♪♪ [Kohlsdorf] Decorah is not shy about its Norwegian roots.

From the annual summertime Nordic Fest to the Luther College Norse, the rich history and tradition of Decorah's settlers is still celebrated today.

♪♪ [Kohlsdorf] Pull over at Vesterheim to learn more about the city's strong cultural heritage.

[Chris Johnson] Vesterheim is located here in Decorah, Iowa.

It is the National Norwegian American Museum and Folk Art School.

It is certainly the largest collection you're going to find anywhere in the country of objects related to a specific immigrant group, in this case Norwegians who immigrated to the United States.

We have over 33,000 objects in our collection.

We also have a very active folk art school.

[Kohlsdorf] Norwegian Americans settling in the hills of northeast Iowa wanted to preserve and document their experience.

In 1877, they started what would become the museum's extensive collection.

♪♪ [Kohlsdorf] Vesterheim's permanent and rotating displays provide a window into the lives of these Scandinavian pioneers.

♪♪ [Chris Johnson] We have core exhibitions, like many people remember going into the Norwegian house in the first floor of the museum, or seeing the ship in the ship gallery.

But we also have typically two or three temporary exhibits that are on display within the museum and they change quite frequently.

And then also out in Heritage Park we have a number of outbuildings where you can check out the story of the Norwegian immigrants though the buildings that they lived in.

♪♪ [Chris Johnson] Vesterheim likes to be a welcoming place.

Having Norwegian ancestry is not a requirement to enter the door.

We encourage everybody to come and check us out.

We think there's here for everybody to see.

♪♪