Willson Wicklund Research Center 

The Research Center is available for anyone researching local and county history topics including genealogy and family history, agricultural and family farms, businesses, architectural and house histories, and more. The Research Center encompasses the Willson Library and the Wicklund Archives and is home to an array of materials that document the history of Olmsted County and Southeastern Minnesota more broadly. Researchers are welcome to use resources that are readily available in the Library or request other resources stored in the climate-controlled Archives. 

Using the Research Center

Please make advance appointments for research conducted in person. Call, email, or click here to schedule your visit!

If you’re unable to visit the Research Center in person, you can submit a research request by calling 507-282-9447, by emailing archivist@olmstedhistory.com, 
or by writing to Research Center, 1195 West Circle Drive SW, Rochester, MN 55902. Please include your name, address, and email or telephone number 
with your request.

See our Resources page for searchable indexes and finding aids.

Fees

Admission to the History Center includes access to the Research Center. To help support the continued care of the resources in the Research Center, we charge the following additional fees:

Physical copies: 
$0.50 — 8 ½ x 11”
$0.50 — 8 ½ x 14”
$0.50 — 11 x 17” and Microfilm


Large documents require off-site processing and will take more time to complete. The fee for large document reproduction is dependent on the vendor providing the service.

Digital copies:  
$0.50 — Personal Scanner or Camera Use per image
$5.00 — Low-quality scan
$15.00 — Medium-quality scan
$30.00 — High-quality scan
$30.00 — Digitized audio/video file

Research fees: 
$5.00 each — individual records (cemetery, newspaper, books, scrapbooks, etc.)
$5.00 each — vital/funeral home records
$10.00 each — probate or guardianship records +$0.50 per page copied
$25.00/hr. — general research conducted by HCOC staff +the cost of copies 

There is a $10.00 minimum fee and a flat $5.00 handling fee applied to all research orders. 

All credit card transactions are subject to a 3% surcharge to help offset the cost of processing.

Please see our Copyright and Use page for our policy regarding reproduction rights.

FAQs:

 Can I stop in and do my research at any time?

  • If in-person help is needed with the archivist, we ask that you make advanced arrangements by emailing archivist@olmstedhistory.com for an appointment. Regular museum admission fee applies on top of your research fees. Admission is always FREE if you are an HCOC member.

 What information is available in the Willson Wicklund Research Center?

 I cannot make it to the archives in person, how can I get information?

  • We understand that there are researchers from all over the world in need of answers from Olmsted County and we are here to help! To obtain information on how to submit a research request go to olmstedhistory.com/resources-wicklund.