Archives of the Beltrami County Historical Society

American Indian Artifacts

Approximately 1,250 prehistoric and historic artifacts, including lithic (use of stone as a cultural tool) materials collected nationwide. The majority of American Indian artifacts are of Ojibwe/Chippewa origin from the Red Lake Band.

1. Moccasins - including beaded dance moccasins
2. Men's and Women's buckskin clothing - including beaded dance attire
3. Ceremonial Items - pipes, drums, tobacco, medicine pouches, midewiwin articles
4. Ricing and sugaring tools
5. Baskets (bark and woven) and weavings
6. Trade Goods - steel projectile points, axe heads, copper kettles
7. Ground Stone Tools - axes, hammers, war clubs

Settlement Artifacts

Approximately 2000 items from around 1895 to 1930

1. Textiles - articles of clothing, quilts, linens, hats
2. Logging - cant hooks, pickeroons, axes, chains, sleigh irons, log stamps
3. Carpentry - hammers, saws, planes, shaves, gouges, nails
4. Agriculture - rakes, forks, harnesses, mechanics tools, seeders
5. Household - cooking utensils, butter churns, wash boards, furniture
6. Business/Trade - cash registers, adding machines, ledgers, displays
7. Sports - hunting and fishing items, bats, balls, rackets
8. Other - Photography equipment, phonographs, paintings, toys

Photographs

Approximately 100,000 photos and negatives from around 1895 to 1950

1. 9,000 photographs are cataloged
2. 7,000 negatives are cataloged
3. Click on link below to view sample photographs

Maps

More than 2,000 maps from around 1880 to 1960

1. County, township, and town plat maps
2. Timber, topographic, and water surveys
3. Town site and promotional maps
4. Tourism maps
5. Hundreds of uncataloged township, aerial, and county survey maps

Manuscripts

Approximately 50 linear feet from about 1855 to the present

1. Personal correspondence, diaries, manuscripts, postcards
2. Business records, ledgers, journals, correspondence, advertising
3. Organization records, meeting minutes, financial records, correspondence
4. Directories, telephone books, membership lists, school annuals
5. Research notes, oral history tapes and transcriptions

Newspapers

We currently have a large stock of newspapers on microfilm

1. Beltrami County Naturalization Records
1897 - 1956

2. Minnesota State Population Census
1865-1905 (1885)
1865-1905 (1895)
1865-1905 (1905)

3. Red Lake News
January 1, 1915 - March 1920

4. Pioneer (w)
April 30, 1896 - May 27, 1920

5. Solway Press
July 28, 1899 - April 19, 1901

6. Sentinel
October 7, 1903 - November 5, 1965

7. Beltrami Eagle
April 9, 1897 - October 20, 1897

8. Beltrami County News