Exploring History and Culture in Central Minnesota – Hill Museum & Manuscript Library
February Event Series:
February 5, 12, 19, 26 online via Zoom
Register at staff@morrisoncountyhistory.org or 320/632-4007
Free and open to all
Learn About Minnesota Cultures Through Their Ancient Manuscript Traditions With Online Lecture Series Hosted By Four Area History Museums
Travel the world this February with four central Minnesota history museums and the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library of St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota. “Exploring History and Culture in Central Minnesota – Hill Museum & Manuscript Library (HMML)” is an event series partnership project of the Benton, Sherburne, Stearns and Morrison County historical societies sharing about cultures that have been and are part of central Minnesota and its history.
The 2022 February event series takes place online via Zoom on Saturdays in February (February 5, 12, 19, 26) and features programming from HMML, a global organization whose mission is to preserve and share the world’s handwritten past to inspire a deeper understanding of our present and future. To learn more, go to www.hmml.org. The series of four programs will share about cultures in our state through their ancient manuscript traditions.
Learn about a unique religious order founded by a small gathering of laity and knights in the twelfth century during the first event of the series on February 5th. Presented by Dr. Daniel K. Gullo, “The Order of Saint John of Jerusalem: Culture and Community,” will look at the order’s organization, culture, and religious life and how members continue to care for the poor and sick today.
Delve into central Minnesota’s role in the origins of the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library (HMML) with “The Boy from Buckman Plants a Seed,” presented by Dr. Matthew Z. Heintzelman. Held on February 12th, the second event in the series will showcase the work of Father Oliver Kapsner, OSB (aka the boy from Buckman). Born Leonard Kapsner in Buckman, Minnesota, Father Oliver’s leadership with the early work of the monks at Saint John’s Abbey laid the foundations for HMML’s work today.
“The Manuscript Heritage of Muslim Communities in Minnesota and Beyond,” the third event in the series, takes place on February 19th and will be presented by Dr. Josh Mugler. The program will provide an introduction to an important and growing part of the Minnesota community using the visual and textual elements of Islamic manuscript traditions from around the world.
The final event in the series, “Ash pe pekran? An Encounter with Coptic Cultural Heritage,” presented by Dr. David Calabro, takes place February 26th. The program will give a brief introduction to the ancient and fascinating Coptic Egyptian culture, which has a small but growing community in Minnesota.
In conjunction with the programs, two traveling exhibits featuring original manuscripts from the HMML collection will be at each of the four history museums on a revolving basis for two weeks during the month of February. For more information about the events and the exhibits contact the Morrison County Historical Society (320/632-4007), the Sherburne History Center (763/261-4433), the Stearns History Museum (320/253-8424) or the Benton County Historical Society (320/253-9614).
The event series is free and open to the public. Registration is required. To register for one or more of the programs, contact the Morrison County Historical Society – staff@morrisoncountyhistory.org or call 320/632-4007.
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Central MN Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
