Winona, Minnesota
Encyclopedia
Winona is a city in and the county seat
of Winona County
, in the U.S. State of Minnesota
. Located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River
, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf.
The city is named after Princess We-Noh-Nah
, daughter of Chief Wapasha (Wabasha) III
.
The population was 27,592 at the 2010 census. Its annual celebration, Steamboat Days, is held in the summer. It is known as the stained glass
capital of the United States.
, the city has a total area of 23.6 square miles (61.1 km²), of which, 18.2 square miles (47.1 km²) of it is land and 5.3 square miles (13.7 km²) of it (22.62%) is water.
Winona's primary suburbs are Goodview
, Stockton
, Minnesota City
and Rollingstone
to the west, Homer
to the southeast and Fountain City
to the north. Rochester
is 44 miles to the west of Winona, La Crescent
is 21 miles to the south, and La Crosse
is 30 miles to the southeast.
to the city's southwest or 45.4° in Minneapolis, to the northwest, which experiences a strong urban heat island
effect. Temperatures are generally very mild by Minnesota standards year-round; the January mean is 17.6°, while that of July is 75.8°.
of 2000, there were 27,069 residents. The population density
was 1,485.0 people per square mile (573.3/km²). There were 10,666 housing units at an average density of 585.1 per square mile (225.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.47% White, 1.13% African American, 0.23% Native American, 2.65% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races
, and 1.03% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.35% of the population.
Ancestries: German (43.2%), Norwegian (15.5%), Polish (14.8%), Irish (13.0%), English (5.5%), French (3.6%).
There were 10,301 households out of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.4% were married couples
living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.3% were non-families. 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.94.
In the city, the population was spread out with 18.0% under the age of 18, 27.5% from 18 to 24, 22.2% from 25 to 44, 18.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 88.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,845, and the median income for a family was $48,413. Males had a median income of $31,047 versus $23,302 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $16,783. About 6.5% of families and 17.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.5% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.
site (circa 800 B.C.-900 A.D.). The present-day city of Winona was founded on the village of Keoxa. As the seat of the Wapasha dynasty, it was home to a Mdewakanton
band of the eastern Sioux
. The summer homes of the Keoxa natives were made of bark supported by a framework and poles. Their winter residence was a teepee made of about 8 buffalo hides sewn together with deer
sinew, typically about 12 feet (4 m) high and 10 to 12 feet (3 to 4 m) in diameter, with a fire in the middle to keep the temperature inside the dwelling tolerable even in the coldest weather.
Lieutenant Zebulon Pike
left Fort Bellefontaine on August 9, 1805 with orders to find the source of the Mississippi. On September 14, 1805, he reached the Mississippi Valley near island number 72 (on his map), which would one day be Winona, Minnesota, and recorded his impressions in his log.
Less than fifty years later, Pike's island 72 was selected by Captain Orrin Smith as a townsite on the west bank of the Mississippi River. For over twenty-five years, Smith had sailed the river between Galena
, Illinois
and Fort Snelling, Minnesota
as owner and pilot of the river packet Nominee. In 1851 Smith learned that the treaties of Traverse des Sioux and Mendota would establish a reservation in the interior of the state, and realized that there would be a rush to develop townsites on the Minnesota side of the river. On October 15, 1851 Orrin Smith became the founder of Winona, by landing his ship's carpenter, Mr. Erwin Johnson, and two other men (Smith and Stevens) with the purpose of claiming title to the riverfront and surrounding prairie land. When the town site was surveyed and plotted by John Ball, United States deputy surveyor, it was given the name of "Montezuma", as requested by Johnson and Smith. Henry D. Huff bought an interest in the town site in 1853. With the consent of Capt. Smith, Huff erased the name of Montezuma and inserted the name of Winona on the plot, a name derived from the Dakota Indian word "We-no-nah", which translates to "first-born daughter".
Winona was settled by non-Native Americans in 1851, and the town was laid out into lots in 1852-3 with growth expanding rapidly over the years. The population increased from 815 in December, 1855, to 3,000 in December, 1856. In 1860 Winona had a population of 2,456, and was third largest city in Minnesota until the late 1880s. Part of the surge in population in 1856 was the fact that land claims became legal in 1855 with the completion of land surveys and the opening of a local federal land office. It was incorporated as a city in 1857.
Growth in Winona was built on a railway and steamboat
transportation system, wheat
milling, and lumber
. In 1856 over 1,300 steamboats stopped at Winona. The railway system grew and the Winona Railway Bridge, built of steel and iron with a steam-powered swingspan over the river, was the second railway bridge to span the Mississippi. The first train
crossed on July 4, 1891 and the bridge served the Green Bay & Western (GBW) and Burlington Route for the next 94 years until it was closed in 1985 and dismantled in the fall of 1990. In 1892, a wagon
toll-bridge over the Mississippi, a steel high-bridge, was completed and remained in service until 1942.
