Example itinerary

Starting at History Center

9:00 AM Arrive at Steele County Historical Society

• The Steele County History Center features rotating exhibits, displays, and educational programming relative to Steele County and Minnesota history.

9:45 AM Guided Tour Village of Yesteryear

• This tour features 5 of the 19 structures where you can experience what life was like in Owatonna and Steele County at the turn of the 20th Century. The buildings are furnished according to the time they were built and are connected by a boardwalk.

11:15 AM Catered Lunch at the History Center

12:30 PM Guided Tour National Farmers’ Bank or Owatonna Power Plant

• The National Farmers’ Bank was named one of the 11 Can’t-Miss Stops on a Tour of America’s Hidden Architecture Gems. The National Farmers’ Bank is the first, and most famous of Louis Sullivan’s jewel box banks.
  OR…
• With 3 smokestacks, behind the signature red neon lettering; the old Owatonna Power Plant stands to this day as a local landmark. The original municipal power plant was built in 1855 as a steam power plant. The building still has its original iconic structure and powerful sense of space.

1:45 PM Guided Tour Orphanage Museum

• There were 10,635 of them between 1886 and 1945—kids orphaned, abandoned, or abused who were sent to the Minnesota State Public School for Dependent and Neglected Children in Owatonna. You will explore the Museum, historic Cottage 11, the Children’s Cemetery, and interactive campus to get a glimpse of what life was like for the children who called the State School their home.

3:15 PM Depart