Rock Island Excursion, 1854

On February 22, 1854, the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad completed the first rail line to connect the Mississippi River to the Atlantic Ocean. To promote that feat the company contacted notable East Coast citizens and journalists and invited them to ride their train to Rock Island. From there, the visitors took a steamboat trip up the Mississippi, stopping at St. Paul. The journalists, pleased with what they saw, wrote of the beauty and splendor of a region that many in the East thought was little more than a wilderness.

Woolson, Albert Henry (1850–1956)

Albert Henry Woolson had outlived over two million Civil War Union Army comrades when he died in Duluth on August 2, 1956, at the age of 106. At his death, he was recognized as the last surviving Union Army veteran. Civil War historians, however, now recognize him as the last survivor of both the Union and Confederate armies.

"Half-Breed" Tract

The 1830 Treaty of Prairie du Chien set aside 320,000 acres of potentially valuable land west of Lake Pepin for so-called "half-breed" members of the Dakota nation. The move set off a series of events that enriched a number of Minnesotans—none of them of Native American heritage.

151st Field Artillery Regiment

The 151st Field Artillery is one of the oldest, most decorated units in the Minnesota National Guard. Its performance in combat during World War I as part of the Forty-second “Rainbow” Division, and during World War II with the Thirty-fourth “Red Bull” Division, drew high praise from senior Army commanders and remains a source of pride to the soldiers in its ranks.

1976 Presidential Election in Minnesota

Former Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter and his running mate, Senator Walter Mondale, overwhelmingly won the state of Minnesota and its ten electoral votes in 1976. The Democratic ticket scored a nearly thirteen-point victory (54.9 percent to 42.0 percent) over Republican President Gerald Ford and his running mate, Senator Robert Dole. The election was the third of four consecutive presidential races with a Minnesotan on the national ticket of a major party, and it marked the beginning of the longest active streak of any state voting Democratic in presidential elections.

3M (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company)

From its early beginnings on Lake Superior’s North Shore to its legacy of innovative manufacturing in St. Paul, 3M—formerly known as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company—has introduced both consumer and industrial products that have been successfully marketed worldwide.

4-H Clubs, West Polk County

Since their origin in 1902, 4-H clubs have helped American youth explore various professional fields—many related to farming—while mastering practical skills. In Minnesota’s West Polk County, 4-H branches formed in the late 1920s to train and inspire the next generation of local farmers.

Ada Village Hall

The Ada Village Hall served as the center for local government in Ada for over a century. It was an important public meeting hall and social facility through the 1970s. Architecturally, the building is an excellent example of the combined city hall and fire hall buildings that were constructed in Minnesota during the early 1900s.

Adas Israel Congregation, Duluth

When Adas Israel Congregation was founded, in 1885, by Lithuanian immigrants, members met in a house on St. Croix Avenue in what is now the Canal Park area of Duluth. It incorporated in 1899.

Adath Jeshurun Congregation, Minnetonka

Known for being the oldest Conservative congregation west of Chicago, Adath Jeshurun has been a mainstay of the Twin Cities Jewish community for well over a century. Though rooted in South Minneapolis, the congregation moved to Minnetonka in 1995 to accommodate its growing membership.

African American Students at Gustavus Adolphus College, 1963–1982

Founded by Swedish Americans in St. Peter in 1862, Gustavus Adolphus College attracted a mostly white student body for much of its history. In the 1960s, the college took steps to diversify its campus by recruiting and retaining African American students from the South. This effort made Gustavus unique among Midwestern liberal arts colleges.

African American Suffrage in Minnesota, 1868

From their state's admission to the Union until the mid-1860s, a majority of Minnesotans advocated the abolition of slavery in the South. African American suffrage, however, did not enjoy the same support. Minnesota's African American citizens paid taxes, fought in wars, and fostered their communities. But they could not vote, hold political office, or serve on juries. This continued until 1868, when an amendment to the state's constitution approved suffrage for all non-white men. The amendment did not apply to African American women, however, who continued to be disenfranchised in Minnesota and the rest of the United States.

