This was a sentimental visit for me. I've wanted to see the Little House in the Big Woods for…read moredecades. The site is open access. You park and can go right up to the house, day or night, any time of year. The door uses a rope latch system and there's a sign asking people to keep the door shut. The interior is small, but there's an information wall that's a good excuse to linger and read. The original cabin, of course, was long gone before the books were even published, and this new version was the result of a fundraising campaign in the 1970s.

Wonderful museum and super friendly staff. My mom, grandmother, and I had a wonderful timeread more

This place blew me away when I visited with my history of design class the other day! The shear…read moreamount of historical objects in this building is stunning, and the history behind it is amazing. The tour guides will tell you about the two houses built before the one that currently stands. The families that owned these houses helped form the midwest to be what it is today--something I never would have even imagined if I hadn't come here. Some of the wealthiest people in 1800s America lived in Menomonie. I'm taking away one star because I can't imagine that the tour would be quite as fascinating without my art history professor there, but it would be pretty close. This is a must-visit if you're going to be in the area!

The sign along Hiawatha Pioneer Trail pointed out that there was a historical marker ahead and with…read moreenough time, I was able to slow and pull in. There's a decent sized parking lot here though it's cracked and has seen better days. The marker as well is faded and peeled but it still tells the industrial story of the area. It reads, "The growth of vegetation, home, construction and landscaping makes it difficult for the visitor of today to envision that the surrounding area was once used for the mining of clay. The pottery industry, that had its founding with John Paul, was made possible when the surrounding area was purchased for the purpose of suppling the necessary clay. "The clay was found at a depth of four feet and continued down to twenty-five feet or more. There were three grades of clay. Number 1 which was gray in color, had no impurities and was limited in quantity. No. 2, also gray in color, was the most commonly found; and No. 3, a brown colored clay, with small amounts of sand, shale and gray clay which was used for the production of sewer pipe. "Mining involved clearing the topsoil, digging out the clay and loading it by hand; this was eventually replaced by the use of steam powered drag-lines. The clay was at first hauled by horse and wagon to Red Wing and then a rail spur was laid to the pits. Built by the Duluth Red Wing and Southern Railroad Company, the line was operated from 1892 until it was abandoned in 1936. Thousands of car loads of clay were transported to Red Wing for the production of stoneware and sewer pipe. "Over the following years the pits closed and reopened. Pits were opened in other bear-by areas, diesel replaced the steam powered equipment and trucks replaced the trains. By the 1970s mining and pottery operations had ceased. What had been an industry that employed many men and women over the years, had provided many newly arrived emigrants, mostly Scandinavian, their first jobs during the early industrial development of the county, and had brough recognition and fortune to the area, is now just a memory." The marker was erected in 1996 by The Red Wing Collectors Society Inc. and The Cannon Valley Red Wing Collectors Club. [Review 20717 overall - 129 in Minnesota - 1699 of 2023.]

We enjoyed a ghost tour with Jane Olive throughout Mantorville. We visited the historic buildings…read morethroughout the charming town and heard ghost stories about each building and house. After the tour we enjoyed a delicious supper at the historic Hubbell House.

Located on the grounds of the Freeborn County District Court, this tall memorial commemorates those…read morewho fought in the Civil War. Yes, Minnesota only joined the Union as the 32nd state on May 11, 1858 but contributed significantly to Union efforts. About 22,000 Minnesotans served; 2,500 died in the war. Minnesota formed 11 infantry units, 4 cavalry units, 4 artillery units, and an unassigned volunteer unit. This monument was erected in 1914. "Erected by citizens of Freeborn County, Minn. in memory of Union Soldiers and Sailors of the War of 1861-65" and "Dedicated to Robson Post No. 5. G.A.R. of Albert Lea, Minn. Memorial Day May 30, 1914". Stop by and check it out to pay your respects. [Review 17163 overall - 78 in Minnesota - 680 of 2022.]

Cool view with a lot of history. great view of the city either day or night but like why couldn't…read moreit just be open to the public? You would think you would be able to go up for an even better view but nope. But even from the vantage point not too bad of a view of Minneapolis.

This water tower has quite a lot of history if you google it. The park itself isn't much to visit…read moreand surround the tower is pretty run down. I rode my bike up here just to check it out, wasn't worth it.

My wife and I hit a new pub in St. Paul called the Blue Door before touring this cool old Victorian…read morehouse of one of the first governors of Minnesota. We had some awesome burgers and beer before our free tour the Historical Museum was giving of its properties this weekend. We entered the house feeling full and happy from a couple of Surly Furious pints and signed up for our tour. We entered the house with a great guide dressed in a top hat and suit of the 1800's when Ramsey would have lived in the house. The house was one of the few in old time Minnesota with gas lighting and running water. There was a bathtub and even an indoor water closet. It was interesting that there were chamber pots around the house because women did not like to remove all the bussels and stuff. They showed the bells and talking tubes for the servants to be called upon. They showed the kitchen and offered baked cookies from the oven. The children's' rooms were well adorned and Ramsey had a play room for the children up in the attic along with the servants' rooms. The whole layout was perfect, great character actors as guides and pretend servants. Even though they had a lot of people taking the tour, they kept it well run and you quickly became envious of such a large, cool house. Highly recommended for a crummy day outside when you're looking for something to do. Hey, and it's educational!