During the 1860s southern Minnesota was the greatest wheat producing region in the country and Winona was the main port for shipping Minnesota wheat. By 1870, Winona was the fourth largest wheat shipping port in the United States. In 1899, Bay State Milling was founded, and is still in operation today. John Laird started the first lumber mill in 1855; he later was joined by his cousins James and Matthew Norton in founding the Laird-Norton Co. The Winona sawmills reached their peak production in 1892 when they produced over 160 million board feet (380,000 m³) annually and ranked eighth in production of lumber in the upper Midwest.
A famous resident of Winona was J. R. Watkins, the man who invented the "money back guarantee" in 1868 when he started Watkins Incorporated
. In the early 1900s he renamed the company the J. R. Watkins Medical Company. He died before the completion of the company's current factory and offices in 1911. Now called J. R. Watkins Incorporated, it is one of the oldest companies in the nation. The company also trades in Canada, China and as of May 2009 in the United Kingdom as Watkins UK. The company museum and factory are open for visitation and touring 6 days a week.
For a decade (1907–1917) Winona was home to pioneer American composer Carl Ruggles
. Carl (Charles Sprague) Ruggles was born in East Marion, Massachusetts, on March 11, 1876. Trained as a violinist, he also studied theory and composition in Boston with Josef Claus and John Knowles Paine. (Plans to study composition with Dvorak in Prague were put off when a financial sponsor died). In 1907, he moved to Winona, where he founded, and for a decade conducted, the Winona Symphony. He also gave lessons, composed, and began painting during this time. Ruggles is often referred to together with composer Charles Ives.
In 1947 the Edstrom brothers (Harold and Everett), along with fellow musician Roger Busdicker, founded the Hal Leonard Corporation, currently the largest publisher of sheet music in the world.
Winona's population reached 19,714 in 1900, but thereafter declined for some years after the collapse of the lumber industry.
, U.S. Highway 61
, Minnesota Highway 43
and Wisconsin State Highway 54 are the main routes into the city. Interstate Highway 90
is located a short distance south of the city.
Winona was once served by passenger railroads such as the Milwaukee Road, Burlington Route, and Chicago & Northwestern. Only the former Milwaukee Road station remains. It is now served by Amtrak's
daily in each direction between Chicago
and Seattle
and Portland
.
Winona Municipal Airport - Max Conrad Field serves general aviation
in the area. It was once served by one passenger airliner, North Central Airlines
until the mid-1970s.
, Fastenal
, Hal Leonard Corporation, Thern Inc., RTP Company, We-No-Nah Canoe, United Building Centers, Bloedow's Bakery, Badger Equipment Company, Winona Lighting, WinCraft Sports, and Winona Pattern & Mold,.
Peerless Chain Company
900
, represented by Mankato
educator Tim Walz
, a Democrat. At the state level, Winona is located in Senate
District 31, represented by Republican Jeremy Miller
, and in House
District 31A, represented by Democrat Gene Pelowski
.
Winona became the site of the first normal school
west of the Mississippi in 1858 with the establishment of Winona Normal School (now Winona State University
). This was the beginning of Winona's tradition as a center of higher education. Saint Mary's College (now Saint Mary's University
) was founded as a private Roman Catholic school in 1912. Later, as the necessary opportunity of higher education for women became apparent, the College of Saint Teresa
was created. After Saint Mary's became co-ed in 1969, Saint Teresa closed down in 1988, and its facilities are now used, owned, and/or operated by Winona State, Saint Mary's, Cotter High School, and the Valéncia Performing Arts Academy of Saint Mary's University. Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical
also has a campus in Winona.
There is also a relatively diverse variety of K-12 educational opportunities. Run by Independent School District 861
, the local public school system includes seven elementary schools (four in the city of Winona), the Winona Middle School
, and the Winona Senior High School
. The Winona Area Catholic Schools system includes St. Mary's primary school, St. Stanislaus Elementary School, Cotter Junior High School, and Cotter Senior High School. There are also other non-preparatory private schools. Bluffview Montessori Charter School, located in Winona, was the first charter
Montessori, and the second charter school overall in the United States. There are also two private Lutheran K-8 schools, and Hope Lutheran High School
.
Winona is the episcopal see
for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona
. The Cathedral of the Sacred Heart
is the mother church of the Diocese. Saint Stanislaus Kostka Catholic Church is a landmark Roman Catholic Church built in the Polish Cathedral style
, and is known for its Old World opulence.
The Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary
located in Winona is sponsored by the Diocese of Winona. Winona is also the seat of the Seminary of St. Thomas Aquinas, the United States seminary for the Society of St. Pius X
. It previously was in Ridgefield
, Connecticut
, but moved to Winona in 1988.
and the Theatre du Mississippi. Additionally, the Minnesota Beethoven Festival brings world class artists to Winona for a month long season each summer...among them cellist Yo Yo Ma in 2010. There is also a brand new music festival, the Mid West Music Fest, scheduled for the first time on July 30 and 31 in 2010. Recently completed is the Minnesota Marine Art Museum
, which encompasses work by both international and local artists, a collection of photographs by the river engineer Henry Bosse
, and sculpture by Leo Smith. In particular their impressionist and Hudson River school collections are outstanding. The museum may host one of the best collections of Canadian maritime painting outside Canada. The new Laird-Norton addition (designed by celebrated architect Joan Soranno) to the Winona County History Center will open in June, 2010.
Winona has two newspaper
s: the Winona Daily News
, a daily morning paper; and the Winona Post, a bi-weekly paper with mid-week and Sunday editions. Papers from La Crosse, Rochester, and the Twin Cities are also commonly read.
Television
Winona receives TV signals from neighboring cities, including several channels each from La Crosse, Rochester, Eau Claire
, and the Twin Cities, although what can be received depends on the location within the area, as the extensive system of valley
s and ridge
s may block any or all signals. There is one local public broadcasting
TV network, HBCI, which is available only to subscribers of the HBC cable company.
Radio
Local Stations:
Fringe Stations:
Misato, Miyagi, Japan
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Winona County
Winona County, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 49,985 people, 18,744 households, and 11,696 families residing in the county. The population density was 80 people per square mile . There were 19,551 housing units at an average density of 31 per square mile...
, in the U.S. State of 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...
. Located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf.
The city is named after Princess We-Noh-Nah
Princess Winona
Princess Winona is the central Native American character in a "Lover's Leap" romantic legend set at Maiden Rock on the Wisconsin side of Lake Pepin in the United States. Princess Winona leaps to her death from Maiden Rock rather than marry a suitor she does not love.-The legend:There are several...
, daughter of Chief Wapasha (Wabasha) III
Wapasha III
Wapasha was the name of a Mdewakanton Sioux chief also known as Joseph Wapasha.Wapasha led his people to the Sioux reservation at the head of the Minnesota River.-External links:*...
.
The population was 27,592 at the 2010 census. Its annual celebration, Steamboat Days, is held in the summer. It is known as the stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
capital of the United States.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 23.6 square miles (61.1 km²), of which, 18.2 square miles (47.1 km²) of it is land and 5.3 square miles (13.7 km²) of it (22.62%) is water.
Winona's primary suburbs are Goodview
Goodview, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,373 people, 1,375 households, and 966 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,947.2 people per square mile . There were 1,419 housing units at an average density of 819.2 per square mile...
, Stockton
Stockton, Minnesota
Stockton is a city in Winona County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 697 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
, Minnesota City
Minnesota City, Minnesota
Minnesota City is a city in Winona County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 204 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
and Rollingstone
Rollingstone, Minnesota
Rollingstone is a city in Winona County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 664 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:...
to the west, Homer
Homer, Minnesota
Homer is an unincorporated community in Winona County, Minnesota, United States. It is located to the southeast of the city of Winona along the Mississippi River at on the southern shore of the Mississippi River.-External links:***...
to the southeast and Fountain City
Fountain City, Wisconsin
Fountain City is a city in Buffalo County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 983 at the 2000 census.-History:Fountain City was originally called Holmes' Landing, after Thomas Holmes, who settled there in 1839...
to the north. Rochester
Rochester, Minnesota
Rochester is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Olmsted County. Located on both banks of the Zumbro River, The city has a population of 106,769 according to the 2010 United States Census, making it Minnesota's third-largest city and the largest outside of the...
is 44 miles to the west of Winona, La Crescent
La Crescent, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,923 people, 1,940 households, and 1,367 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,634.4 people per square mile . There were 2,014 housing units at an average density of 668.6 per square mile...
is 21 miles to the south, and La Crosse
La Crosse, Wisconsin
La Crosse is a city in and the county seat of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States. The city lies alongside the Mississippi River.The 2011 Census Bureau estimates the city had a population of 52,485...
is 30 miles to the southeast.
