What Can Be Funded

Grants in this category are intended to assist with recording, transcribing, and preserving oral history interviews—focused conversations between a trained interviewer and one or more narrators, capturing information about historical events that can be preserved and made broadly accessible.

Eligible projects include but are not limited to:

• Outreach to recent immigrants
• Military experiences of community members
• Local controversies
• Business developments
• Natural disasters
• Community life
• Civic accomplishments
• Work for the public good
• Language preservation

Example Oral History Application

Grants in this category provide funding to conduct the research necessary for historical discovery and interpretation. Solid research is the basis for communicating history accurately, fairly, and honestly to the public. A number of grant project categories require the research to be completed before the implementation phase of the project. Interpretive Programs and Public Education, Heritage Tourism, Publications, and Historic Preservation pre-development and development projects need research to be substantially completed and vetted before applying for the implementation phase. For Historic Preservation projects, see guidelines for HP research and writing. 

Eligible projects include but are not limited to:

• Gathering research materials to lay the groundwork for a solid history
• Drafting text for exhibits, books, websites, scripts for films, and more
• Editing to improve writing for greater accessibility
• Graphic design and layout

Additional Resources:

• Example Exhibit Research Application
• Example Manuscript Writing Application
• Recorded Webinar: Research Projects and the Grants Program
• Recorded Webinar: Letters of Critical Review

Interpretation and public education grants make Minnesota history accessible through a variety of mediums, including technology. They are the cornerstones in building awareness and documenting Minnesota history for the benefit of future generations. Interpretive Programs & Public Education projects often have two phases—research and implementation. Research projects should begin in the Research category.

Interpretation is the meaningful communication of a story that adds context to historical chronologies and objects. It is distinguished from research in that research attempts to gather all relevant information, and interpretation is a public representation of a portion of the results of research. This is necessary to ensure that what is communicated to the public is fair, honest, accurate, and accessible. By dividing an interpretive initiative into two phases—research and implementation—the project can be evaluated by independent-but-knowledgeable reviewers. For additional information, consult the Research category.

Eligible projects include but are not limited to:

• Exhibits:
  • Interpretive exhibits telling compelling stories from the community
  • Vignettes (e.g., a historical family room)
  • Local collections (local art, dolls, etc.)
• Films:
  • Writing and editing the script
  • Production and post-production
  • Distribution
• Historical markers:
  • Single markers or marker systems in a variety of materials. More than simple labels, markers must communicate a story
• Public Education:
  • Hosting or planning a new Minnesota history–based conference, program, or workshop
  • Public education kit/curriculum for a community, school, or organization
• A/V Projects:
  • Video or audio podcasts that include Minnesota history topics, historic tours, and oral histories
• Web Development:
  • Website and/or web capabilities to enhance Minnesota history
  • Online indexes/databases of government records, city directories, cemetery records, etc.
  • Mobile/web apps
• Interactive Technology:
  • Kiosks/touch screens
  • Augmented reality technology
  • Game-based learning development
• Heritage Tourism:
  • Heritage Tourism plans
  • Wayfinding for historic resources
  • Signage program for a historic district
  • Walking and mobile tours, docent training, and related podcast
  • Geocaching
• Alternate formats:
  • Make your existing interpretive programs ADA compliant by providing content through multiple sensory channels

 Additional Resources:

• Example Exhibit Implementation Application
• Recorded Webinar: Interpretive Exhibits and the Grant Program
• Recorded Webinar: Interpretive Planning and the Grant Program
• Recorded Webinar: Historical Markers and the Grant Program
• Recorded Webinar: Letters of Critical Review

Publication of research increases accessibility to the information and makes accessible the information uncovered by research. Grants in this category are intended to assist the publication of research in books, articles, guides, and related forms. Web-based publications, as well as certain types of presentations of findings, also fall into this category.

For all projects where history will be communicated to the public, applications must provide two reassurances to reviewers. First, all applications for publications must include an assurance that the publication will carry the standard disclaimer:

This publication was made possible in part by the people of Minnesota through a grant funded by an appropriation to the Minnesota Historical Society from the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund. Any views, findings, opinions, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the State of Minnesota, the Minnesota Historical Society, or the Minnesota Historic Resources Advisory Committee.

