On July 29 and September 29, 1837, treaties were signed between the US government and the local Ojibwa and Dakota nations. They allowed settlement in the St. Croix River Valley. The town was founded by settlers drawn by the area's then-abundant lumber and river traffic. It is one of Minnesota's oldest towns, preceding Minneapolis by several years. Stillwater was officially incorporated as a city on March 4, 1854 (the same day as St. Paul). The city was named for the calm waters of the St. Croix River.[5]
Stillwater c. 1860s
Washington County Courthouse
Territorial convention
Stillwater is often called the birthplace of Minnesota.[6] In 1848, a territorialconvention that began the process of establishing Minnesota as a state was held in Stillwater. The convention selected three leading Minnesota cities as locations for three important public institutions. Minneapolis got the University of Minnesota, Saint Paul became the capital, and Stillwater was chosen as the site of the territory's first prison. The Minnesota Territorial Prison was opened in 1853.
Lumbering era
Lumbering was the main industry in the St. Croix River Valley in the second half of the nineteenth century. For many years logs were sent down the St. Croix river, collected at the St. Croix Boom Site two miles upstream of Stillwater, and processed in Stillwater's many sawmills. Steamboats were used most widely from 1860 to 1890, and a few are still used for entertainment today.
↑William E. Lass. "The Birth of Minnesota"(PDF). Minnesota Historical Society. Archived from the original(PDF) on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