Climate
Winona's weather station, as well as neighboring city, La Crescent's station, records the warmest climate of any in Minnesota, with a normal year-round average (1971–2000) temperature of 48.9°F, compared to 43.2° in AustinAustin, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 23,314 people, 9,897 households, and 6,076 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,168.2 people per square mile . There were 10,261 housing units at an average density of 954.3 per square mile...
to the city's southwest or 45.4° in Minneapolis, to the northwest, which experiences a strong urban heat island
Urban heat island
An urban heat island is a metropolitan area which is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas. The phenomenon was first investigated and described by Luke Howard in the 1810s, although he was not the one to name the phenomenon. The temperature difference usually is larger at night...
effect. Temperatures are generally very mild by Minnesota standards year-round; the January mean is 17.6°, while that of July is 75.8°.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 27,069 residents. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,485.0 people per square mile (573.3/km²). There were 10,666 housing units at an average density of 585.1 per square mile (225.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.47% White, 1.13% African American, 0.23% Native American, 2.65% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.47% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.03% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.35% of the population.
Ancestries: German (43.2%), Norwegian (15.5%), Polish (14.8%), Irish (13.0%), English (5.5%), French (3.6%).
There were 10,301 households out of which 23.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.3% were non-families. 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.94.
The median income for a household in the city was $32,845, and the median income for a family was $48,413. Males had a median income of $31,047 versus $23,302 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $16,783. About 6.5% of families and 17.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.5% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.
History
The original plat of the City is located on a sand bar of the Mississippi River, and surrounded by river bottoms and wooded blufflands. Evidence gathered by archaeologists indicates that people lived in the valley as early as 9500 B.C. The earliest evidence of human habitation in Winona County is based on the discovery of a Woodland periodWoodland period
The Woodland period of North American pre-Columbian cultures was from roughly 1000 BCE to 1000 CE in the eastern part of North America. The term "Woodland Period" was introduced in the 1930s as a generic header for prehistoric sites falling between the Archaic hunter-gatherers and the...
site (circa 800 B.C.-900 A.D.). The present-day city of Winona was founded on the village of Keoxa. As the seat of the Wapasha dynasty, it was home to a Mdewakanton
Mdewakanton
Mdewakantonwan are one of the sub-tribes of the Isanti Dakota . Their historic home is Mille Lacs Lake in central Minnesota, which in the Dakota language was called mde wakan .As part of the Santee Sioux, their ancestors had migrated from the Southeast of the present-day United States, where the...
band of the eastern Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
. The summer homes of the Keoxa natives were made of bark supported by a framework and poles. Their winter residence was a teepee made of about 8 buffalo hides sewn together with deer
Deer
Deer are the ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. Species in the Cervidae family include white-tailed deer, elk, moose, red deer, reindeer, fallow deer, roe deer and chital. Male deer of all species and female reindeer grow and shed new antlers each year...
sinew, typically about 12 feet (4 m) high and 10 to 12 feet (3 to 4 m) in diameter, with a fire in the middle to keep the temperature inside the dwelling tolerable even in the coldest weather.
Lieutenant Zebulon Pike
Zebulon Pike
Zebulon Montgomery Pike Jr. was an American officer and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado is named. As a United States Army captain in 1806-1807, he led the Pike Expedition to explore and document the southern portion of the Louisiana Purchase and to find the headwaters of the Red River,...
left Fort Bellefontaine on August 9, 1805 with orders to find the source of the Mississippi. On September 14, 1805, he reached the Mississippi Valley near island number 72 (on his map), which would one day be Winona, Minnesota, and recorded his impressions in his log.
Less than fifty years later, Pike's island 72 was selected by Captain Orrin Smith as a townsite on the west bank of the Mississippi River. For over twenty-five years, Smith had sailed the river between Galena
Galena
Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
and Fort Snelling, 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...
as owner and pilot of the river packet Nominee. In 1851 Smith learned that the treaties of Traverse des Sioux and Mendota would establish a reservation in the interior of the state, and realized that there would be a rush to develop townsites on the Minnesota side of the river. On October 15, 1851 Orrin Smith became the founder of Winona, by landing his ship's carpenter, Mr. Erwin Johnson, and two other men (Smith and Stevens) with the purpose of claiming title to the riverfront and surrounding prairie land. When the town site was surveyed and plotted by John Ball, United States deputy surveyor, it was given the name of "Montezuma", as requested by Johnson and Smith. Henry D. Huff bought an interest in the town site in 1853. With the consent of Capt. Smith, Huff erased the name of Montezuma and inserted the name of Winona on the plot, a name derived from the Dakota Indian word "We-no-nah", which translates to "first-born daughter".
Winona was settled by non-Native Americans in 1851, and the town was laid out into lots in 1852-3 with growth expanding rapidly over the years. The population increased from 815 in December, 1855, to 3,000 in December, 1856. In 1860 Winona had a population of 2,456, and was third largest city in Minnesota until the late 1880s. Part of the surge in population in 1856 was the fact that land claims became legal in 1855 with the completion of land surveys and the opening of a local federal land office. It was incorporated as a city in 1857.