I had a bizarre experience here today. I walked into the Gift Shop and hung out looking at stuff…read morefor 20 minutes while people were talking in the back. I wanted to pay admission and walk around the house. Finally, I peeked in the back and some lady said, "are you Dustin?" Huh? When she saw I was just a member of the public she hurriedly hustled me out the door and told me they were closed for staff interviews and did I not see the sign, etc. I did see a small, handwritten sign on a dry erase board, but I was confused about why the gift shop would be wide open, lights on and merchandise unattended if the entire place was closed down. All the sign said was that there were no tours, not that the entire building was closed. I thought it was possible to take a self-guided tour even if staff were "busy." Honestly I haven't been to very many historical sites where self-guided tours are forbidden. Basically, the point of this weird experience is that whatever non-profit is running this place is extremely disorganized and unable to communicate something as basic as being closed to the general public, not to mention the fact it can't even secure its premises. It's pretty irresponsible to leave the front door open and an entire gift shop unattended. I could have walked off with half of their stuff and no one would have been the wiser. On her way to rushing me out the door, the lady acted very annoyed and mumbled something about what they can't do because of budget cuts, even as she was discouraging me from making a purchase from their gift store. To me, this illustrates exactly why non-profits are in dire straights. They want charitable donations from everyone even while turning down opportunities to become more self sufficient. A similar thing happened a week or so ago when I attended an evening lecture on 19th century spiritualism with a friend at the Ramsey House. We arrived late and didn't have the chance to pay for our tickets until it was over. I had to ask three people how and where to pay. No one made any effort to bother us for money, and had I not been extremely proactive, it would have been free for my friend and I, but not for the taxpayers. This is ridiculous, and perfectly illustrates why non-profits do not deserve financial support. This place can't even manage to collect money from people attending an event. It isn't like we slipped in quietly or secretly either. To many organizations, "non-profit" doesn't simply mean they don't make any money, but that they actively throw it away.

Nice trail, but unfortunately flooded due to the rain so could only see 0.2 miles of it.read more

Anyone who tackles this trail must be…read more.. A) A historic bridge enthusiast and fan of engineering design B) The second coming of Aldo Leopold C) Someone off their nut D) A&C E) B&C F) All of the above. Okay, seriously, this is a a fascinating area and quite a trail for nature lovers. Alexander McGilvray saw an opportunity in 1854 and launched a ferry across the Black River. In 1892, the county built a steel bridge across the river, ending the ferry service. Since McGilvray Road went through backwaters of the Black River and a slough, six wooden bridges were built. The moist environment wrecked wooden bridges quickly, so between 1905 and 1908, a series of five bowstring truss bridges were built with one wooden bridge left behind. The road was closed in 1948 due to flooding, and in 1954 the steel bridge was removed. The five bowstring truss bridges remain in place and a fifth pony truss bridge was relocated here to replace the wooden bridge. The maintenance of the old bridges is accomplished with volunteer labor, the Friends of McGilvray Road in partnership with the Wisconsin DNR. Bowstring trusses, one time plentiful, are now rare and only eight examples remain in Wisconsin - five of those eight are on McGilvray Road. As for the hiking, well, nature has pretty much consumed McGilvray Road, popularly known as Seven Bridges Road. It is a hiking trail, being slowly developed by the Friends of McGilvray Road. You can take the 1.8 mile hike to the Black River and experience a piece of La Crosse County history yourself. Dress appropriately and wear good hiking shoes.The day I visited McGilvray Road, I met a couple on the trail. He was wearing sandals. Not smart. She was wearing cross trainers, still not very smart. Both were wearing shorts - really not smart as the mosquitoes were matched in size and maneuverability to a P-38. No motorized vehicles, in fact, no vehicles at all, including no bicycles. As a hiking trail, two stars. As a great example of private and public sector cooperation, four stars, as an example of historic preservation, five stars. Net result - four stars. I'd go back - would you like to join me?

Very nice place to see if you're a fan of Mary Tyler Moore. The house is a beautiful, enormous…read moreVictorian near many other lovely homes off of Lake of the Isles. It's a good place to stop during a walk around the lake for a photo or just to see. It is a private residence so you can't go on the property but it's nice to view from the sidewalk.

This was a surprisingly interesting museum. Honestly, I wasn't too excited, walking into this…read moresmall stripmall-esque location to see a museum devoted to pottery. However, it was rather informative about the city of Red Wing, the former pottery factory, and shelves and shelves of different forms of the Red Wing wares. They had vintage displays to give you a nostalgic feel for their hay day, and the gift shop even had some pieces for sale. I'm not sure how small children may feel about it, but for adults with an appreciate for art, history, and/or pottery I would definitely recommend this museum. Make sure to read the fact cards - they may be small, but they provide a lot of interesting information.

Outstanding! A free museum with interesting things to see and learn. I was unaware of the pottery…read morehistory of the area before my visit. The exhibits show the history of the industry and a surprising variety of products. Bowling fans will appreciate the custom made bowling pin light fixtures for a local bowling alley. The gift shop has many interesting items.