Sacred Heart Area Historical Society

We are dedicated to sharing the story of the Sacred Heart community.

On the west edge of Sacred Heart, Renville County, stands a stucco building with a unique, dome-style bell tower where people congregated for church services for eight decades. The structure was built by the Trinity Lutheran congregation in 1916. When the congregation dissolved in 1963, Ebenezer Lutheran, which had just lost its church to a fire, moved into the building. In 1996 the church disbanded, and the city of Sacred Heart and F & M Bank purchased the building for a museum. The Sacred Heart Area Historical Society(SHAHS) now owns the property. 

Situated along Highway 212, the Yellowstone Trail, the Sacred Heart Area Museum houses the society's collections, some dating back to the 1800s. Our mission is to preserve history of the Sacred Heart area for present and future generations and to share that history. We collect items that have a story to tell about Sacred Heart and its surrounding townships. Emphasis is placed on past and present businesses, churches, families, organizations, military personnel, and schools of the area. We have an extensive archival library and an all-volunteer staff to help people in search of family history.

We invite our visitors to join us for a coffee, or a cold drink, and friendly conversation at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and Fridays. It is our goal to send visitors home with more history than they came with and a big smile.

Our most recent project is the Hotel Sacred Heart, an abandoned building in the main business district. The SHAHS purchased Hotel Sacred Heart with the intention to reuse it. We were successful in getting the Hotel Sacred Heart, in addition to the Sacred Heart Public School, listed to the National Register of Historic Places. This historic building is being repurposed into an assisted senior living facility. Phase 2 Construction begins in 2022 with completion of the masonry and restoration of the entrance vestibules.

Our work in the community has changed the world. Your support will help us do even more.