Primary navigation

    OSA Portal

    Access the Office of the State Archaeologist online application. 

    Minnesota’s Statewide Historic Inventory consists of two primary resource types, commonly referred to as "above-ground resources" and "archaeological resources." These two categories describe how the statewide inventory classifies the information and where it is stored. The SHPO tracks some archaeological information in MnSHIP while the Office of the State Archaeologist tracks archaeological and cemetery/burial site information in the OSA Portal. The two systems reference each other, and it is imperative that any research related to federal or state undertakings take full advantage of both applications. The resource types and supporting data that can be found in each application are summarized below.

    MnSHIP OSA Portal
    Resource Type (right)
    Record Type (below)    		 Above-ground resources Archaeological and interdisciplinary districts Archaeological sites
    Precise Geometry X
    		X
    Generalized Geometry X X
    Record Data X X X
    Scanned Documents X X* X
    NRHP Nominations X X**

    *request from SHPO **public information; request complete document from SHPO

    Despite MnSHIP,  the OSA portal, and the ongoing collaboration between the offices it is still necessary to contact SHPO for the following information for archaeological and interdisciplinary information:

    • Complete NRHP nomination and inventory files for archaeological and interdisciplinary NRHP listed and identified/eligible districts
    • NRHP eligibility status for individual archaeological sites (whether or not a site has been previously determined eligible or not eligible)
    • All reports (archaeological, architectural history and interdisciplinary)

    Note: Access to some archaeological and interdisciplinary information is limited to qualified archaeologists.

    back to top