1. Theme/Title: “The Bunnell House”
In this lesson, the students will learn about the family who built the first home in Winona County, The Bunnell house.

2. Materials/resources needed:
• Pictures of the Bunnell House
• Pictures and descriptions of the canoes used for fur trading
• Background information on the house and the builder, Willard Bunnell.

3. Goal(s) for today’s lesson:
The class will receive information on how the settlers came to Winona, the types of transportation they used and so on. The class will compare the Bunnell family as it was back then to the different families today.

4. Objectives for today’s lesson:
The students will be able to compare the typical family life now to family life back in the 1850s. The students will be able to identify and talk about the first family to settle in Winona County in the 1850s.

5. Procedures
a. When the students walk into the classroom there will be a picture of the current day Bunnell house on the board (projected or blown up). Once they have all had a chance to look at it, the students will be questioned to see who knows what the building is. The students will give their answers and we will see how many know the historical building in their town. (5 minutes)

b. developmental experiences:
1. Once the house has been identified, hand out a map of the United States showing both New York and Minnesota. On an overhead copy of the map, trace the trail from Rochester, NY, where Williard Bunnell came from, to Winona, MN, where he ended up. Have the students do the same on their maps in front of them. This gives the students a clear understanding of where the first family to settle in Winona County came from. Discuss also that he was came here and worked as a fur trader on the river. (10 minutes).
2. Discuss the relationship between Willard Bunnell and the Dakota Indians. Chief Wapasha granted Bunnelll permission to build a home on their land. Talk about what that must have said about the Bunnell family, and their relationship with the people living in the Winona area. If Chief Wapasha granted the Bunnell family permission to build a home on his land, that means he must have respected them a great deal. Since the Bunnell family was the first family to come and build a home in the County, not many people had come and built a relationship with the Dakota tribes. (5 minutes)
3. Talk about Willard’s marriage to wife Matilda Desnoyer Bunnell. Discuss their family, seven children; the first was a daughter who was the first white child to be born in the county. Talk about what that would have said about Winona at that time. This would show that Winona was not very diverse at the time. Since the only previous families here were Dakota, Winona County did not have a lot of settlers come through yet. (5 minutes)
4. Give the students a copy of the brochure of the Bunnell house, and have them compare the layout of their house to that of the Bunnell house. Then discuss why there were the differences that there were. Talk about the family dynamics back in the 1850s, and the things that were expected of each family member and how that compares to the family dynamics and expectations of families now. (15 minutes)

c. culminating experiences
Explain that now that we know a little more about the history of the Bunnell house, we are going to take a field trip there next week. Discuss the different things we will see there and how they tie into what we are discussing. Explain to the students the different things they should look for and notice when they go there. (5 minutes)

6. Assessments used during lesson:
As the students are completing their maps, make sure they are all on the right track.

I will also make sure all of the students’ questions are answered as we are having our discussion.

EXCERPT FROM THE BROCHURE USED IN LESSON:

Willard B. Bunnell House

In 1849, the well-known Chief Wapasha granted
permission to his friend, fur-trader Willard Bunnell, to
build a cabin on Dakota land at what is now Homer,
Minnesota. Within a decade Bunnell had built another,
much finer, home nearby to house his wife, Matilda and
family -- present-day Bunnell House.
An outstanding example of Rural Gothic Architecture, the
home is built of northern white pine and furnished with
items appropriate to the mid-to-late 1800s.
Recognized as one of the finest local archives in Minnesota, the Laird
Lucas Memorial Library, located in the lower level of the Museum,
contains irreplaceable collections of manuscripts, documents and
photographs. Professional historians, students and family researchers
find this outstanding facility accessible to fill their needs for research,
study and information. If you have ancestors from our area, you may
discover your “roots” in this research center. We can provide you
with information on how to trace your family tree or assist you with
research in most areas of local history.
In addition to regular programs and workshops, the Winona County
Historical Society also sponsors the annual Heritage Fair, Voices From
the Past Cemetery Walk, Christmas House Tour, and Family Frolic.
The Society also offers events and activities for adults and children
alike. Throughout the summer, educational programs are offered by
the Society. Children can become involved in activities such as the
American Girl Club, while adults can participate in the Book Chats
or Food for Thought programs. For more information, contact the
Winona County Historical Society.
Knowledgeable guides walk visitors through three floors of pioneer
life, encompassing the historical period during which Native
American canoes gave way to steamboats and game-trails became
roads and highways for Euro-Americans.
The Willard Bunnell House is located three miles down river from
Winona, just off Highways 14-61, at Homer, Minnesota. The tour
season runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day: Wednesday
through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sundays from
1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Other times by appointment only. Admission fee.

This was taken from a brochure found on the website :
http://www.visitwinona.com/downloads/WinHistSoc.pdf

1. Theme/Title: “Transportation: Then and Now”
The students will learn about the transportation in Winona County back in the 1850s and compare it to the transportation used today.

2. Materials/resources needed:
1. Pictures of transportation used in the 1850’s
2. Long paper roll
3. Markers

3. Goal(s) for today’s lesson:
The students will be able to compare the transportation used in the 1850’s with the transportation used today. They will be able to make a pictorial timeline of the growth of transportation from the 1850s to present.

4. Objectives for today’s lesson:
Students will be able to compare ways of transportation from the 1850s to the present. They will be able to state the different modes of transportation from the 1850s to now and notice the improvements.

5. Procedures
a. introductory experiences
When the students are in their seats, we will discuss as a class how each of them got to school today. The teacher will describe how he or she got to school, and then we will go around the classroom and each student will say how they got to school that morning. (10 minutes)

b. developmental experiences:

1. Talk about the methods of transportation back in the 1850s. Review the Bunnell family from the previous day. Ask students how they thought that people got around back then. Have a class discussion about the different methods of transportation here in Winona. (10 minutes)
2. Show the pictures from the Historical Society of the different wagons. Also show pictures of canoes and floats used down the river back then. Have a discussion about them. (10 minutes)
3. Bring out the large sheet of paper and post it on the front board. Have a student come and draw the first wagon by the date 1850s. Go down the timeline to the present drawing pictures of different modes of transportation used by the residence of Winona. (10 minutes)

c. culminating experiences
Go over our timeline that the class created. Look at how the modes of transformation have changed throughout the years. Talk about the things that are similar and the things that are different in ways of transportation. (5 minutes)

6. Assessments used during lesson
Listen to the student’s answers as they plot the timeline of transportation through Winona.
I will make sure all of the student’s questions are answered as we go through this lesson.