Second, the application must provide two thoughtful analyses of the historical quality of the proposed work. These critical reviews are not letters of support that merely endorse publication, but rather statements evaluating (not simply asserting) the interpretation contained in the work for fairness, honesty, and accuracy. The responsibility for having draft manuscripts evaluated rests on the applicant and publication proposals lacking two reviews will be considered incomplete.

Eligible projects include but are not limited to:

Traditional publications such as:

• books
• articles
• general histories
• historic site guides

Nontraditional publications (talk to the Grants Office about what form that might take)

Additional Resources:

Recorded Webinar: Letters of Critical Review

This category supports projects that develop, store, and/or preserve objects for public access in museum and historic house collections. Many historical organizations also preserve and interpret state and local history through the collection of archival and library materials, such as manuscripts, government records, moving images, photographs, and sound recordings; those projects fall under this category as well. Eligible organizations pursuing history projects that organize, develop, and conserve objects, archives, and related materials should look at this category.

Eligible projects include but are not limited to:

• Establishing an archives
• Archives collection development, including documentation strategies, surveys of archival materials not currently in repositories, appraisal projects, reappraisal, documentation of groups or subject areas underrepresented in your collection, fieldwork, and other collecting activities
• Processing collections
• Collections inventory and cataloging
• Creating MARC records
• Creating EAD finding aids
• Developing a records management program
• Archives policy development
• Purchase and/or installation of Collections Management Software or Archives Management Software
• Purchase and/or installation of Digital Asset Management Software relating to collections Migration of collections data 
• Projects addressing new and evolving media such as born-digital records and photographs, databases, and social media
• Archaeological Collections Assessment

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Collections Inventories - Grant Strategies

The purpose of this project is to conduct a general survey of your collections, assess your repository’s interior environment, assess all policies and procedures related to the care and use of collections, and produce a long-range preservation plan.

This plan will incorporate both conservation and curatorial perspectives in establishing prioritized short-, medium- and long-term goals for the preservation of the collections. The plan will also identify specific activities and actions to address the recommendations.

One of the basic functions of museums, libraries, and archives is to protect and preserve collections held in public trust. However, dealing with conservation problems and concerns can be an expensive undertaking requiring careful planning. Often, funding for collections care from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and many corporate and private foundations is dependent on an institution-wide long-range preservation plan. You will need such a plan, based on a general assessment of your repository, collections, and policies to be successful in obtaining grants for the preservation of the collections.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

Additional Resources:

• Example General Conservation Plan application

• Recorded Webinar: Planning and Funding a Collections Condition Survey

StEPs (Standards and Excellence Program for History Organizations) is an assessment program for small- and medium-sized history museums, historic houses, historic sites and history organizations. It was created by the American Association for State and Local History (AASLH), with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), to encourage awareness and achievement of national standards.

Like all organizations, museums and other historical entities can benefit from assessment, long-range planning, and the application of national standards. However, many smaller organizations have neither the time nor the staff expertise to undertake such projects.

Completion of the standards program will give your organization increased credibility with funders and stakeholders, enable you to better serve your community, and provide a solid foundation for future grant requests for projects identified during your assessment.

This program uses assessment questions and performance indicators to rate performance in six areas, moving your organization along a continuum from basic to good to better. The sections are:

1. Mission, Vision, and Governance
2. Audience
3. Interpretation
4. Stewardship of Collections
5. Stewardship of Historic Structures and Landscapes
6. Management

Using the StEPs program workbook purchased through AASLH, you will assess your operations, policies, and procedures in each section; identify areas for improvement; and develop a plan to track your progress and achieve your goals. AASLH allows you to take as much time as necessary to work through the entire program but, with the help of a qualified consultant, you should be able to complete the StEPs program within a period of months.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short-form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

Grants in this category are intended to preserve historic items through proper control of museum environments and conservation intervention. Museum environments include all the physical conditions that affect the long-term preservation of and access to collections. This includes heating and cooling systems; museum storage; lighting; security; and ADA compliant accessibility. Conservation projects include collections condition surveys, emergency preparedness,  and conservation treatment. 

Museum collections housed in historic structures should always take into consideration the preservation of both the collection and the structure. Measures which promote the preservation of either the historic structure or the collection, at the expense of the other, should not be considered. At all National Register listed buildings, construction work must be based on construction documents completed by a qualified historic architect.

