The Research Center will be closed October 13-14, 2026. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

  • Clear Filters

Ramsey County History – Winter 2022: “‘We Learn What We Live and Live What We Learn:’ Growing Up at 1022 Rondo Avenue”

Marion Jones Kennon

“We Learn What We Live and Live What We Learn:” Growing Up at 1022 Rondo Avenue Author: Marion Jones Kennon When reflecting on our lives, our childhood memories often stand out with clarity. For St. Paul-native Marion Jones Kennon, it’s the remembrance of long-ago days growing up…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2022: Forgotten to Time? The Search for Scottie Primus Davis

Steve Trimble and Scottie P. Davis

Forgotten to Time? The Search for Scottie Primus Davis Author: Steve Trimble It is said that a supportive family, caring friends, and strong mentors can influence the person we become. Such was the case with young Scottie Primus Davis, who spent her formative years in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Ramsey County History – Summer 2020: “Votes for Everywoman: Nellie Griswold Francis, the Women of Rondo, and Their Suffrage Crusade”

Leetta M. Douglas

Votes for Everywoman: Nellie Griswold Francis, the Women of Rondo, and Their Suffrage Crusade Author: Leetta M. Douglas A century ago, women of Minnesota, along with suffragists across the nation, won the hard-fought battle for the right to vote with the passing of the Nineteenth Amendment. Some…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2019: “Remembering One of Our Community Legends – Jimmy Lee”

Frank M. White

Remembering One of Our Community Legends – Jimmy Lee Author: Frank M. White Jimmy Lee was a prominent leader within St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood, St. Paul itself, and the state of Minnesota. He was well known and respected at the First National Bank Building, where he served…

Diesel Heart: An Autobiography

Reviewer: Mary Lethert Wingerd

Diesel Heart: An Autobiography Author: Melvin Whitfield Carter, Jr. St. Paul, MN: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2019 256 pages; soft cover; 27 b&w photos; $17.95 Melvin Carter and I both grew up in Saint Paul in the 1950s and ’60s. But Carter’s hometown was a world away…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2018: “Growing Up in St. Paul: Fifteen Minutes with My Dad: Reginald Hopwood”

Victoria Hopwood

Growing Up in St. Paul Fifteen Minutes with My Dad: Reginald Hopwood Author: Victoria Hopwood This is a daughter’s tribute to her father, a waiter on the Great Northern Railway’s Empire Builder that ran between Chicago and the two Pacific coast cities of Portland and Seattle…

The Scott Collection: Minnesota’s Black Community in the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s

Reviewer: Earl Ross

The Scott Collection: Minnesota’s Black Community in the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s Author: Walter R. Scott Sr. Introduction by Anthony R. Scott; Preface by Chaunda L. Scott; Foreword by William D. Green St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2018 500 pages; softcover; 500 photos; $29.95 Published previously…

Ramsey County History – Fall 2007: “Growing Up in St. Paul: Frogtown’s Arundel Street”

James R. Brown

Growing Up in St. Paul: Frogtown’s Arundel Street Author: James R. Brown Driving through his old neighborhood brought back memories to James Brown, especially while he was looking at the Edmund Street home where he lived in the 1920 and ‘30s. One of his recollections was about climbing up…

Ramsey County History – Winter 2015: “Robert C. Minor: Steward on James J. Hill’s Private Railway Car”

Eileen R. McCormack

Robert C. Minor: Steward on James J. Hill’s Private Railway Car Author: Eileen R. McCormack An African American who was the steward on James J. Hill’s private railway car (the A-18) for more than twenty years and was one the small number of Black employees of the Great Northern,…