Growth in Winona was built on a railway and steamboat
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
transportation system, wheat
Wheat
Wheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
milling, and lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
. In 1856 over 1,300 steamboats stopped at Winona. The railway system grew and the Winona Railway Bridge, built of steel and iron with a steam-powered swingspan over the river, was the second railway bridge to span the Mississippi. The first train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
crossed on July 4, 1891 and the bridge served the Green Bay & Western (GBW) and Burlington Route for the next 94 years until it was closed in 1985 and dismantled in the fall of 1990. In 1892, a wagon
Wagon
A wagon is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by draught animals; it was formerly often called a wain, and if low and sideless may be called a dray, trolley or float....
toll-bridge over the Mississippi, a steel high-bridge, was completed and remained in service until 1942.
During the 1860s southern Minnesota was the greatest wheat producing region in the country and Winona was the main port for shipping Minnesota wheat. By 1870, Winona was the fourth largest wheat shipping port in the United States. In 1899, Bay State Milling was founded, and is still in operation today. John Laird started the first lumber mill in 1855; he later was joined by his cousins James and Matthew Norton in founding the Laird-Norton Co. The Winona sawmills reached their peak production in 1892 when they produced over 160 million board feet (380,000 m³) annually and ranked eighth in production of lumber in the upper Midwest.
A famous resident of Winona was J. R. Watkins, the man who invented the "money back guarantee" in 1868 when he started Watkins Incorporated
Watkins Incorporated
Watkins Incorporated is a manufacturer of health remedies, baking products, and other household items. The entire catalog includes 400 products. It is based in Winona, Minnesota, and largely relies on an independent sales force of 25,000 people to distribute its products...
. In the early 1900s he renamed the company the J. R. Watkins Medical Company. He died before the completion of the company's current factory and offices in 1911. Now called J. R. Watkins Incorporated, it is one of the oldest companies in the nation. The company also trades in Canada, China and as of May 2009 in the United Kingdom as Watkins UK. The company museum and factory are open for visitation and touring 6 days a week.
For a decade (1907–1917) Winona was home to pioneer American composer Carl Ruggles
Carl Ruggles
Charles "Carl" Sprague Ruggles was an American composer of the American Five group. He wrote finely crafted pieces using "dissonant counterpoint", a term coined by Charles Seeger to describe Ruggles' music...
. Carl (Charles Sprague) Ruggles was born in East Marion, Massachusetts, on March 11, 1876. Trained as a violinist, he also studied theory and composition in Boston with Josef Claus and John Knowles Paine. (Plans to study composition with Dvorak in Prague were put off when a financial sponsor died). In 1907, he moved to Winona, where he founded, and for a decade conducted, the Winona Symphony. He also gave lessons, composed, and began painting during this time. Ruggles is often referred to together with composer Charles Ives.
In 1947 the Edstrom brothers (Harold and Everett), along with fellow musician Roger Busdicker, founded the Hal Leonard Corporation, currently the largest publisher of sheet music in the world.
Winona's population reached 19,714 in 1900, but thereafter declined for some years after the collapse of the lumber industry.
Transportation
U.S. Highway 14U.S. Route 14
U.S. Route 14 , an east–west route, is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It currently has a length of 1,398 miles , but it had a peak length of 1,429 miles . For much of its length, it runs roughly parallel to Interstate 90.As of 2004, the highway's eastern terminus is in...
, U.S. Highway 61
U.S. Route 61
U.S. Route 61 is the official designation for a United States highway that runs from New Orleans, Louisiana, to the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River, and is designated the Great River Road for much of its route. As of 2004, the highway's...
, Minnesota Highway 43
Minnesota State Highway 43
Minnesota State Highway 43 is a highway in southeast Minnesota, which runs from its intersection with State Highway 44 in Mabel and continues north to its northern terminus at the Wisconsin state line at Winona, where it becomes Wisconsin Highway 54 upon crossing the Mississippi River.Highway 43 is...
and Wisconsin State Highway 54 are the main routes into the city. Interstate Highway 90
Interstate 90
Interstate 90 is the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It is the northernmost coast-to-coast interstate, and parallels US 20 for the most part. Its western terminus is in Seattle, at Edgar Martinez Drive S. near Safeco Field and CenturyLink Field, and its eastern terminus is in...
is located a short distance south of the city.
Winona was once served by passenger railroads such as the Milwaukee Road, Burlington Route, and Chicago & Northwestern. Only the former Milwaukee Road station remains. It is now served by Amtrak's
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
daily in each direction between Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and Seattle
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
and Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
.