Eligible projects include but are not limited to:

• Environmental monitoring, including purchase and set up of environmental data-loggers or light meters, and creation of an environmental monitoring plan. 
• Construction documents for HVAC upgrade (requires HVAC evaluation and recommendations, see Structured: Evaluation of Building Mechanical (HVAC) Systems). At all National Register listed buildings, construction documents must be completed by a qualified historic architect
• HVAC installation using construction documents for HVAC upgrade (see HVAC Upgrade Requirements).
• Particulates (dust) and pollution control.
• Installing lighting controls and new fixtures (requires redesign evaluation and planning, see Structured: Planning for Redesign of Museum Lighting).
• Improving preservation lighting through filter improvements or proximity sensors (may not require redesign planning).
• Installing security systems and protocols.
• Physical accessibility to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, including ramps, elevators, lifts, power-assisted doors, compliant furniture, and other access improvements (see. Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance Requirements).
• Training to accommodate disabilities.
• Pest control and integrated pest management (IPM), including identification of the species, source of intrusion, and the affected collections items. Proposal must describe how the solution meets current accepted museum standards.
• Collections storage/rehousing, including the creation of a collections storage plan, and the purchase of shelving, cabinets, boxes, work tables, carts, ladders, and supplies needed to prolong the life of your collections.
• Conservation treatment. Treatments should be suitable for the preservation of the aesthetic, conceptual and physical characteristics of cultural property, be as reversible as practical, and employ materials that are appropriate and consistent with currently accepted conservation practices.
• Collections condition surveys, resulting in a report summarizing priorities for conservation treatment in a collection based on object condition. 
• Conservation assessment of a collections item, resulting in a detailed condition report and/or treatment plan. 
• Emergency preparedness and response, including risk assessments and mold mitigation of damaged collections. See also Structured: Develop a Disaster Plan.
• An independent object (i.e. at the organization but not in the collection).

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Museum HVAC and the Grants Program

• Recorded Webinar: Museum Lighting Projects
• Recorded Webinar: Environmental Monitoring in Museums

• Recorded Webinar: Security Hardware for Your Museum, What to Consider

This structured grant provides funding to conduct an evaluation of the building’s mechanical system (also called the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system or HVAC system) to determine what changes and improvements would be feasible and necessary to improve the environmental conditions in the building. A qualified HVAC engineer, preferably with knowledge of the requirements of and experience with museum climates, will be hired to inspect and evaluate the existing equipment. Keeping in mind the needs of the collections and any limitations imposed by the building envelope, the engineer will develop specific recommendations together with an estimated budget for implementing improvements. A second objective of the evaluation is to determine if improvements in equipment could also improve the energy efficiency of the equipment resulting in a reduction in the amount of energy consumed annually.

One of the basic functions of museums, libraries, and archives is to protect and preserve the collections for which they are the permanent stewards. A physical environment that provides a relatively stable temperature and humidity is necessary for the long-term preservation of artifacts, books, documents, and electronic media. Temperature in the range of 60-70 degrees Fahrenheit and relative humidity (RH) in the range of 35-55% are generally accepted ranges for the preservation of collections.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations.

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Museum HVAC and the Grants Program

The purpose of this structured grant is to develop plans and specifications to update lighting in a museum so that collections and interpretive labels are readily visible and attractive; wayfinding, artifact workspaces, and storage have sufficient light; and damage to collections is minimized. A secondary goal is to make the system energy efficient, thereby reducing energy consumption and cost.

One of the basic functions of museums is to protect and preserve the collections for which they are the permanent stewards. A physical environment that minimizes physical deterioration is necessary for the long-term preservation of artifacts, books, documents and archives collections. Excessive exposure to light is arguably the single largest cause of damage and deterioration to collections in many, if not most, museum collections, including those in historic buildings. The outcome of the project will be the design of a durable, practical, cost-effective and easily-maintainable system to upgrade lighting to current museum conservation standards, with a secondary benefit of increased energy efficiency.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Museum Lighting Projects

This structured grant is meant to encourage small organizations to prepare disaster plans for their collections and museums so they will be equipped to respond in an organized and efficient manner in the event of an emergency or disaster. 

