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On Sunday, August 14, 2005, an anniversary was
marked, a project was launched and a promise was made.
Held on the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, Minnesota’s Greatest Generation Day was a day filled with emotional moments – celebratory, tearful, heartwarming and nostalgic.
The event was much more than a special summer day in 2005 – it also marked a promise to preserve the memories of that war's generation. A promise from one generation to another is powerful, and the Society is committed to gathering the stories of the Minnesotans of this generation – and to helping all Minnesotans collect the stories of their own families.
In conjunction with the special events at the
History Center on Aug. 14, the Minnesota’s
Greatest Generation Project also began statewide that day,
with events at historic sites across the state.
Seeing corn in southeastern Minnesota isn't surprising, but a cornfield at Historic Forestville recently received some national attention. A cornstalk is usually seven to eight feet tall, but Historic Forestville’s stalks are nearly 15 feet. The corn itself measures 16 inches!
This photo showcases Reid's Yellow Dent field
corn, which was first developed in 1846. It was planted on May
15, and is part of Forestville’s recreation of life at
the turn of the 20th century.
Before the corn is harvested in October,
see the giant cornstalks for yourself on Harvest
Day. See a state
champion corn picker demonstrate the 20th-century hand-picking
technique, and check out demonstrations of quilting bees, cider
pressing and apple pie making. Sat., Oct. 1, from 11 a.m. – 4
p.m.
On Sept. 17, head to Mill City Museum to meet Goldy Gopher before the Gopher/Florida Atlantic football game at the Metrodome.
Starting at 3 p.m., see a display of vintage U of M gear, sing along with the pep band and meet Gopher athletes. Enjoy an autograph session and free food. Check out special ticket discounts for the football game and Mill City Museum admission.
In celebration of M.A. Gedney Co.’s 125th birthday, the Society began work with the Minnesota-based company to acquire and preserve items – primarily product packaging, marketing materials and business records – that document its history. Happy birthday to the M.A. Gedney Co., and congratulations on 125 years of making great pickles in Minnesota!
As part of the Minnesota’s Greatest Generation Project, the Society is working with community volunteer Gladys Schmidt Roy to provide albums of historic St. Paul photographs – images from the Society’s collections – to seven nursing homes in the St. Paul area and to the Minneapolis VA Medical Center.
The photos will be used in caring for patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia-related illnesses. In her 30 years of volunteer work, Gladys has seen that the present has little meaning for these patients, and that historic photos bring forth recognition, meaning and even conversation.
Exhibit developer Brian Horrigan writes, “It’s good to remember that the people who became known as Minnesota’s ‘Greatest Generation’ – those who fought in World War II and worked on the homefront – were once children. Take this angelic blonde boy scout, from about 1935, and project him seven or eight years into the future when he has likely traded his model plane for something much more grown-up and real.” Browse more than 117,000 additional historic images in the Society’s collections.
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