A Best Kept Secret: Olmsted County’s History Center

Originally posted on the Secondary C&I website on 12/15/2017

The History Center of Olmsted County is a valuable resource right in your own backyard. The History Center is here as a resource for the community, and it can help Rochester Public School teachers by offering supplemental services to the classroom as well as be a resource for the students themselves and their families. Today, the History Center of Olmsted County actively serves Olmsted County and SE Minnesota by offering a varied presentation of educational and outreach programs, special events, museum exhibits, a research center, and archives. It also offers endless options and opportunities to visit its beautiful 46 acre grounds. There is, frankly, something for everyone.

​​Below is a sampling of what the History Center has to offer:

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Traveling Programs

These programs, brought into your classroom by a History Center employee, are each structured to support your students' specific needs and your classroom schedule.

• Immigrant Trunk – See content from an immigrant Norwegian family presented with hands-on objects and a visually-rich PowerPoint presentation.
• Life as a Pioneer - Experience life as a pioneer child via hands-on exploration of household artifacts, an inquiry-based discussion, and a PowerPoint presentation.
• One-Room Schoolhouse - Learn classroom activities typical of the late 1800s including elocution practice, slate-writing, and lessons from McGuffey’s Readers. Plus, compare student and teacher expectations of the past to those present today.
• How WWII Started - Understand how WWII began with fun facts, relevant pictures, and related artifacts from the 1940s. A supporting PowerPoint presentation is also used.
• How WWI Started – As the U.S. celebrates the 100th anniversary, see pictures, artifacts, and a PowerPoint presentation to help understand the causes of this war.
• Life of a Civil War Soldier - View real artifacts, photos, and images of guns from the Civil War! Learn what it was like to be a Civil War soldier in the 1860s. (This presentation is tightly aligned to the Minnesota social studies standards.)
• Firearms of the 1800s - Explore the evolution of 1800s firearms by getting hands-on interaction with black powder firearms (but not the actual guns themselves), and see photos of the full line of firearms in the collection at the History Center.
• Americans Moving West - Discover the occupations of the Wild Wild West that had a lasting impact in the 21st century, like Miners, Ranchers, and Cowboys.

​Tours of the Four Historic Buildings

Arrange a bus to come out , or suggest that students come on their own with their parents/guardians, to visit history firsthand by touring a historic building. 

• 1856 George Stoppel Farmstead -The two families lived in a cave during the first winter. Thereafter, George built a number of buildings, although the only ones still standing are a barn, the backhouse, a silo, the caves, and the stone house built in 1861. The farm stayed in the family for 100 years, until it left family control in 1956. The farmstead was purchased by the Olmsted County Historical Society in 1976. The George Stoppel Farmstead stands today as a national register historic site to commemorate the early pioneers and agricultural history of SE Minnesota.
• 1862 Dee Log Cabin - This log home was built by an early Rochester settler, William Dee in 1862. Their first child was born in the cabin the night they first occupied it. The cabin is made using poplar logs. With the help of 25 men, the cabin was built in just one day.  It was first located in Rochester on 6th Street SW near 4th and is typical of an early settler’s home.  The last person to live here was Anna Benson Ward, who rented the cabin for $3 per month from 1907 to 1911. The Dee Cabin has been moved six times over the years, including the move to its current home on the campus of the History Center. It is open seasonally as part of the regular museum tour and also for special events, such as school tours, etc.
• 1885 Hadley Valley Schoolhouse - The Rochester Post newspaper on August 28,1885, announced that a schoolhouse was to be built in Haverhill Township NE of Rochester. The Hadley Valley Schoolhouse was to be “thoroughly fitted with patent desks, blackboards, and other conveniences, and will be a very neat and comfortable place of education.” The cost to build the school was $800. The Hadley Valley School was used to teach children until 1957, when it was replaced with a new brick school. Electricity and bathrooms were added in the 1930s. The building was moved to the fairgrounds in 1961 and then to the History Center campus in 1975.
• 1900s Ralph Stoppel Farmstead - The Ralph Stoppel Farmstead was originally claimed by Frances Joseph Stoppel in 1856. The farm was divided between his sons Henry and Charles. Charles built a farmhouse on his part of the property in 1892. Ralph Stoppel, Charles' son took over the farm and lived there for much of his life. The farm was sold to the Olmsted County Historical Society in 1972. This farmstead has a mixture of original buildings and recreated buildings. The farmhouse burned in 1992, one hundred years after it was built by Charles Stoppel.

