Minnesota

About Minnesota

History prior to joining the United States

Before European colonization, the area now known as Minnesota was inhabited by Native Americans, in particular the Ojibwe (Chippewa, Anishinaabe) and Dakota, although the Winnebago also had a presence in the southeastern part of the state. In this time, the economy originally consisted of hunter-gatherer activities, which changed over time as Europeans settled in the area and further exploited the state’s natural resources. Before the arrival of Dakota and Ojibwe, Cheyenne and Gros Ventre also made their home in Minnesota.

According to local tradition, the first European visitors were Swedish and Norwegian Vikings in the 14th century. The evidence for this is largely based on the controversial Kensington Runestone, which many historians consider to be an elaborate hoax. Some say that the earliest European settlement was in the area of the current city of Stillwater, on the St. Croix River, though many histories focus on the military settlement that took place farther west. Fort Snelling, located at the confluence of the Minnesota River and the Mississippi River, was one of the earliest U.S. military presences in the state. It is now a historic site.
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Joining the United States

Part of what would become Minnesota was granted to the United States by the Second Treaty of Paris at the end of the American Revolution in 1783, the fledgling states having been granted all of the land east of the Mississippi River. This included what would become modern-day Saint Paul (but only part of Minneapolis), including the northeast, north-central and east-central portions of the state. Most of the state, however, was purchased from France as part of the Louisiana Purchase. The northern border between Minnesota and British North America was for a long time disputed. At the time it was erroneously believed that the Mississippi River ran well into modern Canada, making some earlier agreements flawed. Parts of northern Minnesota were considered to be in Ruperts Land. The exact definition of the boundary was not addressed until the Anglo-American Convention of 1818 which set the border at the 49th parallel west of the Lake of the Woods (except for a small chunk of land now dubbed the northwest angle). Border disputes east of the Lake of the Woods continued until the Webster-Ashburton Treaty of 1842.

Throughout the first half of the 19th century, the north eastern portion of the state was a part of the Northwest Territory, then the Illinois Territory, then the Michigan Territory, and finally the Wisconsin Territory. The west and south areas of the state were not formally organized until 1838 when they became part of the Iowa Territory.

Upon statehood of Iowa and Wisconsin the Minnesota Territory was carved out of the remaining land and established on March 3, 1849, but unlike the boundaries of modern day Minnesota, the areas western border extended far into present day North Dakota and South Dakota; all the way to the Missouri River. The eastern half of the Minnesota Territory became the country’s 32nd state—after California—on May 11, 1858. The remaining western part fell unorganized until its incorporation into the Dakota Territory on March 2, 1861.

Minnesota

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