Place Information
|
Nearly 60% of Minnesota's residents live in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area known as the Twin Cities, the center of transportation, business, and industry, and home to an internationally known arts community. The remainder of the state, often referred to as Greater Minnesota, consists of western prairies now given over to intensive agriculture; eastern deciduous forests, also heavily farmed and settled; and the less-populated northern boreal forest. The state is known as the "Land of 10,000 Lakes," and those lakes and the other waters for which the state is named, together with state and national forests and parks, offer residents and tourists a vigorous outdoor lifestyle. The extremes of the climate contrast with the moderation of Minnesota’s people. The state is known for its moderate-to-progressive politics and social policies, its civic involvement, and high voter turnout. It ranks among the healthiest states by a number of measures, and has one of the most highly educated and literate populations.
History
Before European settlement, Minnesota was populated by the Anishinaabe, the Sioux, and other Native Americans. The first Europeans were French fur traders who arrived in the 1600s. Late in the century, the Ojibwe Indians migrated westward to Minnesota, causing tensions with the Sioux. Explorers such as Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut, Father Louis Hennepin, Jonathan Carver, Henry Schoolcraft, and Joseph Nicollet, among others, mapped out the state. In 1805, Zebulon Pike acquired land at the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers. The construction of Fort Snelling followed, between 1819 and 1825. The soldiers built a grist mill and a sawmill at Saint Anthony Falls, and as industry later sprung up around the falls, the city of Minneapolis grew up around it. Meanwhile, squatters, government officials, and tourists had settled in the vicinity of the fort. In 1839, the Army forced them to move downriver, and they settled in the area that became St. Paul. Minnesota Territory was formed on March 3, 1849. By 1858, thousands of people had come to build farms and cut timber, and Minnesota became the 32nd U.S. state on May 11, 1858. Treaties between whites and the Sioux and Ojibwe gradually forced the natives off their lands and onto smaller reservations. As conditions deteriorated for the Sioux, tensions rose, leading to the Sioux Uprising of 1862. The result of the six-week war was the execution of 38 Indians—the largest mass execution in United States history—and the exile of most of the rest of the Sioux to the Crow Creek Reservation in Nebraska.
The state's iron-mining industry was established with the discovery of iron in the Vermilion Range and the Mesabi Range in the 1880s, then in the Cuyuna Range in the early 1900s. The iron was shipped by rail to Two Harbors and Duluth, then loaded onto ships and transported eastward over the Great Lakes.[1] Industrial development and the rise of manufacturing caused the population to shift gradually from rural areas to cities during the early 1900s. Nevertheless, farming remained prevalent throughout the state. During the Great Depression, Minnesota's economy was hard-hit, resulting in lower prices for farmers, layoffs among iron miners, and labor unrest. Compounding the adversity, western Minnesota and the Dakotas were hit by drought from 1931 to 1935. New Deal programs provided some economic turnaround. The Civilian Conservation Corps and other programs around the state established jobs for Indians on their reservations. The Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 provided a mechanism of self-government for the Indian tribes. This provided natives a greater voice within the state, and promoted more respect for tribal customs because religious ceremonies and native languages were no longer suppressed.[2] After World War II, industrial development quickened. New technology increased productivity on farms, through automation of feedlots for hogs and cattle, machine milking at dairy farms, and raising chickens in large buildings. Planting became more specialized with hybridization of corn and wheat, and the use of farm machinery such as tractors and combines became the norm. University of Minnesota professor Norman Borlaug contributed to these developments as part of the Green Revolution.[2] During this time, suburban development accelerated due to increased postwar housing demand and convenient transportation. Increased mobility, in turn, enabled more specialized jobs.[2] Minnesota became a center of technology after the war. Engineering Research Associates was formed in 1946 to develop computers for the United States Navy. It later merged with Remington Rand, and then became Sperry Rand. William Norris left Sperry in 1957 to form Control Data Corporation (CDC). Cray Research was formed when Seymour Cray left CDC to form his own company. Medical device maker Medtronic also started business in the Twin Cities in 1949. Timeline
Population History
Note: Northeastern Minnesota, east of the Mississippi River and a line drawn northward from its source to Canada, was part of the Northwest Territory (1787) and later of Indiana Territory (1800), Illinois Territory (1809), Michigan Territory (1818), and Wisconsin Territory (1838). Most of the rest of the State was part of the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, and included in Louisiana Territory (1805), renamed Missouri Territory in 1812. Both these parts of the present State were included in Michigan Territory from 1834 to 1836, and then in Wisconsin Territory until 1838. The portion west of the Mississippi then became part of Iowa Territory, until Minnesota Territory was established in 1849, including the whole present-day State and the Dakotas generally east of the Missouri River. Minnesota was admitted as a State on May 11, 1858 with essentially its present boundaries. There was only limited census coverage of the present area of the State prior to 1850. In 1830 a few persons near Lake Superior may have been enumerated in Chippewa County, Michigan Territory; in 1840 some persons in northeastern Minnesota were enumerated in Saint Croix County, Wisconsin Territory, and two settlements on the Mississippi River were enumerated as part of Clayton County, Iowa Territory. In 1850 coverage of Minnesota Territory did not extend beyond the present State except for a few settlers near the Red River in what is now North Dakota. In 1860 the census covered virtually the whole State.. Total for 1850 includes a few settlers near the Red River in what is now North Dakota. Total for 1890 includes population (8,457) of certain Indian reservations not returned by county. Total for 1900 includes population (3,486) of White Earth Indian Reservation, not returned by county, and returned in Becker, Clearwater, and Mahnomen Counties in 1910. Research TipsThe Minnesota Historical Society has an index of 20th century death certificates here (1904-2001). The index results list name, death date, death county, and, for later years (post 50s), mother's maiden name, birth date and birth state. Birth certificates 1900-1934 are indexed here. Once you find the certificate, you can order a copy from the site.
|
