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The Bakken

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The Bakken Museum (/ˈbɑːkən/ BAH-kən) is situated in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Established in 1975 by Earl Bakken, the co-founder of Medtronic, it serves as a science museum. The museum boasts interactive displays covering various topics within science, technology, and the humanities. Notably, it includes a substantial exhibit dedicated to Mary Shelley's classic novel Frankenstein.[1]

The Bakken Museum
A view of The Bakken Museum from the medicinal garden
A view of The Bakken Museum from the medicinal garden
Map
Established1975–1976
Location3537 Zenith Avenue South, Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Coordinates44°56′17″N 93°19′15″W / 44.93806°N 93.32083°W / 44.93806; -93.32083
TypeScience museum
DirectorAlissa Light
Websitewww.thebakken.org

Collections and exhibits

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The museum houses approximately 11,000 written works and around 2,000 scientific instruments, with a particular focus on electrophysiology and electrotherapeutics. Notable holdings include works authored by Jean Antoine Nollet, Benjamin Franklin, Giovanni Battista Beccaria, Luigi Galvani, Giovanni Aldini, Alessandro Volta, Guillame Benjamin Amand Duchenne, and Emil Heinrich Du Bois-Reymond. Additionally, the museum holds journals such as Annalen der Physik, the Philosophical Transactions, Proceedings of the Royal Society, and Zeitschrift für Physik.[2] Within the museum, there exists an exhibit dedicated to Frankenstein, which explores the intersection of electricity and medicine depicted in Mary Shelley's novel. This portrayal, as well as the subsequent 1931 film adaptation featuring Boris Karloff, directly influenced Bakken's pursuit of invention. Bakken's endeavors culminated in his invention of the pacemaker and the establishment of Medtronic.[1]

 
A family playing a round of Mindball at The Bakken Museum

The museum's permanent exhibits are[3]

  • Spark is the Bakken Museum's latest exhibit, delving into the iterative processes of innovation and creativity.[4]
  • Frankenstein’s Laboratory is an object theater featuring Frankenstein’s monster.
  • Deep Roots: Plants as Medicine discusses modern preconceptions about the relationship between plants and wellness.
  • Ben Franklin’s Electricity Party allows visitors to try out electric party tricks similar to those conducted by Ben Franklin and other scientists during electricity parties in the 1700s.
  • Mary and Her Monster See Mary Shelley’s magic bookcase filled with artifacts and books from The Bakken collection, solve the puzzle of Frankenstein’s story illustrated by artist Zak Sally, and meet a living portrait of Mary that allows visitors to hear about the people, science, art and culture that inspired her.
  • The Florence Bakken Medicinal Garden, along with a statue of Hermes (or Mercury), the messenger god of Ancient Greece and Rome, serve as prominent features of the museum's grounds.

A newspaper reporter once said the venue "seems a throwback to another time when skilled craftsmen shaped stone, wood and glass into places with lasting appeal".[2]

History

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Inventor Earl Bakken, co-founder of Medtronic

The Bakken Museum was established by inventor Earl Bakken, who also founded the medical technology company Medtronic in 1949.[5] Bakken harbored a lifelong fascination with electricity and innovation. During his childhood, he, self-identified as a "nerd," conceived a basic electroshock device at school as a means of repelling bullies.[6][7]

At Bakken's proposal in 1969, Dennis Stillings, then employed in Medtronic's library, initiated the acquisition of books and devices. By 1974, the collection had garnered recognition within antiquarian circles and was presented with two assortments of early electrical devices. Initially housed at the Medtronic headquarters in Saint Anthony Village, Minnesota, the collection expanded to occupy a floor in the Medtronic branch office in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota by 1975. In 1976, the relocation process to its current site commenced.[8]

Previously sponsored by the museum, the Bakken Quartet showcased chamber music performances onsite. Presently, the ensemble operates under the name Bakken Trio and continues to deliver musical performances in Saint Paul, Minnesota.[9]

Facility

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Construction of the museum expansion - August 1997.

Architect Carl A. Gage constructed the building between 1928 and 1930 as the residence of William Goodfellow, who had sold his dry goods store in 1904 to George Dayton, the founder of what is now Target Corporation. Reflecting a blend of 16th-century English architectural styles, including Tudor and Gothic Revival, the home was christened "West Winds" and boasted features such as dark wood interior paneling, open-beamed ceilings, grouped and arched windows, and stained glass. Originally comprising fifteen rooms and eleven bathrooms, the property was bequeathed to the Girl Scouts upon Goodfellow's passing in 1944. Subsequently, the Cornelius family occupied the residence from 1953 to 1976, after which it transitioned into the Bakken Museum.

In 1999, the museum underwent an expansion project, effectively doubling its size from 13,000 square feet (1,208 square meters) to 25,000 square feet (2,323 square meters).[10] An underground vault measuring 1,200 square feet (111 square meters), constructed in 1981, safeguards the collection by maintaining a consistent temperature of 65°F (18°C) and a relative humidity of 55 percent.[8]

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References

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  1. ^ a b Rana, D. (2021). A Frayed New World: From Science Fiction to Society. Notion Press. p. 12. ISBN 978-1-68554-027-2. Retrieved 2023-06-02.
  2. ^ a b Rhees, David J. (2002). "The Physical Tourist: Physics in Lake Wobegon: A Tour of Three Minnesota Museums of Science and Technology". Physics in Perspective. 4. Basel: Birkhauser Verlag: 236–240. doi:10.1007/s00016-002-8365-5.
  3. ^ "Youth Programs". The Bakken Museum. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
  4. ^ "Minnesota's quirky Bakken Museum reinvents itself with $4.5M face lift". Star Tribune. 8 October 2020.
  5. ^ "Earl E. Bakken Timeline". Earl E. Bakken. Archived from the original on 2007-08-19. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
  6. ^ Spencer, William H. (2001). Hurst, J. Willis; Fye, W. Bruce (eds.). "Earl E. Bakken". Clinical Cardiology. 24 (5): 422–423. doi:10.1002/clc.4960240515. ISSN 1932-8737. PMC 6655043.
  7. ^ Hebrew University of Jerusalem Institute of Chemistry: Earl E. Bakken Archived 2007-12-05 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ a b Steinke, Cynthia A. (1994). History of Science and Technology: A Sampler of Centers and Collections of Distinction. Haworth Press. pp. 114–115. ISBN 1-56024-721-5. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
  9. ^ Gehrke, Karl (November 18, 2005). "Bakken the saddle for a new season". Minnesota Public Radio. Retrieved 2008-01-07. and "Series Program and Calendar". Bakken Trio. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
  10. ^ ""West Winds" Home of The Bakken Museum in Minneapolis Minnesota". The Bakken. Archived from the original on 2007-10-20. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
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