May 14, 2025: The State Historic Preservation Office is issuing new guidance on using our files since the launch of the Minnesota Statewide Historic Inventory Portal (MnSHIP) and in anticipation of the re-launch of the Office of the State Archaeologist Portal in the summer of 2025.
Inventory forms, National Register nominations, and eligibility information for architecture-history properties, including buildings, structures, and historic districts, are available in the Minnesota Statewide Historic Inventory Portal (MnSHIP) application. Architecture-history reports are discussed under Reports, below.
Most of SHPO’s site forms and National Register forms for individually listed sites are available in the Office of the State Archaeologist (OSA) Portal as of November 2024. A select number of site forms did not transfer to the OSA Portal in November. These forms are available to individuals with archaeological qualifications, please email DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us to obtain a site form if it is not available in the OSA Portal and include your proof of qualifications as an archaeologist.
Short-form records for archaeological districts (archaeological resources comprising two or more sites) are in MnSHIP. The OSA Portal does not contain records for archaeological districts, only individual archaeology sites and archaeology reports. Because documentation on archaeological resources contains information protected under state and federal law, the complete archaeology district records are not included in MnSHIP, which is available to users who do not possess archaeological qualifications.
The full records for archaeological districts can be requested by individuals with archaeological qualifications by emailing DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us. Please include proof of qualifications as an archaeologist (either your most recent Minnesota State Archaeology license, or your resume/CV or the resume/CV of the supervising archaeologist, and please copy them on your email).
To obtain eligibility information about archaeological sites, email DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us a table of the Township, Range, and Sections and the county name where the sites you are interested in are located (see example table below).
Example TRS table:
Project Name, County
| Township | Range | Section |
| 146 | 51 | 15 |
| 146 | 51 | 16 |
| 146 | 51 | 22 |
Note: Only numbers are necessary.
Archaeology reports are discussed under Reports, below.
SHPO’s National Register nomination forms and files for buildings, structures, and historic districts are in MnSHIP, and the National Register forms and files for archaeological sites are in the OSA portal.
To obtain a copy of the official National Park Service National Register nomination form for a listed property, please visit the National Register Digital Archive. If you know the property’s National Register Information System (NRIS) number, you can also search for the National Register nomination form at the National Archives.
National Register forms and files for archaeological districts can be requested by emailing DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us. To request these files, please look up the inventory number for the archaeological district first in either MnSHIP (includes short forms on archaeological districts) or the OSA Portal (includes the geometry for districts in the map layers), and include the following in your request:
Reports are documents that contain the results of a survey, study, or other recordation of resources or historical information. They may contain project overviews, methodology, historic contexts, property evaluations, and summaries of findings. Most of the reports that SHPO receives are the results of historic property identification carried out for Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, although they are also produced for the National Register, Certified Local Government, and Statewide Survey programs. Reports can range from a brief letter report of just a few pages to large multivolume reports.
Architecture-History Reports
SHPO’s architecture-history reports have been digitized. A list of these reports is maintained here: https://mn.gov/admin/shpo/surveyandinventory/research/ahreports.jsp. This list is updated a few times a year. In addition to information on surveyed properties, architecture-history reports include a variety of historic preservation topics, such as local histories, historic contexts, structural condition reports, and assessments of effects. To request a copy of an architecture-history report, please email the report title and report number to DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us. A copy will be provided via email or the ShareFile file transfer website, depending on file size.
A subset of archaeology reports will be available in the OSA Portal for the following counties: Anoka, Blue Earth, Benton, Big Stone, Brown, Clearwater, Chisago, Carlton, Cottonwood, Chippewa, Clay, Dodge, Faribault, Freeborn, Fillmore, Goodhue, Itasca, Jackson, Kanabec, and some multiple-county reports. There is a digitization effort underway for other legacy (hardcopy) archaeology reports. All new archaeology reports will be submitted and accessible through the OSA portal. Except for the subset of reports mentioned above, reports submitted prior to the summer 2025 OSA Portal relaunch will need to be requested from the SHPO. To request a list of archaeology reports, please email DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us with the name of the county you are interested in.
To request a copy of an archaeology report, or schedule an appointment to view a report at the SHPO, please and include the following in your request:
If a report requested is already digitized, a copy will be provided via email or the ShareFile file transfer website, depending on file size. If the report is only available in hardcopy, an appointment can be made to view the report at the SHPO. Please see below for scheduling a research appointment.
Interdisciplinary reports contain information on architecture-history properties and archaeological sites. Because information on archaeological sites is protected, nonpublic data under state and federal law, SHPO discourages the preparation of interdisciplinary reports while acknowledging that in some circumstances it may be necessary. To request a copy of an interdisciplinary report, please email DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us the following information:
If you need access to the report but do not have archaeological qualifications, a redacted version of the report may be provided to you. Additional time may be needed to fulfil the request.
In addition to the above-mentioned reports, SHPO maintains a list of Multiple Property Documentation Forms (MPDFs). An MPDF is a cover document that serves as the basis for evaluating the NR eligibility of related properties. It provides historic context and registration requirements, and a framework in which to evaluate those properties. A list of MPDFs pertaining to Minnesota, with links to download the documents, is available here: https://mn.gov/admin/shpo/registration/mpdf/.
The Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office (50 Sherburne Ave, Ste. 203, St. Paul, MN 55155) is open for researchers. Current office hours are 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, by appointment only.
To schedule an appointment please request a preferred and second choice date and time by emailing DataRequestSHPO@state.mn.us. You will then receive a return email verifying your appointment. When you arrive at 50 Sherburne Avenue in Saint Paul at the assigned time, enter the building lobby and tell Capitol Security you are visiting SHPO and show a photo ID. The guard will then give you a temporary badge to access our office on the second floor, Suite 203.
SHPO staff members will be on hand to assist you with our files, if needed. However, please note that all the architecture-history inventory forms, archaeology site forms, National Register nominations, and architecture-history reports have been scanned and are available digitally. Only archaeology reports have not been fully digitized, although this effort is underway. Please see information above on how to locate or request these documents.
