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Logan County Colorado TALKING TRAIL
"History Comes to Life on the Talking Trail..."
Otter Tail County, MN
In a 1927 speech before the Old Settler’s Association, Perham attorney M.J. Daly urged attendees to support the formation of a county historical society. Daly’s invitation may have given the impression he..
When Otter Tail County commissioners held their first meeting in September 1868, in Clitherall, New York Mills did not exist. It was a dense forest of white pine, red and white oak...
The area of, and surrounding Glendalough State Park is unique. It is where the land and its inhabitants have been profoundly connected for many years. Many indigenous cultures lived here, most recently...
Otter Tail County’s unique combination of prairie, forest, lakes and rivers provides habitat for all matter of wildlife and fish. As two young anglers discovered in 1948, Otter Tail is truly a sportsman's...
Fergus Falls greeted 1919 cautiously optimistic as the previous two years were difficult. World War I had claimed the lives of 87 county serviceman, while another 235 had died during the 1918 flu pandemic...
As the Otter Tail River runs through downtown Fergus Falls, its westerly flowing waters fall about 95 feet. During his 1848 geological survey of Minnesota, David Dale Owen described...
Fergus Falls greeted 1919 cautiously optimistic as the previous two years were difficult. World War I had claimed the lives of 87 county serviceman, while another 235 had died during the 1918 flu pandemic...
For over a century one room rural schools dotted the landscape. At its peak, 289 rural school districts were scattered among the county’s 62 townships, more than any other county in Minnesota...
The history of milling in rural Minnesota is embodied in the story of Phelps Mill. By the late 1800s, wheat was the king of crops. Flour was in such demand that hundreds of mills...
From 1861 to 1865, our nation was engaged in its most costly conflict. The Civil War divided the nation pitting neighbor against neighbor. The war’s unprecedented violence at Battle such as Shiloh...
More than 825,000 Norwegians immigrated to Minnesota between 1825 and 1928. One of the most popular destinations was Otter Tail County. By 1895, Otter Tail had the third largest Norwegian Population...
The history of Pelican Rapids revolves around the Pelican River. In 1868, Asa Jacobs and Robert Scambler while working to locate and establish trading posts for the British Northwest Trading Company...
Hannah Kempfer, Minnesota’s first rural woman state legislator served from 1923-1940. Her story of a poverty stricken orphan to become a woman of influence is one of courage, compassion and...
“The doctor locked her patients up and starved’em! To skin ‘n bone I heard.”
“That’s right and each one of..."
“I knew John was a bad boy, but if I or any of my children were sick he would grant me any favor I asked. John had a good heart, I guess it must have slipped out...
On March 18, 1858, the Minnesota Territorial Legislature established the borders for Otter Tail County and proclaimed “the county seat is hereby temporarily established at Otter Tail City. A failed attempt...
Otter Tail City, currently known as the City of Ottertail, is the historical center of Otter Tail County. Long before it was named the first county seat, during the fur trade it was a busy...
Large tracks of fertile land, a pristine lake, and the railroad all contributed to the formation of Battle Lake. With Clitheral established by the end of 1865, word spread quickly of vast acres of available homestead land...
Otter Tail County’s first permanent settlement, a lake and a township are all named after a slaveholding southerner whose goal was to turn Minnesota into a slaveholding state...
During the evening of December 7, 1956, game wardens Paul Kruger, Al Schmid and O.B. Olson were parked in a field near Henning hoping to catch deer shiners. After several hours Kruger noticed what...
As the highest point in the Leaf Hills, Inspiration Peak is one of the most scenic areas in Otter Tail County. Minnesota author Sinclair Lewis found the peak so pleasing he...
Imagine it is 1870. You are a Norwegian immigrant with a wife, two small children and a third nearly due. The journey from Norway was long and hard but you made it. You took a homestead in Tumuli...
Archaeological evidence indicates that humans have been in this region for at least 8,000 years. That is the approximate age of a human skeleton found just north of Pelican Rapids in 1932. Found with the...
Among the many challenges faced by Otter Tail County pioneers were prairie fires. Thick prairie grass combined with newly sown crops and a constant wind gave even the...
Welcome to the Otter Tail County Talking Trail! We are proud to showcase the rich history, culture and heritage of the communities of Otter Tail County Minnesota! Otter Tail Lakes Country is located in West Central Minnesota. We are 2.5 hours from Minneapolis, MN and 45 minutes from Fargo, ND. Our area is made up of twenty-four charming communities sprinkled among wooded hills and crystal clear lakes. Otter Tail Lakes Country covers approximately 2,225 square miles – and over 11% of it is water. That’s 157,000 acres of water!
Come experience the stories along the Otter Tail County Talking Trail...
