The Minneapolis Plan Vault Collection is composed of plan sets deposited by builders and architects with the Building Inspections Department from 1909 to 1993 as a prerequisite for obtaining building permits. The Archives has sampled the plan sets to retain a broad spectrum of styles and buildings, including churches, commercial and industrial buildings, multi-family dwellings, hospitals and other types of structures.

The plans listed in the detailed contents section comprise approximately 2/3 of the total collection. The remaining 1/3 has not been inventoried but is searchable by Archives staff using the building owner's name (commission name) at the time of construction.

This finding aid was developed from a database which used a combination of last names and first initials as the leading entry, so researchers are urged to use the ctrl + f function to search for desired commissions, using either the street address field and/or the commission name. Researchers should contact the staff of the Archives in advance of planning any research visits to use this collection.