The Ottesen Museum: Celebrating Its Tenth Anniversary

What is the Ottesen Museum? This is a question I’ve been asked many times over the past few years. The short answer is that it is the official museum of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod. But even that answer leaves a lot of questions. So, let’s start with a short history lesson.
Rev. J.A. Ottesen was one of the founding pastors of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in 1853. His spinster daughter, Hannah, was the executor of his will, and Rev. Ottesen’s home and its contents in Decorah, Iowa, went to her. By the time she died in 1931 she had set up her own estate and designated that the contents of her house should go to what we now call the Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS).
In 1941, the Ottesen estate arrived on the Bethany Lutheran College campus, and a group of sixteen women met to start organizing a museum in time for the Synod’s 25th anniversary in 1943. On May 29, 1943, the Ottesen Museum officially opened. Over the years, the Museum has moved around to various places on the Bethany campus—including classrooms, closets, and the synod Archives.
In 2003, a house owned by the Synod was converted to the Ottesen Museum’s first permanent home at 4 Browns Court in Mankato. The Museum now contains more than just the original Ottesen collection, adding artifacts and displays portraying Synod history.
Retired ELS President George Orvick was the first regular director of the Ottesen Museum. Under his leadership, the Museum started to receive more donations and added two more rooms, a “Log Cabin” room and a “Chapel.” In 2010, Pres. Orvick retired and in 2011, Mrs. Rebecca DeGarmeaux was named the Director of Programming at the Museum.
So, what is the Ottesen Museum? First and foremost, it is a church history museum with the main objective of teaching. The museum teaches the history of the ELS. Various displays tell about Norwegian immigration, the first Norwegian Lutheran congregations and pastors in the United States, and the growth, struggles, and blessings of the Synod through the years.
The artifacts in the Museum are arranged, more or less, with the idea of giving life to the story of the ELS. They range from pieces from the Ottesen home, to artifacts from the foreign mission fields, to displays that portray everyday congregational life. One display changes every year to highlight one specific aspect of Synod history. This year it highlights Rev. George Lillegard’s mission work in China, which began in 1912. Another display highlights the most recently acquired artifacts.
Aside from regular tours, the Museum also offers special programs. Visiting groups can learn about teaching Synod history in the parish, congregational preservation of artifacts, or life in a log cabin. For the past two years, the Museum has hosted a Christmas Open House to encourage people to tour the Museum and to teach various Christmas customs from around the synod. Visitors sing carols, make Christmas crafts, and sample Christmas treats.
This year, the Ottesen Museum celebrates its 10th anniversary in its current location. Because of recent accessions, some displays have changed or been expanded. If you are ever in Mankato, please feel free to stop in and visit the Ottesen Museum during its regular hours of Tuesday through Thursday from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Or, contact the Museum’s Director, Rebecca DeGarmeaux, at 507-344-7421 or museum@blc.edu to schedule an appointment or learn more about the programs available.
Rebecca DeGarmeaux is Director of Programming at the Ottesen Museum in Mankato, Minnesota.