Fort Snelling

Other Available Resources

The Minnesota Historical Society Press is the publisher of Northern Lights, the textbook used by all Minnesota sixth graders for Minnesota Studies, as noted on the previous page. 



The Minnesota Historical Society Press also publishes an app for iPad use, which is also available to all social studies classes in Minnesota. We have attempted to download and view the app to see if any other information about Fort Snelling's carceral history is available in a digital format. However, the app is contained behind a paywall with no available method with which to sign up. 

We do not know the circumstances as to why the Minnesota Historical Society Press would contain this additional text behind a paywall. It does seem strange, as mass circulation of their texts would seem to benefit not only the organization itself, but all Minnesotans. Additionally, anyone in a homeschool setting would not have equal access to educational materials. 

Whether or not any additional information is contained in the digital app remains to be seen. We do know, thanks to interviews with educators at Minneapolis Public Schools, that no other resources are provided to them to teach upon this history. They are also not required to talk about Fort Snelling per the Department of Education state standards.

Of interesting note, within the promotional video, the phrase "meets all state standards" is emphasized. Where then does the onus lie within teaching the history of Carceral Fort Snelling? Is it with the Minnesota Historical Society, the publisher? Or does it lie with the State Board of Education for exclusionary standards?

This page has paths:

This page references: