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Minnesota History Center showcasing state's 169-year-old constitution
The Minnesota History Center’s Spotlight Gallery is showcasing the state’s 169-year-old constitution, with sections rotated weekly until July 5. Visitors can see the carefully crafted cursive that helped Minnesota become a state.
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Minnesota’s original constitution is getting a rare spotlight, and its story is as divided as the politics of its time.
Minnesota’s constitution on display for history lovers
What we know:
The Minnesota History Center’s Spotlight Gallery is showcasing the state’s 169-year-old constitution, with sections rotated weekly until July 5. Visitors can see the carefully crafted cursive that helped Minnesota become a state.
Jenny McElroy, library manager at the Minnesota Historical Society, admires the document’s craftsmanship and its pivotal role in statehood.
"These are truly treasures of Minnesota. These are treasures of the people of Minnesota, for sure," said McElroy. The display offers a chance to see dozens of original pages, giving Minnesotans a close look at the document’s history and the debates that shaped it.
The backstory:
In the summer of 1857, Minnesota was booming, growing from 6,000 people in 1850 to about 150,000 just five years later.
"So it was a massive boom in population, and that made a good time to become a state, right? Stop being a territory, be a state. They have all the bells and whistles, real government," said McElroy.
But deep political divisions meant Democrats and Republicans refused to even be in the same room, let alone sign the same document.
"They were completely different political parties just with the same names, but they were in huge amounts of disagreement, so much so that they were unwilling to even be in the same room together, let alone sign the same document," said McElroy.
To solve the standoff, two clerks copied the constitution overnight, creating identical documents — one signed on blue paper by Democrats, the other on white by Republicans.
"They basically had two clerks work frantically overnight, copying it over to make two copies, so that in the morning the two parties could sign in different rooms on different documents," said McElroy.
The issues dividing Minnesota at the time included slavery, immigration, state boundaries and even the location of the state capital. Minnesota remains the only state with two signed constitutions — a quirky footnote to its founding story.
The exhibit’s panels explain the heated debates and the issues that split the territory’s leaders, offering context for visitors curious about how the state’s government began.
Big picture view:
The constitution’s story is a reminder of Minnesota’s unique path to statehood and the political challenges that shaped its early days.