Exhibits

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Exhibits at the Rockford Area Historical Society and the Ames-Florida-Stork House address a variety of diverse and interesting ideas.  Using mainly the organization's vast collection of late 19th and early 20th century artifacts, our exhibits provide a compelling and in-depth look at how people lived between 1860 and 1985.  Ranging from topics specific to the Ames, Florida or Stork families and the founding and development of Rockford to broader themes involving culture, customs and livelihood, our exhibits play a central role in telling Rockford's unique story.

From Rockford, With Love: Historic Stores & Businesses Lured to the potential of the region known as the "Big Woods," early pioneers arriving in Rockford set out to establish themselves and make a living.  When the townsite was officially platted in 1857, the village boasted a number of residences, a general store, a hotel, and a steam mill used for cutting logs into boards.  Over the course of the next 50 years, an assortment of stores and businesses sprung up and died out around Rockford, shaping the city we are today.

The Mills The most prosperous businesses in Rockford were a series of mills owned and operated by George Ames, Joel Florida, Guilford George, and, later, George Florida.  From 1856 into the early 1900s, the three men ran a sawmill, gristmill, and woolen mill.  Strong local employers, products made at these mills were used to build Rockford and were shipped to merchants across Minnesota.

The Stores Ezra B. Ames built Rockford's first general store in 1856.  Selling it a year later to his uncle, the business was stocked with dry goods, groceries, clothing, shoes, boots, and hardware.  Other stores soon popped up around town, serving as places to shop, places to meet, and places to gossip.

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Rockford Area Historical Society 8131 Bridge Street, PO Box 186, Rockford, MN 55373 (763) 477-5383, storkhouse@cityofrockford.org, www.rockfordmnhistory.org Preserving Rockford's Past For Its Future.