If you’re looking for looking for a Superb source of history, be sure to include the Lake of the Woods Historical Society on your agenda while visiting this great 
northland. Every vacation has to have a variety of activities to keep interest alive and take in to account all of the features of an area.
Lake of the Woods County Historical Society is located in Baudette, MN at 119 8th Ave SE. It is on the east end of town and has a beautiful building to store all of its history and artifacts from the ages past. Lindsay Marshall is our current director and she is a tremendous historian. She has worked within the facility arranging and rearranging displays to enhance the visitor’s eye. She has definitely captured the flavor of the area.
The History of Lake of the Woods County 
is rich as pioneers moved in to the forest areas around and started whittling out places to live and raise families. Early settlers established the town of Baudette and businesses started arriving. Because of the location of the town along the Rainy River, logging became a very profitable business. 
This was the primary source of income for the area until the Fire of 1910 wiped out the towns of Baudette and Spooner. The Historical Society has a great amount of information about this historical event as well.
Of course, fishing was excellent back then also and commercial fishing became a fruitful industry. Because of the fishing, a local resident, who was also a chemist, discovered medicinal qualities that the fish had and established a fruitful business called Reid Rowell Laboratories. Although the company has changed names many times, there is still a strong pharmaceutical company still in Baudette known now as ANI Pharaceuticals
Visiting the local museum with its superb history is a great way to keep that very history alive and teach the younger generation as well. The museum has written a number of books about the area that are for sale at the museum.
A current event will happen this summer as the Carin of Peace from the 2019 World Ploughing Contest held at Lake of the Woods County will be placed at its final home on the grounds of the Historical Society. The event drew contestants from many countries and this monument signifies the countries that participated.
Like many museums, they are working towards a phased re-opening. The current plan is to be open by appointment only on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays starting July 21st.
If you’re interested in visiting, please call Lindsay at 634-1200 or send her an email at Lowhsociety@gmail.com and we will get you on the calendar. **To help with planning, please call at least 24 hours in advance**
Last modified: 07/23/2020