Winona Municipal Airport - Max Conrad Field serves general aviation
General aviation
General aviation is one of the two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than military and scheduled airline and regular cargo flights, both private and commercial. General aviation flights range from gliders and powered parachutes to large, non-scheduled cargo jet flights...
in the area. It was once served by one passenger airliner, North Central Airlines
North Central Airlines
North Central Airlines was founded as Wisconsin Central Airlines in 1944 in Clintonville, Wisconsin. It was headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.-Early history:...
until the mid-1970s.
Industry
Winona is home to the headquarters of the Watkins CorporationWatkins Incorporated
Watkins Incorporated is a manufacturer of health remedies, baking products, and other household items. The entire catalog includes 400 products. It is based in Winona, Minnesota, and largely relies on an independent sales force of 25,000 people to distribute its products...
, Fastenal
Fastenal
Fastenal Co is an American company based in Winona, Minnesota. Selling industrial and construction supplies and services including inventory management services, Fastenal refers to itself as an industrial supply company, but Reuters calls it an industrial distributor.-History:Founded in 1967 by...
, Hal Leonard Corporation, Thern Inc., RTP Company, We-No-Nah Canoe, United Building Centers, Bloedow's Bakery, Badger Equipment Company, Winona Lighting, WinCraft Sports, and Winona Pattern & Mold,.
Top employers
According to the City's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:| # | Employer | # of Employees |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fastenal Fastenal Fastenal Co is an American company based in Winona, Minnesota. Selling industrial and construction supplies and services including inventory management services, Fastenal refers to itself as an industrial supply company, but Reuters calls it an industrial distributor.-History:Founded in 1967 by... |
1,169 |
| 2 | Winona Health | 950 |
| 3 | Winona State University Winona State University Winona State University is a comprehensive public university in Winona, Minnesota, United States, a college and river town located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, with around 8,900 enrolled undergraduate and graduate students... |
860 |
| 4 | Independent School District 861 Independent School District 861 Independent School District 861 is the public school system in Winona, Minnesota, USA. It is also known as WAPS . The superintendent is Scott Hannon.... |
647 |
| 5 | TRW Automotive TRW Automotive TRW Automotive , headquartered in Livonia, Michigan, USA, is a major global supplier of automotive systems, modules and components to automotive original equipment manufacturers and related aftermarkets.... Electronics |
550 |
| 6 | WinCraft | 420 |
| 7 | RTP | 415 |
| 8 | Saint Mary's University of Minnesota Saint Mary's University of Minnesota Saint Mary's University of Minnesota is a private, comprehensive, coeducational university with an undergraduate campus in the city of Winona, Minnesota, United States... |
377 |
| 9 | County of Winona Winona County, Minnesota As of the census of 2000, there were 49,985 people, 18,744 households, and 11,696 families residing in the county. The population density was 80 people per square mile . There were 19,551 housing units at an average density of 31 per square mile... |
375 |
| 10 | Wal-Mart Wal-Mart Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000... |
250 |
Peerless Chain Company
900
Government and politics
Winona is located in Minnesota's 1st congressional districtMinnesota's 1st congressional district
Minnesota's 1st congressional district extends across southern Minnesota from the border with South Dakota to the border with Wisconsin. The First District is primarily a rural district built on a strong history of agriculture, although this is changing rapidly due to strong population growth in...
, represented by Mankato
Mankato, Minnesota
Mankato is a city in Blue Earth, Nicollet, and Le Sueur counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 39,309 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth largest city in Minnesota outside of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. The county seat of Blue Earth County, it is located...
educator Tim Walz
Tim Walz
Timothy James Walz is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party .The district comprises the state's southern end, running along the entire border with Iowa...
, a Democrat. At the state level, Winona is located in Senate
Minnesota Senate
The Minnesota Senate is the upper house in the Minnesota Legislature. There are 67 members, half as many as are in the Minnesota House of Representatives. In terms of membership, it is the largest upper house of any state legislature. Each Senate district in the state includes an A and B House...
District 31, represented by Republican Jeremy Miller
Jeremy Miller (politician)
Jeremy R. Miller is a Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota Senate who represents District 31, which includes portions of Fillmore, Houston, and Winona counties in the southeastern part of the state...
, and in House
Minnesota House of Representatives
The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house in the Minnesota State Legislature. There are 134 members elected to two-year terms, twice the number of members in the Minnesota Senate. Each senate district is divided in half and given the suffix A or B...
District 31A, represented by Democrat Gene Pelowski
Gene Pelowski
Gene P. Pelowski, Jr. is Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives representing District 31A, which includes portions of Houston and Winona counties. A Democrat, he is also a teacher at Winona Senior High School in Winona.Pelowski was first elected in 1986, and...
