103RD Annual Meeting of the Members - Free and Open to the Public

See the St. Louis County Historical Society's Board of Governors and Officers list on our BOARD OF GOVERNORS webpage.

103rd Annual Meeting of the Members of

St. Louis County Historical Society

Tuesday, April 22, 2025, 5PM-7PM

Great Hall of the St. Louis County Depot

506 West Michigan Street

Duluth, MN 55802

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

The St. Louis County Historical Society welcomes all to attend the 103rd Annual Meeting of the Members on Tuesday, April 22 from 5-7pm. The evening will begin with a social hour and light hors d’oeuvres. Executive Director Wayne Gannaway is the keynote speaker presenting on The Business of the Past is the Future. Following Wayne’s presentation, the Society’s business portion of the evening will begin, with the election and ratification of the Board of Governors.

The free event’s public schedule is as follows:

5:00pm-7:00pm Annual Meeting of the Members

5:00pm-5:20pm Social Hour (Complimentary light fare and cash bar), explore Society space.

5:20pm-5:30pm President and Executive Director’s Welcoming Remarks

5:30pm-6:00pm Presentation by Wayne Gannaway, The Business of the Past is the Future

6:00pm-7:00pm Business Meeting, followed by election/ratification of the Board of Governors*

* Society Membership dues must be current and postmarked/received in the Society’s office as of March 23, 2025, to be eligible to vote at the Annual Meeting, per Society bylaws.

Location: The Great Hall of the St. Louis County Depot, 506 West Michigan Street, Duluth, MN 55802

Speaker Biography:

Wayne Gannaway began as executive director of the St. Louis County Historical Society in February, after more than five years leading the History Center of Olmsted County. He and his family previously resided in Duluth from 2009-2012, where Wayne worked as a Byways Specialist with the America’s Byways Resource Center, helping communities in Minnesota and throughout the United States make the most of their scenic qualities.

Wayne became an expert on Mark Twain as the curator of historic properties at the Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford, Connecticut, and later steeped in Thomas Jefferson’s life working at Jefferson’s Poplar Forest in Lynchburg, Virginia. According to Wayne, “as impressive as those two figures are, the scope and scale of history in St. Louis County gives them a run for their money, to say nothing of the enthusiasm of the history community here.”

Wayne’s background provides clues to why he chose to return to Duluth and join the St. Louis County Historical Society. His father and grandfather were graduates of the UMN Forestry School, with the elder working as a state forester and the younger as a game warden, both with long stints in the northland. Most of Wayne’s family members enlisted in the military. Wayne was an MP with the Minnesota Army National Guard in the Gulf War. His youngest son, Patrick, has enlisted in the infantry.