In recent history, various communities throughout Minnesota have experienced floods, tornadoes, heavy snow, freezing rain/ice, high winds or other disasters that were severe enough to receive federal declaration. In 2005, Heritage Preservation, in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), reported that 190 million artifacts in America’s collecting institutions were at risk of being damaged or destroyed. One of the priority actions recommended in their report: Every institution should develop a disaster plan to preserve, protect and reduce risk to their collections. The American Alliance of Museums (AAM) has made disaster plans one of their five core documents.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

The purpose of this structured grant is to create a disaster response kit: a collection of tools, equipment, and other materials that can be used in response to a collections emergency. Having a disaster response kit on hand in an emergency can have a significant impact on the organization’s ability to salvage the collection. This is a follow-up to the structured grant: Develop a Disaster Plan. This grant is intended to support the start-up costs of establishing a disaster response kit and updating the organization’s disaster plan with details about the kit. It cannot be used to fund regular upkeep and replacement of expired components.

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Structured Grant, Create a Disaster Response Kit

The majority of state and local historical resources are in their original forms. Organizations planning to reformat some part of their collections and/or records into a digital form or microfilm for reasons of access, research, interpretive re-purposing, migration or preservation should apply to this category. Some of these projects require additional planning worksheets as noted below.

"Reprographic" is the collective term for all processes – mechanical, photographic, or electronic – used to copy, reproduce, or make facsimiles of photographic items, documents, books, or other paper-based materials.

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Risk Management—Digitizing Safely

This structured option will assist organizations with collections development to meet patron needs by acquiring microfilm copies of historically valuable records such as newspapers or manuscripts for use in the local community.

Many one-of-a-kind, historically valuable records pertaining to Minnesota localities (e.g., the federal and state census, post office records, local newspapers, church records, and manuscript collections) are held by repositories in Saint Paul, MN; Washington, D.C.; Elk Grove, IL; and Salt Lake City, UT. Travel to these repositories is not always possible. Fortunately, many of the records have been microfilmed to make them more broadly accessible. Having such resources available locally will make your collections more useful to patrons, volunteers, and staff.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

Digital microfilm reader/scanners lack the capacity to create archival quality scans and are inefficient at doing mass scanning of microfilmed documents. These machines will not satisfy digitization standards for digitization of negatives, slides or microfilmed collections for digital archives.

Many libraries, schools, and historical and genealogical organizations maintain and make publicly available microfilm containing local newspapers, naturalization records, local church records, census records and other primary historic documents. Although microfilm readers enable access to these records, it is only partial access. Therefore, small research libraries through this grant must acquire machines capable of creating copies, either through printing on paper or to digital file, or both.

The public expects greater digital access to primary historic documents. A digital reader/scanner will ensure easier access to historical information using a method more compatible with how people conduct research today. Microfilm is a proven long-term medium for storing information. Increasing access to microfilm digitally will ensure that the organization's records will be available for the future.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

This structured grant provides a scholarship for an organization to grow capacity by sending its employees, board members, and volunteers to a national conference, seminar, forum, or symposium that is hosted in the state of Minnesota.

National conferences hosted in the state of Minnesota give a rare opportunity for representatives of an organization to learn best practices, network with colleagues from other states, and share innovative, groundbreaking, and highly professional work happening within Minnesota. In the past decade, history and historic preservation enterprises have used the power of history to improve, shape, and nurture their communities. In order to maintain currency with national best practices, it is important that employees, board members, and volunteers of applicant organizations seek continuing education from national conferences hosted in the state of Minnesota.

Structured MN Historical and Cultural Heritage Grants: This project can be applied for as a structured option for small grants ($10,000 or less). The structured option provides a simplified, short form application for projects tailored to common needs of historical organizations. 

Museums and archives are responsible for safeguarding and preserving their collections. They
have the additional responsibility of protecting their visitors, employees, volunteers and vendors as well as the organization’s facilities and assets.

A security survey is a critical on-site examination of an organization’s present security status to identify deficiencies or excesses, to determine protection needed, and to make recommendations to improve overall security. A survey is a basis for recommendations for future action.

This structured grant provides funding to conduct a security survey of the organization to determine what changes and improvements would be feasible and necessary to improve physical, personnel, and electronic security measures.

Additional Resources:

• Recorded Webinar: Security Installation & Hardware, What to consider

• Tip Sheet: Security Installation & Hardware, What to consider