Announcing the 2018 Minnesota History Award Winners

​The Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums, organized in 1991, is a statewide organization that seeks to nurture and encourage an appreciation of Minnesota’s local history by providing a structure to foster professionalism and excellent work among local and specialized historical organizations in Minnesota.  The Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums believes we are stronger working together and benefit from “peers helping peers”.  The Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums created the Minnesota History awards in 2009 to honor the excellent work performed in Minnesota’s public history community. Five historians and three history organizations will be honored at the Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums Conference on April 26 in Marshall, MN.
 
Lifetime Achievement Awards:
 
Tamara Edevold (Bagley)
Tamara Edevold has been the director of the Clearwater County Historical Society since 1990. She has been involved with the Minnesota Alliance of Local History Museums (MALHM) since its inception in 1991.  She has been heavily involved with all aspects of the Minnesota Historic Northwest.  Tamara has grown the membership of Clearwater County Historical Society from 18 members in 1990 to almost 800 in 2017. She served on the Historic Resources Advisory Committee.
 
Mark Edevold (Bagley)
Mark Edevold began his career in the local history field serving on the board of the Clearwater County Historical Society from 1988-1990.  He has been a volunteer at the Clearwater County Historical Society since 1988 where he has undertaken construction projects, foundation work and grant writing.  He served as Executive Director of the Beltrami County Historical Society from 1990-1993.  Served on the MALHM board and served as a member of the Historic Resources Advisory Committee.
 
Gail Kvernmo (Hendricks)
Gail Kvernmo has been a volunteer at the Lincoln County Pioneer Museum for the last 50 years.  She has served as a volunteer and also on the board of directors.  During her time, she led the depot renovation and museum project in 1967 which assisted in the creation of the Lincoln County Historical Society in 1969.  Gail was involved with the museum expansion of 3 historic and 2 exhibit buildings. 
 
Jan Louwagie (Marshall)
Jan Louwagie has been the backbone of the Southwest Regional Resource Center at Southwest Minnesota State University (SMSU) for over 40 years.  She has supported researchers, continuously collected archival materials, and carefully helped document and tell the history of the region.  She became involved with the Society for the Study of Local and Regional History (SSLRH) since 1990.  She assisted the Prairie Genealogical Society, the SSLRH, the Center for Rural and Regional Studies, and the Lyon County Historical Society.
 
June Lynne (Montevideo)
June Lynne became executive Director of the Chippewa County Historical Society in 1993.  Before this she was very active in the Montevideo area’s tourism.  She was a member of the Western Minnesota Prairies Waters since its inception in the early 1980s.  She was a member of the Convention and Visitors Bureau.  She served on the board of the Minnesota River Scenic Byway.  She was the leader in creating the West Central Minnesota Historical Association in 2015.  While serving as Chippewa County’s director, she managed the Historic Chippewa Village, the Swensson Farm and the Lac Que Parle mission.
 
 
Public Programs
 
Minnesota Discovery Center (Chisholm) for their exhibit “Blue-Collar Battleground: The Iron Range Labor Story”.  This exhibits covers over 100 years of labor history with a focus on several battlegrounds where workers have had and continue to fight for economic justice.
 
Brown County Historical Society (New Ulm) for their exhibit “Loyalty and Dissent: Brown County and World War I”.  This exhibits tells a local story and the national implications of dissent.  The primary goal was to look at the war’s effect on First Amendment rights.
 
Publications
 
Goodhue County Historical Society (Red Wing) for their book, “Patriot Hearts: World War I Pride & Prejudice in a Minnesota County”. This book retells a largely forgotten 1917-1918 Minnesota story in microcosm, using Goodhue County as an example of serious cases of civil rights suppression that occurred in the state’s most ethnically and politically polarized county.