Pine County Historical Society holds its monthly Board meetings at 10:00 am on the third Tuesday of the month. All are welcome to attend the open meetings. Our Annual Meeting is held in October.
Please watch our Facebook Page for an updated and current list of events which may include:
Book Signings
Lectures
Concerts
Classes and Workshops
Live Auctions
Sales at the Shop
Special and Gala Events
And more!
Board of Directors:
President: John Klar
Vice President: Roger Wallace
Treasurer: Paul Olesen
Secretary: Kathy Bade
Director: Jan Ashmore
Director: Joann Bernard
Director: Blaine Jensen
Director: Harvey Klar
Director: Jan Matthew
Director: Pam Wiener
Staff
Interim
Executive Director: Elinor Auge
Bookkeeper: Kathi Bennett
History of Pine County Historical Society and Museum
Pine County Historical Society was founded in 1948 with charter members from throughout Pine County. Having made its physical home in Askov since about 1966, the Society and collections were originally housed on Main Street in what is now the Vintage Pub, later moving into what was called the Depot Museum, thanks to the donation of the Askov railroad depot from the Burlington Northern Railroad. Later acquisitions included the old brick service station which became the Farm Museum, and the Presbyterian Church building, which became the Pine County History Center.
In 2011, then-president of the PCHS board of directors, had the goal of consolidating the collections under one roof with climate-control capabilities. By February of 2012, the historical society had purchased the land and bus garage of the current museum location from Becky Lourey, who followed up by donating the 50,000 square foot, handicap accessible school building to the cause. Just a few months later, in June of 2012, with the help of many dedicated volunteers from around the county, the Pine County History Museum and The Little Mermaid Café opened their doors.
Pine County Historical Society also continues to maintain the Presbyterian Church building across the street, which now houses the PCHS seasonal thrift shop.
All of the collections have been donated over the years and all items on display have been catalogued and labeled. There are binders in each display area with printed materials identifying all of the catalogued items in the display. Much of the cataloguing effort was funded in part by a grant from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Funds through Minnesota Historical Society.
Support for the museum comes from contributions from Pine County and its cities and townships. It also depends on membership fees and donations from members or interested individuals and businesses, as well as from daily visitor fees.