Small grants are awarded quarterly to help nonprofit and educational organizations, government units and tribal organizations preserve and share Minnesota history. This cycle of awards was approved by the MNHS Executive Council on September 12, 2017.

Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants are made possible by the Legacy Amendment's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the vote of Minnesotans on Nov. 4, 2008. The Legacy Amendment supports efforts to preserve Minnesota land, water and legacy, including Minnesota history and cultural heritage.

Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Small Grant Recipients
Recipients of small grants ($10,000 and less) from the July 2017 cycle are listed in alphabetical order below. Each project will preserve and enhance Minnesota’s cultural and historical resources. All grants are competitive and are awarded according to program guidelines and criteria and professional standards.

Arlington Historical Society Inc., Arlington, $7,693
Arlington Museum Lighting Plan: To hire a qualified museum lighting professional to develop a museum lighting plan.

Carleton College, Northfield, $9,200
Essay Revision of “The College Student Experience: Carleton 1968”: To hire qualified professionals to edit an essay on the history of Carleton College in the 1960s.

Carleton College, Northfield, $9,900
Writing the John Nason Biography: To hire qualified professionals to produce an expanded manuscript on the biography of John Nason, former Carleton College president.

Cass County Historical Society, Walker, $4,500
MNopedia Entries for Cass County: To create Cass County entries for the MNopedia project for online research.

Charles Thompson Memorial Hall, St. Paul, $10,000
Historic Structure Report: To hire a qualified consultant to develop a Historic Structure Report that will help preserve the Charles Thompson Memorial Hall, listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

City of Hugo, $8,000
Hopkins Schoolhouse National Register Evaluation: To hire a qualified historian to complete an evaluation to determine eligibility for listing in the National Register of Historic Places for the District 73 Hopkins School.

City of Ranier, $6,000
Ranier Community Building National Register Nomination: To hire a qualified historian to complete the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places for the Ranier Community Building.

City of the Village of Minnetonka Beach, $5,675
Minnetonka Beach Water Tower National Register Evaluation: To hire a qualified historian to complete an evaluation to determine eligibility for listing in the National Register of Historic Places for the Minnetonka Beach Water Tower.

City of Waseca, $5,969
Waseca Historical Downtown District Nomination Writing: To hire a qualified historian to complete the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places for the historic Waseca Downtown District.

City of White Bear Lake, $9,500
White Bear Lake Armory National Register Nomination: To hire a qualified historian to complete the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places for the White Bear Lake Armory.

Clearwater County Veterans Memorial Association, Bagley, $9,982
Interpretive Exhibit Plan: To hire a qualified consultant to write an exhibit plan for interpretation of the Clearwater County Veterans Memorial.

Dakota City Heritage Village, Farmington, $7,200
Evaluation of Building Mechanical System (HVAC): To hire a qualified and experienced HVAC engineer to evaluate how well the current system controls the museum environment.

Duluth Bethel Society, Inc., Duluth, $7,650
General Assessment & Long-Range Preservation Plan: To hire a qualified museum consultant to conduct a general preservation needs assessment survey and long range collections preservation plan.

Golden Valley Historical Society, Golden Valley, $9,949
Three-Dimensional Object Cataloging: To provide better organization of the museum collections, allowing for greater public access to the community’s historic resources.

Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County, Moorhead, $10,000
Editing and Designing the Annie and Orabel Book: To hire qualified professionals to produce a manuscript on the history of two artists from Clay County.

Hmong Cultural Center of Minnesota, St. Paul, $10,000
Hmong Folk Culture in Minnesota Permanent Exhibit Implementation Project: To hire qualified consultants to develop and install an exhibit on Hmong folk culture in Minnesota.

Imhotep Center for Science Education and Knowledge Production, St. Paul, $9,500
Rondo Children’s Stories: To write and edit a manuscript of children's stories on the history of the Rondo community in St. Paul.

Inver Hills Community College Foundation, Inver Grove Heights, $9,000
Community and Technical Colleges Oral History Project: To document through oral history interviews the history of Inver Hills Community College and Dakota County Technical College to commemorate their 50th anniversaries.

Jewish Historical Society of the Upper Midwest, Minneapolis, $7,750
History of Jewish Communities of St. Paul: To document in oral history interviews the history of Jewish immigrant communities in St. Paul.

Lincoln County Historical Society, Hendricks, $3,000
Install Light-Blocking Shades on Windows in Three Museum Buildings: To hire a qualified professional to install light-blocking shades on museum windows in order to provide better storage and exhibit conditions for the artifacts.

