Oral Histories
Hennepin History Museum serves as a bridge from the past to the present with our collection of audio recordings, interviews, and oral histories, all of which offer unique perspectives on local historical events and cultural issues pertaining to our area.
These oral histories leave a legacy for current and future generations to better understand our shared history. Integral to the mission of Hennepin History Museum is to create spaces where our communities’ stories can be told. Offering these oral histories enables you to access them at the time and place that works best for you.
Some of these oral history projects were recorded over several months or years, while others are one-time individual narratives or interviews. They are all accessible on MNCollections.
Pictured above are Daniel Bergerson, Chaundra Scott, Anthony Scott, and Sophie Bell. Chaundra and Anthony Scott were interviewed for the Southside OralHistories project; Bergerson and Bell were University of Minnesota students who worked on the project.
These are examples of some of our larger oral history projects that are available on MNCollections.
Southside Oral Histories (# B293)
Six oral histories were conducted with ten elders of the Southside Minneapolis neighborhood. The narrators primarily talk about their memories of growing up on the Southside and include Harry Davis, Jr; Sharon Sayles Belton; Louis Moore; Greg McMoore; Gary Hines; Dara Whitlock-Ceaser; Cindi Booker; Sherri Green; Anthony Scott; Dr. Chaunda Scott.
Photo: Anthony and Dr. Chaunda Scott. Photo from Hennepin History Museum collection.
Circle of Water Circus (# B292)
Kim Heikkila, local historian and founder of Spotlight Oral History, conducted conversations with ten Circle of Water Circus performers about their roles in the trailblazing 1983 production by In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre. This multi-faceted project honored the Mississippi River through the ancient tradition of puppetry, fostered community, and raised awareness of the ecological distress of the river. A troupe of performers traveled down the Mississippi from Brainerd, Minnesota to New Orleans, Louisiana. The main attraction was a performance featuring 150 puppets and original music that explored the devastation of colonialism throughout the history of the region with an optimistic look towards the future.
Photo: Circle or Water Circus participants. Photo courtesy of Mark John.
MN Daily Newspaper Environment (# B289)
Minnesota’s Daily Newspaper Environment Oral History Project documents change in news delivery of daily print newspapers in Minnesota between the years 1980-2020. Portal Research interviewed journalists from across Minnesota, representing a range of urban, mid-sized, and rural newspapers, about their professional backgrounds, their staff position in their respective newspapers, and changes in the newspaper business environment.
Photo: Tracey Williams-Dillard at her grandfather’s desk. Photo courtesy of Portal Research.
Ȟaȟá Wakpádaŋ / Bassett Creek Oral Histories (# B287)
The Ȟaȟá Wakpádaŋ / Bassett Creek Oral History Project grew from Valley Community Presbyterian Church’s commitment to develop a land acknowledgement that went beyond the walls of their church and pushed toward reparation by documenting the “lived experiences, stories, and knowledge” of Native Americans in the Ȟaȟá Wakpádaŋ / Bassett Creek watershed located in the western metro suburbs. Fourteen American Indians were interviewed by Dr. Kasey Keeler, an associate professor at the University of Wisconsin and native of Coon Rapids, Minnesota.
Photo: Dr. Kasey Keeler. Photo courtesy of Breanna Schmidt.
Minnesota Pandemic Oral History (# B279)
The Minnesota Pandemic Oral History Project was a grant-funded project that sought to make a correlation between the public health response to the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and the Coronavirus Pandemic of 2020. Portal Research interviewed eleven Minnesota healthcare professionals, including:
Nathan T. Chomilo, Kathleen Clark, Debra DeBrun, Jacqueline Ann Dionne, Kristen Ehresmann, Jonathan Hanft, Jack Martin, Nicholas Henderson, Kristie Rathmanner, Kelly V. Robinson, and Mary C. Turner.
Photo: Mary Turner, RN (ICU).