Current Exhibits
Typewriters
We are displaying typewriters form different decades.
Music through time
We recently received a Victrola and built a music display around it. It includes a violin, accordion, and a unique Violin-uke!
Hair Salon
Yes, this odd wire and clip contraption is for your hair! Come see what other items were used!
Shaw Family Exhibit
The Shaw family is responsible for building the library that is now the historical society and museum
We recently received a large collection of Shaw family portraits and information on the family tree from a Shaw descendant, as well as a coat owned by Sarah Bell Shaw. We have recently upgraded this display!
Permanent Exhibits
The Carlton County Historical Society offers three permanent Exhibits: The Ojibwe of Carlton County, The Logging Era and the Fires of 1918.
The Ojibwe of Carlton County exhibit features a full size Ojibwe canoe made in 1926 by Ben Beargrease. It also includes prehistoric tools, iron and copper tools, Catlinite, beaded purses and moccasins, maps, photos and snowshoes also made by Ben Beargrease.
The Logging Era exhibit consists of a complete layout of a typical Carlton County logging camp hand carved by Milo Stillwell and Pete Trygg for the museum.
The Fires of 1918 permanent exhibit tells the story of the devastating forest fires that took place on October 12, 1918, in northern Minnesota. Covering a wide path of destruction including Moose Lake, Kettle River, Automba, Cloquet, the Fond du Lac reservation, Brookston, Hermantown, Duluth and the north shore of Lake Superior, the fires claimed nearly 500 lives.
These photos show the destruction in Cloquet and Moose Lake. Please visit our Oral History Page to read first-hand accounts of fire survivors.
Medical Exhibit
After the 1918 Fire
Wheelchair from Moose Lake Hospital
