May is Historic Preservation Month, and to recognize this month, the Nicollet County Historical Society is hosting a presentation by Michael Koop from the State Historic Preservation Office on Thursday, May 16, at 6:00 p.m. The event, titled “Strengthening Community Through Historic Preservation,” aims to shed light on the importance of preserving historical places, buildings, and sites. 

The 2024 Preservation Month theme is “People Saving Places,” which encourages everyone to participate in the work of saving places in big and small ways. Historic preservation involves recognizing places from our past that are important to the American people, caring for them, and using them to enrich our lives. These special places reveal every aspect of our country’s origins and development and help us understand who we are and the meaning of our accomplishments and shortcomings. 

Michael Koop’s presentation will cover the variety of work done by Minnesota’s Heritage Preservation Commissions to create a range of tools to educate and reach people and to help conserve important historic properties across the state. The real action in historic preservation is at the local level since the results of survey, planning, and evaluation work must be integrated into other broad planning efforts.

The presentation is open to the public and will take place on Thursday, May 16, at 6:00 p.m. at the Nicollet County Historical Society, 1851 North Minnesota Avenue, Saint Peter. Admission is free.