Volunteer Opportunities

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We have several volunteering opportunities in the following areas:

• Mayowood Mansion
• Mayowood Gardens
• Library and Archives
• Education
• Museum and Curator
• Maintenance
• Heritage Gardens
• Roosters Base Ball
• Student Volunteers
• Internships

Mayowood Mansion and Visitor Services

Mayowood Christmas Tours:

At the Mansion
Assist with general cleaning and decorating at the mansion - October

Mayowood room docents, door greeters, gift shop cashier -
November

Tear Down and Clean Up
After Christmas Tours - November

At the History Center
Greeters and Video - November

Take Telephone Reservations
October & November

There may be other days including weekends.

Click here to apply

Mayowood Gardens

Volunteers are essential to keeping the gardens and grounds in good condition for visitors to enjoy. Volunteers are also needed for the restoration of the historic hillside gardens.

Click here to apply

Library and Archives

Most volunteer opportunities in the Library are on-going projects and provide flexible schedules. Library assistant, audio/visual, data entry, indexing, research, archives assistant, transcription and photo collection are just a few of the opportunities available. This year we are putting a heavy concentration on cataloging our archives collections, especially photos.

Click here to apply

Education

Several key volunteer opportunities in our education department
include, Guides/interpreters for our school age programs such as Hands on History, research assistants and special event assistants to our educator. We also have a Youth Advisory Board for high school through college age students to plan and help staff special events and projects.

Our annual tours for third grade students will begin October 3 and run through November 15. The sessions run from 9:45 to 11:15 and 12:30 – 2:00 pm. Two guides per session is required.
During this program, students visit the museum, the Hadley Valley School and the Dee Log Cabin. This program covers the settlement of Olmsted County, the cyclone of 1883, the history of the Mayo Clinic and Mayo surgical suite. Students also learn about early life in Olmsted County including contrasting the present day at school with a day in a one room school house.

Scripts and training is provided.

Click here to apply

Museum and Curator

The Curatorial Department will be working on inventorying and cataloging the 3-D collection. This on-going project calls for many enthusiastic volunteers. The three major areas to be addressed this year are furniture, fine art and tools. We are seeking volunteers who have a passion for Olmsted County History and pay close attention to detail.

Other volunteer opportunities in the Curatorial Department are with the exhibits. If you are interested in assisting with exhibit planning, maintenance, or research for an exhibit please contact volunteer services.

Click here to apply

Maintenance

This department is responsible for the repair and maintenance of our entire property and buildings. A volunteer can receive hands-on training in several vocational areas such as electrical, plumbing, heating and air conditioning, carpentry, masonry and gardening.

Click here to apply

Heritage and Medicinal Gardens

These gardens are planted and maintained under the direction of the Olmsted County Master Gardners as an important addition to our education department.

Click here to apply

Roosters Base Ball

The Roosters and Hens vintage base ball clubs, play the game in period uniforms, using replica bats and balls and 1860 rules. Their home, Schmitt Field, is on the History Center grounds. The Roosters and Hens are members of the Vintage Base Ball Association. Recruits are always welcome.

Click here to apply

Student Volunteer Opportunities

HCOC offers a variety of volunteer opportunities for students who want to earn Student Service Learning hours in a unique environment. Students have the opportunity to do historical research, meet the public, work with history professionals, give tours, and more.

Click here to apply

Internship Opportunities

The History Center of Olmsted County is dedicated to the preservation and understanding of the County's heritage, and promotes the study, appreciation and interpretation of local and regional history. In collaboration with college and university academic advisors and professors, the History Center is determined to engage interns by introducing them to all the facets of the History Center of Olmsted County's work, which encompasses to one degree or another, all four aspects of "historic preservation" (i.e., archives studies, museum studies, living history/historic site management, and Education and Interpretation).

The History Center's sites house substantial numbers of artifacts, documents, photographs, films and negatives. Every effort is made to document and protect these unique collections using the best in collection care standards. The History Center seeks interns to assist with ongoing computerization projects, as well as other collection processing projects, exhibits, and program development.

Students studying History, Museum or Archives Management, Material Culture, Historic Preservation, Education or related fields will find the experience of interning with the History Center beneficial. Internship relationships prove to be beneficial for both the students and the History Center. Interns have the opportunity to complete significant projects, and receive valuable professional experience working with the History Center staff and volunteers.

Intern positions with the History Center of Olmsted County are not currently monetarily reimbursable. Fulfillment requirements of a prospective internship are discussed between the student, professor or academic advisor, and History Center staff when arranging internship coursework. Work schedules are generally flexible to accommodate student's needs.

Click here to apply