Summer Day Camps

Students might enjoy the days of summer by stepping back in time. 

• Pioneer Life in the Cabin - Are you ready to travel back in time? Your child will experience mid-1800s pioneer life. They will work alongside an interpreter as they live the life of a pioneer child and tend gardens, beat rugs, wash clothing, play pioneer games, and more! This is open to grades 1st-6th.
• Carpenter Workshop - Prior to 1900, nearly all furniture was made by hand. This workshop gives children an introduction into carpentry through building their own wood projects. Attendees will learn how to use carpentry tools (tools are provided) from our volunteers and/or staff, who will assist with the projects. Projects may include a birdhouse, toolbox, or jewelry hanger. This is open to grades 1st to 6th.
• Civil War Soldier Day Camp - Attention all recruits! Enlist in the 3rd MN Company for an afternoon at the History Center of Olmsted County. Spend the afternoon learning what life was like for soldiers serving in the 1860s. Attendees will enlist, learn to march and drill, watch musket firings, and much more. This is open to grades 3rd to 8th.
• Summer Schoolhouse - Let your child step back in time and experience what it was like to be a student in a one-room schoolhouse. It will be a day full of learning and reenacting with lessons in reading, arithmetic, geography, penmanship, and elocution. There’s even a spelling bee! Of course, no school day is complete without recess so we’ve added in some 19th-century games. This is open to grades 3rd to 8th.

Living History

An important part of the programming at the History Center of Olmsted County, Living History makes history more engaging. To bring history to life for the public each summer, they hold the Living History Fair--a weekend of interactive events from the 1800s. Young visited often find these activities quite engaging.

• Living history demonstrations outside –rope maker, woodcarving, hands-on vintage tools, basket weaving, blacksmith, tin smith, 1800s firearms, wash women, and much more
  Fiber arts and crafts demonstrations inside the museum.
• Period vendors – Civil War Sutler, 1840s trading post, brooms, Civil War author, and much more
  Civil War encampments & battle reenactments--see the encampments of the union and confederate army and see how war was fought by watching battle reenactments take place on the grounds of the History Center.
• Civil War medical demonstrations – learn about 1800s surgery and medicine.
• Artillery demonstrations – learn how to take care of the piece, aim, load, and fire.
• 1860s era school activities – experience the one room schoolhouse with hands-on activities that would have been done during the 1800s.
• Vintage baseball games – watch baseball being played without gloves and 1860s rules that differ from modern area baseball rules. Plus, there's a concession stand!

Additional Events

Young and old, community members often enjoy these seasonal events. 

• Winterfest - Students and their families might wish to come and partake in indoor activities like butter churning, sauerkraut making, story time, vintage games, and much more. Plus, some outdoor activities too, which include a sleigh ride, hot chocolate, cookies, and a bonfire.
• Fall Fest – The fall fest takes place on the Thursday of MEA weekend. Every October, the History Center gets autumn-awesome with our Harvest Moon Fall Festival. This event is family-friendly, and often features things like scarecrow decorating, pumpkin painting, apple cider pressing, sauerkraut stomping, and much more!
• Movies Under the Stars – Enjoy a movie outside during the late summer on Schmitt Field while watching a movie on the big screen with your family and friends. Grab your lawn chairs and picnic blankets and head on over to the History Center for Movies Under the Stars! There’s pop, popcorn, and candy available for purchase, and a family friendly movie for your viewing pleasure beginning at dusk.

Plus, the History Center is open to all guests: consider dropping by for a visit! They are open Tuesdays-Saturdays, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. 

If you would like to know more about how the History Center can support you as a teacher, your students, and their families please reach out to me. I'd love to help you make arrangements or to help you answer any questions. ​

This post brought to you by Aaron Saterdalen, Education & Programs Coordinator at the History Center of Olmsted County
Connect with Aaron Saterdalen via email or by calling 507.282.9447