Bakken Museum

Minneapolis has a most interesting museum. The Bakken Museum was created to showcase the collection of equipment gathered by Earl Bakken in the study of electricity and magnetism for use in treating human disease.  

This came about due to a fascination with Mary Shelly's Frankenstein story and a curiosity if electricity in the "real world" could be used for the treatment of disease. The creation of the small internal pacemaker was a result of this study.

Much of the museum is devoted to teaching the young the basics of electricity. The museum is located in a stately mansion which in itself is worth the visit.

Showing how electricity is distributed throughout a city

An entire section of the museum is devoted to the history of the Frankenstein story

Being able to generate small amounts of static electricity was a high point for the grand children's exploration

The home itself was beautiful to see

Mill Museum

Minneapolis was a center of flour milling for decades. One of the major mills was closed in the fifties and the remains caught on fire in the early sixties. The burned out hulk sat for years until a revitalization brought it back to use as a museum of milling history. The creation of the museum and its tie with the remains of the building were most interesting to see.

Entry hallway and gift shop

Example of a box car used to move flour to distributors