ABOUT US
Mission Statement
The general nature and purpose of the Society shall be the discovery, preservation, and dissemination of knowledge about the history and prehistory of St. Louis County and the State of Minnesota.
In addition to collecting and preserving objects of material culture and historical research material, the Society shall maintain and operate a museum and materially participate in the collections and operations of a historical research center adequate to serve the region encompassing St. Louis County and northeastern Minnesota.
Our History
The people of St. Louis County have always had an abiding interest in the history of their region. For more than a century, county residents have banded together to study the rich past of Minnesota's largest county. Today, the residents of St. Louis County accomplish the worthy goal of understanding the local past through the St. Louis County Historical Society, a county-funded, member-supported nonprofit corporation, which collects, presents and preserves knowledge of the history and prehistory of both the county and region. The Society operates a museum and materially participates in the operations of the research archives facility, as well as providing operational support to six operating affiliates.
Although not formed officially until 1922, the Society has its origins in earlier groups, beginning with the Old Settlers Association of the Head of Lake Superior, formed in 1884. In 1897, the Historical and Scientific Association of Duluth, Inc. formed with an emphasis on the natural history (through zoology, botany, anthropology, geology and mineralogy) of the region. They were soon incorporated into the earlier Old Settlers Association.
The Society's primary predecessor, however, was the Minnesota War Records Commission, authorized in 1918 by the Minnesota Commission on Public Safety "to insure a proper historical compilation of activities and units" of the Great War.
William E. Culkin was elected the Society's first president in 1922, after the Minnesota General Assembly authorized support of a county historical society with an appropriation of up to $2,500 a year. Culkin presided over the affairs of the Society for fifteen years, as both elected president and paid staff director. The St. Louis County Commission made an office available for the Society in the County Courthouse at Room 410.
During World War II in 1943, the Society briefly moved its offices to two rooms in Tweed Hall, the former J. B. Cotton residence on the campus of the Duluth State Teachers College. By 1947, a boom in membership and growing collections necessitated a move to the former George and Marian Stone mansion at 2228 East Superior Street. The Society occupied this address for the next thirty years.
However, by 1976, the Society's historical papers—collected over a half-century largely by volunteers—were becoming unmanageable; few were organized or catalogued, and most were stored in window boxes, attics, and closets of the mansion.
The critical need for professional archival care led to two landmark changes in 1976. First, the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS) and the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) established the Northeast Minnesota Historical Center (NEMHC) within the UMD Library. The Society formally joined this partnership the following year when it deposited its entire research collection at the Center, ensuring its professional care and accessibility to researchers. Simultaneously, the Society sold the Stone mansion and moved into its current facility: the St. Louis County Heritage & Arts Center, located in the renovated 1892 Union Depot at 506 West Michigan Street.
In 1978, Larry Sommer became the Society's Director, beginning an era focused on public engagement and growth. A significant development occurred in 1982 when Sommer and the Society's board partnered with the Lake Superior Museum of Transportation and the Duluth Children's Museum to open Depot Square, a permanent exhibit featuring half-size, replica 1910 Duluth business storefronts. That same year, total paid attendance at the Depot rose to almost 137,000. Additionally in 1982, a change in state law allowing for state funding of multiple historical societies per county initiated the current network of six affiliated Iron Range Societies.
JoAnne Coombe began her long administration in 1992, following a three-year interim co-administration with Maryanne Norton. Coombe oversaw several major developments throughout the 1990s, including the opening of the Forest History Gallery and the Fesler Gallery, which featured the Herman Melheim Collection of intricately carved furniture. She also presided over the formation of an American Indian Advisory Committee. JoAnne Coombe retired in 2023.
For much of the late 1990s and the early 21st century, the Society dedicated itself to chronicling the region's military history, developing the World War II Living History Project and the Veterans Memorial Hall at the Center. The Veterans Memorial Hall website went online in 2001 to chronicle the lives of northeastern Minnesota veterans from the Civil War to the Gulf War. Later, the acclaimed Dignity Thru Unity Vietnam War exhibit opened in April 2004 and was recognized for excellence in 2005. The Society opened its second major Veterans Memorial Hall exhibit, Generations of Service, in August 2009, which serves as a comprehensive tribute to veterans of all conflicts in which northeastern Minnesotans participated.
On February 3, 2025, Wayne Gannaway was hired as the Executive Director of St. Louis County Historical Society.
Wayne brings a passion for local history, along with a national perspective and experience applying museum and nonprofit best practices to challenging circumstances.
“St. Louis County and Duluth have an incredible history that is admired throughout the state. You can see it in the rich eco-system of history and heritage organizations throughout the county. It’s also seen in the impressive history of the county historical society. They’ve developed an enviable museum collection, excellent exhibits, and award-winning publications in their 103 years of collecting, preserving, and presenting the county’s public memory.”
See our post on the News and Resources page for further details.