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The Minnesota Digital Library (MDL) contains digitized content from Minnesota’s cultural heritage organizations in a single website.
Over 200 participating organizations, including the Ely-Winton Historical Society (EWHS), have contributed photographs, documents, maps, recordings and more to this free searchable online database.
To get started, visit the MDL website at mndigital. org. You can browse or search through more than 59,000 items there.
You can also view the EWHS digital collection by using the “Browse by Contributor” button on the homepage and locating the organization alphabetically.
Materials in EWHS’s collection include both images and oral history interviews.
The images are black-andwhite or color picture postcards, some with personal notes on the back.
The postcards feature images of mines, logging, schools, businesses, lakes, railroads, churches, people, rock formations, and aerial views of the Ely area.
The interviews were conducted in the 1980s with Ely residents. Many of the interview subjects had worked in the mines, or their family members had.
They discussed topics such as immigration, family life, schools, churches, food, farming, mining, and community life in early Ely. Each interview has been fully transcribed, so you can read along while listening to the recordings. Simply click on the blue “Transcript” button underneath the item viewer.
MDL staff have also curated online resources for students, teachers, and the public to use. MDL’s primary source sets, maps, timelines, and online exhibits provide the stories behind these historic materials. You may be particularly interested in the “Mining on the Iron Range” primary source set, among others.
The Minnesota Digital Library is pleased to offer access to these wonderful examples of local history. We hope you enjoy digging deeper into the past through this website!