How African Americans Have Shaped the State

African Americans in Minnesota

African Americans have lived in Minnesota since the 1800s. The local African American population developed from individuals who were born in the state as well as those who migrated to Minnesota from other states in search of a better life. Despite being subjected to discrimination and inequality, African Americans established communities and institutions that contributed to the vibrancy of the state. This article defines African Americans as Americans who are descendants of enslaved Black Africans in the U.S. and does not include immigrants or refugees from Africa (for example, Somali and Oromo.

Agricultural Depression, 1920–1934

Minnesota farmers enjoyed a period of prosperity in the 1910s that continued through World War I. Encouraged by the US government to increase production, they took out loans to buy more land and invest in new equipment. As war-torn countries recovered, however, the demand for US exports fell, and land values and prices for commodities dropped. Farmers found it hard to repay their loans—a situation worsened by the Great Depression and the drought years that followed.

AIDS Conference Protest, St. Paul, 1987

On November 7, 1987, roughly 400 people representing Minnesota’s gay community—including allies and activists—protested an AIDS conference in St. Paul sponsored by a conservative Christian political organization called the Berean League. With over 1,500 people in attendance, it was the largest gathering in the state to date addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis. It was also a show of force for fundamentalist Christians and other conservatives who opposed gay rights.

AIM Patrol, Minneapolis

Formed in August of 1968, the American Indian Movement Patrol (AIM Patrol) was a citizens’ patrol created in response to police brutality against Native Americans in Minneapolis. Patrollers observed officers’ interactions with Native people and offered mediators that community members could call on for help. As of 2016, a similar but separate group operates under the same name.

Albert Lea Commercial Historic District

The original Commercial Historic District of the City of Albert Lea consisted of three square blocks of forty-eight structures built between 1874 and 1928. Featuring iconic examples of American architecture in a variety of styles, including Beaux Arts, Classic Revival, Neoclassical, Art Nouveau, and Craftsman, the district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. Sixty-four additional properties added in 2004 extended its period of significance to 1953.

Amblard, Emile (1840–1914)

Emile Julien Amblard, known as the "Duke of Clearwater Lake," became one of Coney Island's leading residents. He bought his first piece of land there in 1893. The western edge of the island and a building in Waconia would become his passion for the next twenty-one years.

America First Association

The expression “America First” has been used by numerous American organizations and movements since at least 1914. Most of them opposed US involvement in foreign conflicts. The Minnesota-based America First Association (AFA) was an exception in that it was formed to support the United States’ entry into World War I.

American Crystal Sugar Company

The American Crystal Sugar Company evolved out of its predecessor, the American Beet Sugar Company, in 1934 to operate factories in Minnesota, Iowa, and Colorado. After the Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association bought it in 1973, American Crystal moved its headquarters to Moorhead, Minnesota, and became the first farmer-owned sugar beet cooperative in the United States.

American Crystal Sugar factory, Chaska

The city of Chaska is home to a factory that has survived decades of change in the Minnesota sugar industry. Since 1934 it has been part of the American Crystal Sugar Company, one of the leading sugar producers in the United States.

American Fur Company Fishing on Lake Superior, 1835–1841

In 1834, the American Fur Company established a commercial fishing operation on Lake Superior to supplement the company's profits. The financial panic of 1837 doomed the operation and the company declared bankruptcy in 1842. Commercial fishermen did not have a significant presence on Lake Superior again until the Duluth fishing boom in the 1870s.

American Indian Movement (AIM)

The American Indian Movement (AIM), founded by grassroots activists in Minneapolis in 1968, first sought to improve conditions for Native Americans who had recently moved to cities. It grew into an international movement whose goals included the full restoration of tribal sovereignty and treaty rights. Through a long campaign of “confrontation politics,” AIM is often credited with restoring hope to Native peoples.

American Jewish World

Founded in 1912 by Rabbi Samuel Deinard as part of an effort to unify the German and Eastern European Jews of Minnesota, the American Jewish World newspaper celebrated its centennial in 2012.

American Woman Suffrage Association Convention, Minneapolis, 1885

The fight for woman suffrage in Minnesota was well underway when the American Woman Suffrage Association held its annual convention in Minneapolis in 1885. Key leaders of the movement were on hand to speak, among them prominent Minnesota suffragists, both female and male.

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