The Anoka County Historical Society, in Anoka, Minnesota, collects photographs, printed materials and artifacts related to Anoka County.

The society supports genealogical research with a wide range of historical resources.

Anoka County Historical Society has contributed photos of historic Anoka county to Minnesota Reflections.

 
 
[su_heading size=”24″]Online Collections[/su_heading]

• Anoka County Links

• National Historic Register of Properties in Anoka County

• Newspaper Subject Files

  This is a collection of materials organized by subject, including events, people, organizations and places. It primarily contains newspaper clippings, and also copies of relevant archival manuscripts from the broader ACHS Collections. For more information on the contents of a file, please contact us.

• Anoka County Historical Society Newsletters

• Photographs

• Oral History Collection

We have more than 250 oral interviews on a variety of topics. Interview topics include World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and memories of Anoka County people, places and events from long-time county residents. All oral interview audio files and typed transcripts can be reviewed in the ACHS Reading Room.

• Videos / Two-minute history

 
 
[su_heading size=”24″]Onsite Collections[/su_heading]

Vital Statistics Indexing

• Birth, death, marriage and church records indexed by last name
• Obituaries copied from local papers since 1974 (with some earlier years)
• Index of birth, deaths and marriages in the Anoka Union to 1910
• Thurston Mortuary Records

Maps

• Road surveys from pre-statehood
• Plat maps showing land ownership
• City and county maps from 1850’s to current

Microfilm

• Anoka Area newspapers as early as 1863
• Naturalization papers for Anoka County
• Census material on Anoka County from 1857 to 1920
• Selected church and civil records

Newspapers

Newspaper collections from various publications in Anoka County, including:

• Bethel Banner/Booster
• Blaine Banner
• Circulating Pines
• Columbia Heights Record (selected issues only)
• Minneapolis and St. Paul papers of significant events and dates
• Stars and Stripes (various years and military conflicts)

Unpublished Books and Articles

• Anoka County Civil War soldiers
• History of Fridley
• Annotated history of Circle Pines and Lexington
• St. Genevieve’s Church early church records
• Cemetery index books and maps
• History of the Rum River

Archival Collections (Manuscript Files)

The archival collections contain a large variety of materials, including diaries, family photographs and scrapbooks, newspaper clippings, hand written notes, letters, play programs, personal journals, advertising, compiled histories, and more! If you are coming into ACHS to do research, these files can be searched or browsed through our PastPerfect database. Please click here for more details on our archival collections!

Photograph Collection

These are arranged by topic and community. The photograph collection is currently at more than 13,000 cataloged photos from the earliest days of Anoka County to today. Topics include:

• Street scenes
• Farming
• Homes and residences
• Businesses and firms
• Transportation
• Portraits
• Clubs and organizations
• Military
• Schools
• Fairs and parades
• Recreational areas
• Industries
• Rivers
• Logging, and more. Check out the online photo gallery for some examples from our collection.

Oral History Collection

We have more than 250 oral interviews on a variety of topics. Interview topics include World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and memories of Anoka County people, places and events from long-time county residents. All oral interview audio files and typed transcripts can be reviewed in the ACHS Reading Room. Please click here for further access to our Oral History Collection.