SETTLEMENT PATTERNS BEFORE 1950

In 1848, the first land in what would soon be the state of Minnesota was open for settlement.  But humans have actually been living on this land for centuries.  Archeologists record settlements of Native Americans in Minnesota dating back to 10,000 years.  The Dakota (Sioux) and the Ojibway (Chippewa) were confronted by European fur traders and other explorers, and these American settlers moved into traditional tribal lands.  The Assiniboin and other historic tribes moved west in the early 1600s, soon after the French explorers arrived.

The first contacts by Europeans in Minnesota were the French (explorers, traders, soldiers, and missionaries) in the northwest area of the state.  In 1762, Spain gained control of Minnesota west of the Mississippi, and one year later Britain possessed Minnesota east of the Mississippi.  In 1805, President Taylor acquired land cessions from the Dakota at the mouth of the Mississippi and the St.Croix Rivers.  Over the next 15 years, settlements were established along the Mississippi.  In 1821, Swiss settelers from the Red River Valley of Manitoba, Canada moved into Forth Snelling (a major installation in St. Paul that was originally built to protect the white settlers from warring Dakota and Ojibway tribes).  Later, even more Swiss came.  These Swiss settlers were the first true agricultural settlers in Minnesota.

In 1823, a group of African American slaves reached Fort Snelling.  Major Taliaferro freed these slaves and a small free black settlement was established.  After iron ore was discovered in northern Minnesota near Vermilion, many African Americans moved to Duluth - and a significant black community was established.  The gentleman on the left is The Honorable Alan Page, a judge on the Minnesota Supreme Court.

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Norwegian settlers first moved into southeastern Minnesota from Wisconsin in 1852.  All over, Norwegian farms were scattered throughout the state.  Swedish pioneers came into Minnesota originally by way of Chicago and other eastern cities starting in 1880.  The Swedish sought good hunting and fishing lands, but many Swedish eventually settled along rail lines.  Danish settlers followed the Swedes, establishing strong church communities in rural lands run my dairy farmers.  Polish settlers came to Minnesota by way of New York originally to Winona before the Civil War.  Many other ethnic groups followed soon after - Finnish, Latvians, Estonians, and Lithuanians also moved to the state from large eastern urban centers.  Over the years, most of these ethnic communities have remained relatively clustered in specific regional locations in the state (even around the Minneapolis metropolitan area) and on whole Minnesota is less of a "melting pot" but more of a study in tolerance and diversity.

Giant Swedish Dala Horse

Source for information on this page:  A Brief History of Land Settlement in Minnesota. Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office.

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