 Isanti County Historical Society Heritage Center, Cambridge MN, was destroyed by arson Friday July 8, 2011. MHS Local History Services assisted with disaster recovery the following day. The museum building is a total loss. While the majority of the collection was also lost, that which was recovered were among the most important for documenting the county's history. There are photographs taken during the Saturday disaster response and recovery mission posted in Minnesota Local History on Facebook. Pictured above is the award of an emergency state grant to assist with the cleaning and rehousing of recovered historic resources. Kathy McCully accepted the check from MHS Director Steve Elliott in the presence of Gov. Mark Dayton, who toured the site on Monday July 25, 2011. Clean up efforts continue; contact Executive Director Kathy McCully if you can help. Add Comment    By Elizabeth Sias http://isanticountynews.com/2011/07/15/isanti-county-historical-society-receives-emergency-grant/ The Isanti County Historical Society continues to move forward with recovery efforts following the destruction of its building by fire July 8. To aid in the ongoing recovery process, the Minnesota Historical Society presented an emergency grant of $7,000 to the Isanti County Historical Society on Thursday, July 14. Officials from both societies visited the remains of the county’s historical society building to review the damage and discuss the ongoing recovery strategy. “The first step was the triage that (Kathy McCully, executive director of the Isanti County Historical Society) has done getting help and expertise to come in and identify what can be salvaged and how to do it and making a plan to do that,” said Stephen Elliott, director and CEO of the Minnesota Historical Society. The grant is being matched by the county historical society through volunteer labor. Four people will work 15 hours a week for four months to match the $7,000 grant. Most of the county’s historical collections were destroyed in the fire, however a team from the county and state historical societies, along with volunteers, salvaged materials, including 75 cubic feet of paper research collections. The surviving collection includes maps, oversize photographs, plat books, aerial photographs, quad maps, vital record index cards and vertical subject files. The grant is part of the long-established State Grants in Aid program administered by the Minnesota Historical Society, and was presented in this emergency situation, even though the Society remains closed due to the State of Minnesota government shutdown. The Minnesota Historical Society, its museums, historic sites and library will reopen to the public on Saturday, July 23. Funding from the state comprises more than half of the Society’s operating budget. The funds granted will be used to help restore, re-catalog, store and care for surviving archives and artifacts. The majority of books, documents, photos and artifacts that were salvaged from the fire were damaged by water necessary to contain the fire. These items will be freeze dried and stored appropriately so that they can be preserved for the future and accessed by the public. “Beginning to develop a recovery plan is the next step to moving forward,” Elliot said. “What’s great is they have a leader here who’s been on top of things and is obviously thinking. There’s the insurance — the beginning of a way to do the physical rebuilding — but meanwhile it’s making sure what collection is preservable is being taken care of.” McCully explained that the freeze drying process is similar to drying bed sheets outside in the winter; the sheets will freeze, but when the ice is taken off, the sheets will be dry. “I just have to remember to pace myself,” McCully said. “This isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon.” St. Paul, MN — The Minnesota Historical Society is providing the Isanti County Historical Society with disaster relief assistance following the destruction of its building by fire on July 8. “We are greatly saddened by this news and the great loss of historical collections and records that the Isanti County Historical Society has preserved so well for Minnesotans,” said Stephen Elliott, MHS director and CEO. “We are working side-by-side with the Isanti Historical Society and their volunteers, even while the Minnesota Historical Society remains closed in the midst of the government shutdown.” Kathy McCully, executive director of the Isanti County Historical Society said, “The damage is very extensive. Much of what the fire didn’t consume was damaged by water from the fire hoses. Anything wooden, textile and most paper documents have been destroyed. The handles even melted off the file cabinets.” “We are so thankful that the Minnesota Historical Society is here. They are providing an invaluable service and bringing us expertise most organizations don’t have – an expertise that is giving us a strong focus in this time of tragedy,” said McCully. “Bob Herskovitz is leading us through the salvage process step by step. There are many levels of decisions to make about what can be saved both from a content and financial point of view.” The Minnesota Historical Society provides disaster response assistance, salvage and conservation of historic items in the event of tragedies such as floods, fires and tornadoes. Bob Herskovitz, the Society’s outreach conservator, has 40 years of experience in the field and was one of the first conservators in the nation trained to provide disaster response assistance to organizations such as museums, historical societies, libraries, archives and other organizations that hold cultural property. Herskovitz was trained and certified by the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC), and is a member of the AIC Conservation Emergency Response Team. He provides technical advice, assists in organizing assessments of damaged cultural property, and determines recovery actions for damaged cultural property. “Unfortunately, the Isanti County Historical Society has lost the majority of its collections,” said Herskovitz, “however there are collections that will be salvaged, perhaps some historical records, documents and photographs.” The Minnesota Historical Society, its museums, historic sites and library are closed temporarily, and all programs and special events are suspended due to the State of Minnesota government shutdown. Funding from the state comprises more than half of the Society’s operating budget. All historic sites and museums as well as the library at the History Center, will reopen and all programming will resume when the state government shutdown concludes and funding is available to operate the Society’s programs. Reopening information will be available at www.mnhs.org. The Minnesota Historical Society is a non-profit educational and cultural institution established in 1849 to preserve and share Minnesota history. The Society collects, preserves and tells the story of Minnesota’s past through museum exhibits, libraries and collections, historic sites, educational programs and book publishing. For more information, visit http://www.mnhs.org. | AuthorsThis blog is a group effort. Contributors include: ICHS Executive Director Kathy McCully, Maureen Hasan, Roger Wm. Anderson, Tesha M.C. Pettit, Marilyn McGriff, Jack Puterbaugh, Ruth Anderson, Wendy Quinn and Kay Rodrigue. ArchivesMay 2012 CategoriesAll Contact Us
Isanti County
Historical Society 33525 Flanders St. NE Cambridge, MN 55008 Phone: 763-689-4229 Email: ichs@izoom.net See UsAll visits are by appointment only. Research inquiries should be done by phone or email.
Our Heritage Center, located in the northwest corner of the Isanti County Fairgrounds, off Highway 95 and Flanders Street in Cambridge, was set on fire by an arsonist on July 8, 2011 and burned to the ground. Click for directions Help us
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