Lower Sioux Indian Community, Morton, $10,000
Development of a Multisensory, Interactive Web Application of Cultural and Medicinal Plants, Phase III: To hire a professional web developer to develop an interactive web application about traditional Dakota cultural and medicinal plants.

McLeod County Historical Society, Hutchinson, $10,000
WW I Anniversary Display Script Research, Writing and Review: To hire a qualified consultant to research the history of and write an exhibit script about McLeod County during World War I, in preparation for a future exhibit.

Minnesota Discovery Center, Chisholm, $7,200
Underground: History Beneath Your Feet Temporary Exhibit Research: To hire project staff to research the history of Iron Range paleontology, archaeology and geology in preparation for a future exhibit.

Minnesota Independent Scholars Forum, Bloomington, $7,090
Scholars Without Walls: The History of the Minnesota Independent Scholars Forum (1983-2018): To hire qualified professionals to produce a manuscript on the history of independent scholarship in Minnesota.

Minnetonka Historical Society, Minnetonka, $9,990
Inventory the Minnetonka Historical Society Collections: To provide better organization of the museum collections, allowing for greater public access to the community’s historic resources.

PACER Center, Minneapolis, $9,914
Write Minnesota's History of Parent Involvement in Educating Children with Disabilities: To produce a manuscript on the history of parent involvement in educating Minnesota children with disabilities.

Ramsey County Historical Society, St. Paul, $7,428
Install UV Blocking Film on Gibbs Farm Building Windows: To improve lighting conditions in the museum by installing UV window film.

Randolph Public Schools, Randolph, $5,886
Yearbook Digitization Project: To digitize school yearbooks (1939 to present), allowing for greater public access to this historic resource.

Reclaim Community, Jasper, $10,000
Jasper School National Register Nomination: To hire a qualified historian to complete the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places for Jasper School.

Sacred Heart Area Historical Society, Sacred Heart, $6,462
General Conservation Assessment & Long-Range Preservation Plan at Sacred Heart Area Museum: To hire a qualified museum consultant to conduct a general preservation needs assessment survey and long-range collections preservation plan.

Shoreview Historical Society, Shoreview, $9,750
Archaeological Evaluation Survey of Vadnais Lake Phase II, Evaluation: To hire a qualified archaeologist to conduct a Phase II survey of Vadnais Lake.

Springfield Area Historical Society, Springfield, $902
Photo Rehousing Project: To provide appropriate storage materials for a photograph collection.

Steele County Historical Society, Owatonna, $9,720
American Legion Exhibition Phase I: To hire a qualified consultant to research the history of the American Legion, in preparation for a future centennial exhibit.

Westonka Historical Society, Mound, $2,010

Collections Management Policies & Procedures: To hire a qualified consultant to prepare a collections management policies and procedures document

Wings of the North Inc., Eden Prairie, $8,474
Collections and Inventory Assessment: To provide better organization of the museum collections, allowing for greater public access to the community’s historic resources.

Winona County Historical Society, Winona, $2,130
Assessment and Preservation Plan for Photograph and Negative Collection: To hire a qualified professional to assess the photograph and negative collection.

Winona-Dakota Unity Alliance, Winona, $3,500
Great Dakota Gathering, Homecoming & Powwow Video Project: To document in video footage the history of the Great Dakota Gathering.

About Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants
The Minnesota Historical Society received a legislative appropriation of $11 million for the 2018-2019 biennium for the Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage (“Legacy”) Grants: $4,500,000 for FY2018 and $6,500,000 for FY2019.

Grants are available for history and historic preservation projects in two tiers. Small grants of $10,000 or less are awarded quarterly. The next small grant application deadlines are Oct. 13, 2017 and January 12, 2018 . All grants are administered through a competitive process using professional standards and criteria.

For more information on the Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants program, including application deadlines, visit legacy.mnhs.org/grants. Applications are accepted only through the MNHS grants portal.

Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants are made possible by the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment through the vote of Minnesotans on Nov. 4, 2008. The Legacy Amendment supports efforts to preserve Minnesota land, water and legacy, including Minnesota history and cultural heritage.

The Minnesota Historical Society is a nonprofit educational and cultural institution established in 1849. MNHS collects, preserves and tells the story of Minnesota’s past through museum exhibits, libraries and collections, historic sites, educational programs and book publishing. Using the power of history to transform lives, MNHS preserves our past, shares our state’s stories and connects people with history.

The Minnesota Historical Society is supported in part by its Premier Partners: Xcel Energy and Explore Minnesota Tourism.