St. Paul Union Stockyards Exhibit Grand Opening
Thursday, August 7, 6 p.m.- 9 p.m. - FREE

No business has had such a profound impact on the development of South St. Paul and Dakota County as the St. Paul Union Stockyards. Join the Society in exploring the unique history of the yards in the largest exhibit DCHS has produced in years.

Era of the South St. Paul Stockyards Movie Premier
FREE - Screening begins at 7 p.m.

The legacy of the Stockyards is memorialized in this new documentary by Town Square Television. Featuring commentary by yard workers, truckers and Governor Tim Pawlenty, the film takes you inside the “worlds’ largest stockyards”.

SIMMONS Exhibit and Programs Capture the Spirit of LeDuc
July 23, 2008

It takes an individual of uncommon character to choose preservation and history over personal gain. This was certainly embodied by the builder of the LeDuc Estate, General William LeDuc, but was also the hallmark of the second owner of the home. The very existence today of the LeDuc Historic Estate is due to one Carroll Bradford Simmons, shrewd antique dealer and unusual philanthropist. Simmons turned down many potentially lucrative offers for the Estate and instead gave the home and grounds to the Minnesota Historical Society to ensure its preservation.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Mr. Simmons' gift of the LeDuc, a choice that made it possible for the Estate to be opened as a museum in 2005. The Dakota County Historical Society and Friends of LeDuc of Historic Hastings are celebrating Simmons' remarkable gift all summer with a special exhibition and has held several programs detailing the life of Mr. Simmons.

SIMMONS - A Tribute to Carroll Simmons & His LeDuc Legacy opened on July 5 and runs through the end of the LeDuc tour season on October 26. The exhibit features a wide variety of antiques sold by Simmons during his decades-long career as one of the most knowledgeable and successful antique dealers in the country. Samples of Bavarian glass, copper cookware, Courier & Ives prints, Chinese vases, and more, are all included in the exhibition.

We Remember Carroll Simmons, a two-part program, was the event of the season so far at LeDuc. On July 16 former employees, including Dakota County commissioner Joe Harris, shared what they remembered from their time working with Simmons. Their recollections shed light on Simmons' legacy and business endeavors, helping to complete the portrait of a man many people knew only incompletely. That same night, State of Minnesota Representative Dennis Ozment, Hastings Mayor Paul Hicks, and Hastings HRA director John Grossman joined former DCHS director Mark Reidell in recounting the many-years effort to open the Estate as a museum.

On July 17 family members and friends shared their personal memories of Simmons and answered questions about the enigmatic antiques dealer. Their moving accounts of Simmons generosity and candid discussion of his eccentric habits wetted eyes and compelled outright laughter in equal measure. This night's program will be broadcast on Hastings cable, check with the station for broadcast information.

Echoes of the Past opens to Resounding Applause
June 16, 2008

Capturing and interpreting people, places and events from the past 150 years in Dakota County, the artists for the 2008 Ginnie Adams Art Group exhibition have created a unique experience for all Society visitors. Scores of vivid, original watercolors command your attention and the rest of the exhibits and the great hall itself, a massive space that could overwhelm lesser exhibitions, fade into the background.

More than 150 enthusiastic art lovers attended the opening reception on June 7 in South St. Paul. The exhibition features predominantly watercolor art and ranges from abstract to documentary. The fourth exhibition by the Art Group, this show was developed to coincide with the Minnesota Sesquicentennial and most pieces interpret historic themes. All artwork is original and most is available for sale through the Society's museum store.

Joining the Art Group this year are young art students from Holy Trinity School and the student pieces are exhibited adjacent to the primary exhibit.

Exhibition runs June 7 to August 1, 2008 at the Lawshe Memorial Museum.

Minnesota Historical Society, Others, Support Harold Stassen Biography
The Dakota County Historical Society is pleased to announce that its newest publication project has been selected to receive a publication grant from the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS). The grant will partially fund the research and writing phases for Son of the Middle Way: the Political Rise, Demise & Redemption of Harold E. Stassen, the only comprehensive biography of Governor Stassen to be attempted to-date. Steve Werle, a regular contributor to DCHS's Over the Years magazine and author of An American Gothic, will write Son of the Middle Way. MHS funds are being matched in part by contributed research services and a research grant from the Eisenhower Foundation. Son of the Middle Way will be published by DCHS in 2010.