The Village

The Village consists of: Holy Innocents Episcopal Church, Pleasant Valley School Volg Log Cabin, and the Harvest and Heritage Halls. The Village is located behind the Rice County Museum of History, and tours of the buildings are available with admission to the museum.


For interior images click here.




The school was built, we believe, in the late 1850's, the exact date is not known as all records before 1885 were destroyed in the 1931 Court House fire. Pleasant Valley School was located in the Bridgewater Township, 5 miles north of Faribault and about a half mile east of Highway 3. The school was in use until the early 1950's. In 1954, the Rice County Agricultural Society purchased the school for $206. It was moved to the fairgrounds at that time and is now maintained and operated by the Historical Society.



Built in 1857 by Sever Holgrimson Vold, a Scandinavian immigrant, it was located in Section 5 of Wheeling township, about 15 miles northeast of Faribault. A number of people owned and lived in the cabin up until 1897, when it served as a public school building. In 1902, Andrew Rudningen bought the property and rented it out. He died in 1940 and his son John continued to rent it out. John and his wife were the last owners. The cabin was last lived in in 1953. In the early 1960's the Rudningen family donated it to the Rice County Historical Society. It was moved to the fairgrounds at that time.