March 19, 2018
This dental chair was used by Dr. Fanny ‘Nusia’ Freund Borgen, the first female orthodontist in Minneapolis. Dr. Borgen graduated from the University of Minnesota Dental School where she earned her DDS in 1956 and her Orthodontics degree in 1964. She was the only practicing female orthodontist in the state of Minnesota for 20 years.
Dr. Borgen was born in Poland in 1923, and survived the Holocaust. Following the war she immigrated to the United States and became a naturalized citizen on April 9th, 1955. In 1956 she married Milton L. Borgen. For 40 years Dr. Borgen devoted her life to helping others. She practiced orthodontics in Buffalo, Minneapolis, and Wayzata. She was a highly respected and active member of her community, taking part in various organizations: Temple Israel, Hadassah, American and Minnesota Dental Association, American and Minnesota Association of Orthodontists, University of Minnesota Alumni Association, Heritage Foundation of MN, Component Association, and the USC Shoah Foundation.
Dr. Borgen passed away just one month shy of her 91st birthday on October 1st, 2014. In her will she established the Milton L. Borgen & Dr. F. N. Freund Borgen Memorial Park Endowment Fund, helping the up keep of the Temple Israel Memorial Park Cemetery.
Author Bio
Olivia Schiffman is a volunteer at the Hennepin History Museum. She has her Bachelor of Arts degrees in English, History, and Music from Hamline University. She currently works for the City of Hugo, digitizing records and compiling research on the cities one room schoolhouse, as well as the Minnesota History Museum, researching the history of underrepresented communities at Fort Snelling.