Exhibits to interest school children include a "Ride" in as rocket ship, and various train and car related interactive exhibits.
More exhibits document Minnesota's history before it became a state, Minnesota family life through the generations, and Minnesota's weather.
Temporary exhibitions
Major traveling art and historical exhibitions visit the Minnesota History Center.Library
The library has the world's largest collection of Minnesota materials. The library is invaluable for researching family history, and is used extensively by those studying Minnesotan and Midwestern history.Theater
The Minnesota Historical Society stages plays throughout the year in their theater.Cafe
Selling meals, snacks, and Starbucks coffee. The food is good, with the coffee being the only jarring note: not a local brand like Peace Coffee? Or even a local chain like Caribou or Dunn Bros?
Museum Stores
Plenty of Minnesota Historical Society branded nick-nacks, but there's also plenty of locally made arts and crafts, and interesting gift items, books and souvenirs.Special Events
The Minnesota Historical Society hosts regular events related to special exhibits, and outdoor events such as a summer music concert series.
Visiting the Minnesota History Center
The Minnesota History Center Website
345 W. Kellogg Boulveard
St. Paul, MN 55102-1906
Telephone 651-259-3000
The Minnesota History Center has a parking lot, which charges a fee. The nearest free parking is on-street parking on Summit Avenue and Selby Avenue. Head towards St. Paul's Cathedral, but avoid the designated Cathedral parking lots and parking spaces.
