Museum passport project kicks off

Nine historical organizations in Goodhue County are teaming up to encourage families to check out local history sites during summer vacation.

The Goodhue County Passport, which begins this weekend, is aimed at helping people discover local stories by traveling around the county and exploring some of the area’s unique locales.

People who get their passports stamped while at the area sites have a chance to win a basket full of memorabilia.

The project was conceived by Johanna Grothe, collections and exhibits manager, and Diane Buganski, outreach coordinator, both from the Goodhue County Historical Society.

Partnering with the county organization are the Cannon Falls Area Historical Society, Florence Town Hall, Goodhue Area Historical Society, Kenyon Area Historical Society, Pine Island Area Historical Society, Vasa Museum, Wanamingo Historical Society and Zumbrota Area Historical Society.

Passports are available at all nine sites, Grothe said. Individuals or families can pick them up and begin their tours of county museums. The passports are free, but there is an admission charge at some of the sites, she noted.

People can work on the museum tour throughout the summer months, simply by stopping to visit one of the sites while in area communities. Staff or volunteers at each site will be available to stamp or initial the passport.

“Some of them have limited hours,” Grothe said, stressing the importance of checking a site’s website or calling ahead to places that are not open all the time.

The Wanamingo log cabin, for example, is only open on July 4 during the summer, but volunteers are willing to open for visitors who call ahead.

Each passport lists the name, address and contact information for all the sites, she pointed out. It also indicates when the museums are open. Several sites are open one or two days a week.

The passports are valid from May 26 through Sept. 3. When people are done visiting the sites, they can drop off their passports at any of the museums or mail them in. People who toured county museums will be eligible for a prize even if they didn’t make it to all of the sites.

The grand prize will go to someone who visited all nine sites, Grothe said. It will be a basket filled with books, stationery, mugs and other local history items donated by the historical organizations. A smaller basket will go to someone who visited six to eight of the sites. Drawings will take place Sept. 22.

“We’re encouraging people to go out and explore Goodhue County’s history by visiting these nine sites,” Grothe said. It’s not necessary to be a resident of Goodhue County; travelers and visitors also are welcome.

For more information, call the Goodhue County History Center in Red Wing at 651-388-6024.

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