If you are interested in history, you need to check out the “The 1968 Exhibit” at the Minnesota History Center.
1968 was a pivotal year.
‘68 saw the Tet Offensive, the turning point of the Vietnam War, the assassinations of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, the rise of Black Power, the struggle for women’s rights, the violent conflicts at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and the first full-color images of Earth from outer space beamed by Apollo 8.
Through the 1968 exhibit, You will see a Bell UHI “Huey” helicopter (Vietnam-era), the torch from the 1968 Olympics, oral histories from civil rights workers and Vietnam vets, Presidential campaign artifacts, landmark TV, film, and news clips, vintage fashions like a suede vest worn by Jimi Hendrix and a sweater and shoes worn by Fred Rogers on the television show “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” household items and toys, a full-size replica of the Apollo 8 capsule.
You can also spend some time learning about the legacy of the civil rights movement. You can create screen print posters inspired by the Poor People’s Campaign and the Memphis Sanitation Workers’ Strike.
Marking the 50th anniversary, “The 1968 Exhibit” was developed by the Minnesota History Center, in partnership with the Atlanta History Center, the Chicago History Museum and the Oakland Museum of California. Tom Brokaw, news anchor and author of “Boom! Talking About the Sixties,” served as honorary chair of the project. If you are interested in adding it to your #mnbucketlist, the exhibit runs from now until Jan. 21, 2019.
Located on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the heart of one of the country’s strongest arts districts sits the awe-inspiring historic Grain Belt Brewery.
In the early 1890s, four brewers, Heinrich Brewing, Germania Brewing, Norenburg Brewing and Orth Brewing, combined their businesses to create the Minneapolis Brewing and Malting Company, later changing its name to Grain Belt (a nod to the Midwest known as American’s grain belt or breadbasket).
Originally built in 1891, the iconic brewery, in its Romanesque Revival style, looks like a German castle. Just look at the magnificent, original white wrought iron staircase that goes up to the skylight level. Wow.
It remained open even after the passage of the Eighteenth Amendment in 1919, producing “near beer” and soft drinks. Closed in 1927 until the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, Grain Belt became one of the top breweries nationwide.
In 1969 the company expanded to New Ulm, eventually relocating to St. Louis, leaving the brewery vacant in 1975. The Grain Belt Brewery sat for nearly 30 years. The historic Grain Belt Brewery got a second chance when RSP Architects Ltd. (a worldwide architectural firm) moved to the Historic Grain Belt Brewhouse in 2002 after designing a renovation.
The complex now includes the Pierre Bottineau Branch of the Hennepin County Library, The American Craft Council, two buildings owned by Artspace, the Bottling House and Warehouse, and The Keg House Arts Building.
They do all kinds of events in the different spaces, if you want to see it for yourself!
Welcome to 2018! A great way to open the new year is through bright, shiny, glowing lights! Enter the relighting of the forever iconic 
Grain Belt beer was originally produced by the Minneapolis Brewing Company which formed in 1891. Later produced in the still standing 
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I was lucky enough to watch the sunrise in Mille Lacs Kathio State Park this morning. The light peering through the tree line made the perfect brisk backdrop for all the whitetail. Also known as Kathio Site, the Mille Lacs Kathio State Park preserves habitation sites and mound groups, believed to date between 3000 BC and 1750 AD, that document Sioux Indian culture and Ojibwe-Sioux relationships and contains 19 identified archaeological sites, making it one of the most significant archaeological collections in Minnesota. 
