Pierre Bottineau Library

The newest old building in the Minneapolis Public Library system opened in 2003 at the Historic Grain Belt Campus. The 1893 Wagon Shed and the 1913 Millwright Shop were reused and merged with a new structure to create a warm and welcoming, state-of-the-art library. It is a lively neighborhood gathering place where people meet, read, and study. The library and the nearby Bottineau Neighborhood are named for Pierre Bottineau (1817-1895), one of the most colorful characters in early local history. An accomplished guide, trapper, and trader, he spent the prime years of his long, active life opening up the Northwest Corridor communities of the Twin Cities metro area to settlement.