Point Douglas, Minnesota
Encyclopedia
Point Douglas is a ghost town
in section 8 of Denmark Township, Washington County
, Minnesota
, United States
. It is located across the St Croix River
from Prescott, Wisconsin
.
. The post office, with Levi Hurtsell as first postmaster, was the first in the County, and was transferred from Wisconsin
Territory when Minnesota
Territory was created. It was discontinued in 1903. In 1856, the site was a trade center, and had a mill
, several warehouse
s, and a lime kiln. The town also had a station of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
.
Today, all that remains of Point Douglas is a small development on Old U.S. Route 10
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
in section 8 of Denmark Township, Washington County
Washington County, Minnesota
Washington County is a county established in 1849 in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of 2010, the population was 238,136. Its county seat is Stillwater.-History:...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is located across the St Croix River
St. Croix River (Wisconsin-Minnesota)
The St. Croix River is a tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Minnesota. The lower of the river form the border between Wisconsin and Minnesota. The river is a National Scenic Riverway under the protection of the National Park Service. A...
from Prescott, Wisconsin
Prescott, Wisconsin
Prescott is a city in Pierce County, Wisconsin at the confluence of the St. Croix River and Mississippi River. The population was 4,258 at the 2010 census, making it the second-largest city in the county after River Falls, and the largest entirely within Pierce County.Prescott was home to the...
.
History
Point Douglas was platted on August 18, 1849 and named in honor of Stephen A. DouglasStephen A. Douglas
Stephen Arnold Douglas was an American politician from the western state of Illinois, and was the Northern Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860. He lost to the Republican Party's candidate, Abraham Lincoln, whom he had defeated two years earlier in a Senate contest following a famed...
. The post office, with Levi Hurtsell as first postmaster, was the first in the County, and was transferred from Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
Territory when Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
Territory was created. It was discontinued in 1903. In 1856, the site was a trade center, and had a mill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
, several warehouse
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
s, and a lime kiln. The town also had a station of the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until its merger into the Soo Line Railroad on January 1, 1986. The company went through several official names...
.
Today, all that remains of Point Douglas is a small development on Old U.S. Route 10
U.S. Route 10
U.S. Route 10 is an east–west United States highway formed in 1926. Though it never became the cross-country highway suggested by the "0" as the last digit of its route number, U.S...
External links
- http://mnplaces.mnhs.org/upham/city.cfm?PlaceNameID=2436&BookCodeID=74&County=82&SendingPage=Results.cfm
- http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=116:3:2098000127243275::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:649605%2CPoint%20Douglas
- http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=116:3:2121517019670605::NO::P3_FID,P3_TITLE:2097764%2CPoint%20Douglas%20Post%20Office%20(historical)
- http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Point%20Douglas%2C%20Minnesota&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl