Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post, Onamia, Take a short walk around the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Powwow grounds and earn a free gift courtesy of the Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post. Registration for the walk is located at the pavilion on the powwow grounds. Please note this event does not take place at the Mille Lacs Indian Museum. Call 320-532-3632 for more information.

Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post, Onamia, Explore the Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post during the annual Open House when the historic site is open for special Sunday hours and offers free admission. Visit the exhibits including the popular Four Seasons Room with life-size dioramas then head next door to shop for Ojibwe arts and crafts at the Trading Post.

Minnesota History Center, St. Paul, From his first St. Paul apprenticeship through his 1934 design of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington D.C., Cass Gilbert built a national reputation as one of the most prolific and stylistically versatile architects of his generation. Gilbert's Minnesota legacy includes his design for the Minnesota State Capitol in Saint Paul and many homes and churches on and around Summit Avenue.This bus tour offers offers unprecedented access to several Cass Gilbert works. Stops include St. Clements Episcopal Church built in the Romanesque variant of English Gothic style in 1895, the Richardsonian-Romanesque style Dayton Avenue Presbyterian Church and several privately owned homes in the Summit Hill neighborhood. The Tour bus will pick up and drop off guests at the Minnesota History Center. Presented in partnership with the Cass Gilbert Society.

Historic Fort Snelling, St. Paul, Travel back to the year 1863 and explore Fort Snelling's Civil War history with costumed staff and reenactors. Visit interactive learning stations to find out about Minnesota's soldiers at Gettysburg and other Civil War battles, the Emancipation Proclamation and the end of slavery, the Sibley Expedition of 1863, and much more. Demonstrations include cannon and musket firings, Civil War medicine, cooking and an 1860s fashion show.

Forest History Center, Grand Rapids, Sip sumac lemonade, savor sauteed day lillies, nibble on a fresh fiddlehead and munch on acorns. Learn which common plants growing in northern Minnesota forests are edible and how to responsibly harvest them. Join a nature hike to learn where certain plants grow and the best time to pick them. Then head back to the Visitor Center where you'll learn how to prepare the items. There will be an opportunity to sample nature's delicacies and to learn the cook's recipes.

Historic Forestville, Preston, Assist the gardener in picking the fattest and plumpest garden vegetables including peppers, cucumbers, beets, onions, cabbage and other heirloom varieties, all traditionally found in Thomas Meighens garden. Then head inside the kitchen to see how the vegetables are cleaned and processed using 19th-century pickling methods for food preservation.

Jeffers Petroglyphs Historic Site, Comfrey, One thousand years ago the people of Minnesota, Iowa and the Northern Plains were farmers as well as hunters, growing crops like sweet corn. The ripening of the first sweet corn was a time of plenty that was celebrated with the Green Corn festival. Visit Jeffers Petroglyphs Historic Site for a taste of fire roasted sweet-corn, bean soup and other seasonal foods while learning about the people of the Great Plains Village period. Guests will also learn how New World farmers invented crops that changed the world. Guided tours of the rock carvings are offered at 10:30 a.m., 1 and 3 p.m.

Minnesota State Capitol, St. Paul, Take a 90-minute guided tour of one of the grandest and most architecturally appealing public buildings in the United States. Along the way, learn about the Capitol's renowned architect, Cass Gilbert, and building features of this Beaux-Arts styled masterpiece. The tour will include stops in the legislative chambers, rotunda, and a special rooftop visit to see stunning views of the city and a close-up look at the Quadriga (golden horses) weather permitting. Visitors can also see a cut-away drawing of the unique dome system and photographs documenting the 1898-1905 construction of the building. Books on the life and career of Cass Gilbert will be available for purchase at the Information Desk.

Jeffers Petroglyphs Historic Site, Comfrey, Take part in costumed role-playing to experience how American Indian families packed up a travois to move their belongings on the prairie. Reproduction items will be available for hands-on use. While at the site, view the rock carvings and learn more about the people who created them on guided tours at 10:30 a.m., 1 or 3 p.m. Offered daily at 2 p.m. Adventures in Nature is a hands-on series that provides opportunities to learn about American Indian culture, prairies and archaeology. A new theme will be explored each week.

Mill City Museum, Minneapolis, Communist Daughter takes the stage at Mill City Live. Set in the museum's dramatic open air Ruin Courtyard, Mill City Live features live music every Wednesday in August by some of the best local artists for a unique happy hour experience.Visit Mill City Museum before or after the show, the $5 concert fee includes admission to the museum from 4 to 9 p.m. Food and drink is available for purchase by DAmico Catering.

Minnesota History Center, St. Paul, The History Center's popular outdoor music concert series continues with the old-time Appalachian music of Petticoat Rustlers.Enjoy "9 Nights of Music" every Tuesday in July and August. The series, now in its 16th year, presents the rich and vibrant sounds of Minnesotas multicultural community in free performances held on the terrace of the Minnesota History Center. Tapestry Folkdance Center provides dance instruction from 6:30 to 7 p.m. Live music and dancing starts at 7 p.m. Bring a lawn chair and pack a picnic or purchase food from the Caf Minnesota terrace grill. Come early and take advantage of free admission to the museum galleries from 5 to 8 p.m. There is a nominal fee for parking. In case of rain, performances will be held inside the History Center in the 3M Auditorium.9 Nights of Music is presented by Xcel Energy. Additional support is provided by 99.5 Classical MPR and the Tapestry Folkdance Center.

Harkin Store, New Ulm, Arnie and Marilyn Anderson will be performing old time music selections on the concertina and drums. Enjoy the music from your own blanket, lawn chair or the Harkin Store porch.

Historic Fort Snelling, St. Paul, *CAMP IS FULL. FOR WAIT LIST OPTIONS, PLEASE CALL 612-970-2844* Grab a trowel and get ready for an archeological dig at Historic Fort Snelling. Campers will spend the day with archeologists and historians who will help them learn how to do archeological work including research, digging and sifting at a recreated dig site and working with scientific equipment in a lab. Space is limited to 10 per camp. For ages 10-14.

Oliver H. Kelley Farm, Elk River, The useful art of pickling provided families with a variety of foods throughout the long winter months 150 years ago. Visitors will discover sweet and sour pickles and other varieties that were popular with the Kelleys and families like them.

Jeffers Petroglyphs Historic Site, Comfrey, Take a guided tour of the carvings when they are best seen, just before sunset at 6:30 p.m. After the tour head to the Visitor Center for a 7:30 p.m. presentation about nocturnal animals and how they survive at night. The presentation will include a variety of hands-on activities. Following the presentation, guests can go on a twilight hike of the prairie (bring a flashlight!)

Alexander Ramsey House, St. Paul, Alexander and Anna Ramsey befriended the most powerful people in Washington D.C., including presidents and Supreme Court justices. In this 75 minute program, hear excerpts from Ramsey family letters and journals detailing the behind-the-scenes drama. From grand galas and private dinners at the White House to presidential inaugurations, the Ramseys had access to the best events that Washington could offer.Ramsey After Dark explores specific historical themes and topics in new and creative ways, presented in an intimate evening setting.

Mill City Museum, Minneapolis, Discover the lost history of prostitution on the Minneapolis riverfront on this unique tour with historian Penny Petersen, author of "Minneapolis Madams: The Lost History of Prostitution on the Riverfront." The trolley tour of the Minneapolis riverfront includes stops at three former red-light districts that flourished in the late 19th and early 20th century. Petersen will highlight the surprising stories of the powerful madams who ran them. Women of independent means, madams built custom bordellos to suit their tastes and exerted influence over leading figures and politicians. Learn why the citys vice districts were clustered near the river, how the sex trade was interconnected with the Minneapolis economy and the stories of the real women who made their living there. The tour will include a stop for beverages and appetizers at a pub near the former Main Street red light district and will conclude with a social hour with the author at a nearby pub. Ages 21 and up only. Appetizers at the first stop included in the tour price. All drinks sold separately.Note: The tour will include up to two blocks of walking. Please advise ticketing staff of physical challenges.

Minnesota History Center, St. Paul, Bask in the Victorian grace of St. Pauls Summit Hill and discover the stories and people behind the epic rise, fall and rise again, of one of the citys most fashionable historical address. Follow the path of the old streetcars past 19th-century homes, luxury hotels and the former haunts of F. Scott Fitgerald, and enjoy stops at two of the best hilltop bar spots along the way. Ages 21 and up only. Drink purchases are not included in the tour price.

Mill City Museum, Minneapolis, Mill City Live returns for it's 10th season with live music every Wednesday evening in August. Set in the museum's dramatic open air Ruin Courtyard, Mill City Live features four evenings of outdoor music by some of the best local artists for a unique happy hour experience. This years lineup opens with a double bill of Alison Scott/ Kevin Bowe and the Okemah Prophets, followed by Communist Daughter, The Cactus Blossoms, and singer-songwriter Chastity Brown.Visit Mill City Museum before or after the show, the $5 concert fee includes admission to the museum from 4 to 9 p.m. Food and drink is available for purchase by DAmico Catering.

Split Rock Lighthouse, Two Harbors, On Aug. 7, 1789, Congress approved an act for the establishment and support of lighthouse, beacons, buoys and public piers. In Celebration of the 200th Anniversary of the signing of the act, Congress passed a resolution designating August 7 as National Lighthouse Day each year. In honor of this anniversary visit Split Rock Lighthouse to learn about the importance of the Split Rock light station and lighhouses across the nation.