As a nonprofit, the Anoka County Historical Society runs on donations. In their roles as caretakers of Anoka County history, the curators rely on the artifacts given to them by local families, including more than 13,000 photographs. The society's library shelves contain resources including documents and primary records that range from obituaries and newspapers to the personal correspondence and diaries of historic Anoka residents.

But it's not all research-based. Costumed guides bring the county's past to life through exhilarating ghost tours. A blend of history and folklore, the tours transport folks into the past with wild yarns filled with bone-chilling descriptions of rocking chairs that rock themselves and doors that lock themselves. And history buffs looking to go at their own pace can spend some time at the History Center Museum, whose 2,000-square-feet of artifacts and exhibits run the gamut from individual survivor stories to the county's involvement in the Civil War.