.
Education
Normal school
A normal school is a school created to train high school graduates to be teachers. Its purpose is to establish teaching standards or norms, hence its name...
west of the Mississippi in 1858 with the establishment of Winona Normal School (now Winona State University
Winona State University
Winona State University is a comprehensive public university in Winona, Minnesota, United States, a college and river town located in picturesque bluff country on the Mississippi River, with around 8,900 enrolled undergraduate and graduate students...
). This was the beginning of Winona's tradition as a center of higher education. Saint Mary's College (now Saint Mary's University
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota is a private, comprehensive, coeducational university with an undergraduate campus in the city of Winona, Minnesota, United States...
) was founded as a private Roman Catholic school in 1912. Later, as the necessary opportunity of higher education for women became apparent, the College of Saint Teresa
College of Saint Teresa
The College of Saint Teresa was a Catholic women's college in Winona, Minnesota. Previously a seminary, it became a college in 1907 and was operated by the Sisters of Saint Francis of Rochester, Minnesota until its closing in 1989.-History:...
was created. After Saint Mary's became co-ed in 1969, Saint Teresa closed down in 1988, and its facilities are now used, owned, and/or operated by Winona State, Saint Mary's, Cotter High School, and the Valéncia Performing Arts Academy of Saint Mary's University. Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical
Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical
Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical is a technical college with campuses in Red Wing and Winona, Minnesota, which were originally two separate vocational institutes...
also has a campus in Winona.
There is also a relatively diverse variety of K-12 educational opportunities. Run by Independent School District 861
Independent School District 861
Independent School District 861 is the public school system in Winona, Minnesota, USA. It is also known as WAPS . The superintendent is Scott Hannon....
, the local public school system includes seven elementary schools (four in the city of Winona), the Winona Middle School
Winona Middle School
Winona Middle School is a school for grades 5 to 8 in Winona, Minnesota. As of 2008 it had some 1037 students and 69 classroom teachers. It is part of the Winona Area Public School District....
, and the Winona Senior High School
Winona Senior High School
Winona Senior High School is a publicly funded high school in Winona, in Winona County, which is located in southeastern Minnesota. The high school has over 1200 students in grades 9-12 and its principal as of 2010 Kelly Jansen. The school's mascot is "Herky," the Winhawk. The school is part of...
. The Winona Area Catholic Schools system includes St. Mary's primary school, St. Stanislaus Elementary School, Cotter Junior High School, and Cotter Senior High School. There are also other non-preparatory private schools. Bluffview Montessori Charter School, located in Winona, was the first charter
Charter school
Charter schools are primary or secondary schools that receive public money but are not subject to some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools in exchange for some type of accountability for producing certain results, which are set forth in each school's charter...
Montessori, and the second charter school overall in the United States. There are also two private Lutheran K-8 schools, and Hope Lutheran High School
Hope Lutheran High School
Hope Lutheran High School is a private Lutheran high school located in Winona, Minnesota. It was started by a small board in the summer of 2003. The school's mascot is the patriot. The school opened its doors for the fall of 2003-2004 with a class of seven. Now, the school will graduate its first...
.
Religion
Winona is home to five Catholic Parishes, twenty nine Protestant Churches, one meetinghouse of the LDS Church, and one Islamic prayer center. Central Lutheran, Pleasant Valley Evangelical Free Church, and Living Light Church are the largest congregations among the Protestant churches.Winona is the episcopal see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona
Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona
The Diocese of Winona is the Roman Catholic diocese which ministers to the people of southern Minnesota. The diocese includes Blue Earth, Cottonwood, Dodge, Faribault, Fillmore, Freeborn, Houston, Jackson, Martin, Mower, Murray, Nobles, Olmsted, Pipestone, Rock, Steele, Wabasha, Waseca, Watonowan,...
. The Cathedral of the Sacred Heart
Cathedral of the Sacred Heart (Winona, Minnesota)
The Cathedral of the Sacred Heart is the mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona. The cathedral is located in Winona, Minnesota on Minnesota State Highway 43 near downtown. The current rector of the cathedral is Fr. Richard Colletti....
is the mother church of the Diocese. Saint Stanislaus Kostka Catholic Church is a landmark Roman Catholic Church built in the Polish Cathedral style
Polish Cathedral style
The Polish Cathedral architectural style is a North American genre of Catholic church architecture found throughout the Great Lakes and Middle Atlantic regions as well as in parts of New England...
, and is known for its Old World opulence.
The Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary
Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary (Winona, Minnesota)
Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary is a Roman Catholic, Diocesan-sponsored college seminary in Winona, Minnesota. Located adjacent to the campus of Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, IHM Seminary has provided college-level seminary training since 1948...
located in Winona is sponsored by the Diocese of Winona. Winona is also the seat of the Seminary of St. Thomas Aquinas, the United States seminary for the Society of St. Pius X
Society of St. Pius X
The Society of Saint Pius X is an international Traditionalist Catholic organisation, founded in 1970 by the French archbishop Marcel Lefebvre...
. It previously was in Ridgefield
Ridgefield, Connecticut
Ridgefield is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains, the 300-year-old community had a population of 24,638 at the 2010 census. The town center, which was formerly a borough, is defined by the U.S...
, Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
, but moved to Winona in 1988.
Arts
In addition to the arts brought to the community by the local educational institutes, Winona has two professional theater companies, the Great River Shakespeare FestivalGreat River Shakespeare Festival
The Great River Shakespeare Festival is an annual festival held in June and July in Winona, Minnesota, a Mississippi River town in the southeastern part of the state. It has produced two simultaneous performances each summer, held at the Winona State University Performing Arts Center...
and the Theatre du Mississippi. Additionally, the Minnesota Beethoven Festival brings world class artists to Winona for a month long season each summer...among them cellist Yo Yo Ma in 2010. There is also a brand new music festival, the Mid West Music Fest, scheduled for the first time on July 30 and 31 in 2010. Recently completed is the Minnesota Marine Art Museum
Minnesota Marine Art Museum
The Minnesota Marine Art Museum is an art museum located on the banks of the Mississippi River in Winona, Minnesota. The museum can be found at 800 Riverview Drive. The MMAM features four galleries of world-class art and artifacts including impressionism and Hudson River School paintings, marine...
, which encompasses work by both international and local artists, a collection of photographs by the river engineer Henry Bosse
Henry Peter Bosse
Henry Peter Bosse German-American photographer, cartographer and civil engineer.-Biography:...
, and sculpture by Leo Smith. In particular their impressionist and Hudson River school collections are outstanding. The museum may host one of the best collections of Canadian maritime painting outside Canada. The new Laird-Norton addition (designed by celebrated architect Joan Soranno) to the Winona County History Center will open in June, 2010.
Media
PrintWinona has two newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s: the Winona Daily News
Winona Daily News
The Winona Daily News is a daily newspaper serving Winona, Minnesota and the surrounding area. Founded in 1855, it is the second oldest continually running newspaper in the state, with a weekday circulation of 11,354 and a Sunday circulation of 12,340....
, a daily morning paper; and the Winona Post, a bi-weekly paper with mid-week and Sunday editions. Papers from La Crosse, Rochester, and the Twin Cities are also commonly read.
Television
Winona receives TV signals from neighboring cities, including several channels each from La Crosse, Rochester, Eau Claire
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire is a city located in the west-central part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 65,883 as of the 2010 census, making it the largest municipality in the northwestern portion of the state, and the 9th largest in the state overall. It is the county seat of Eau Claire County,...
, and the Twin Cities, although what can be received depends on the location within the area, as the extensive system of valley
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
s and ridge
Ridge
A ridge is a geological feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for some distance. Ridges are usually termed hills or mountains as well, depending on size. There are several main types of ridges:...
s may block any or all signals. There is one local public broadcasting
Public broadcasting
Public broadcasting includes radio, television and other electronic media outlets whose primary mission is public service. Public broadcasters receive funding from diverse sources including license fees, individual contributions, public financing and commercial financing.Public broadcasting may be...
TV network, HBCI, which is available only to subscribers of the HBC cable company.
Radio
Local Stations:
- KWNOKWNO (AM)KWNO is an American radio station which first went on the air in 1938. It was the first local radio station in Winona, Minnesota. It was Winona's only station until the mid-1950s....
1230 AM - KAGEKAGE (AM)KAGE is a radio station broadcasting a Country music format. Licensed to Winona, Minnesota, USA. The station features programing from AP Radio.It is owned by Kage, Inc, and is located at 752 Bluffview Circle, with its other sister stations....
1380 AMAM broadcastingAM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave... - KQALKQALKQAL is a radio station broadcasting a Variety format. Licensed to Winona, Minnesota, USA. Currently, the station is the only independent, non-commercial station broadcasting in the near area...
89.5 FM - KSMRKSMR (FM)KSMR is a non-commercial educational radio station broadcasting a variety format. Licensed to Winona, Minnesota, USA, it serves the Saint Mary's University campus and entire Winona area. It first began broadcasting under the call sign KSMW...
92.5 FM - KAGE-FMKAGE-FMKAGE-FM is a radio station broadcasting a Hot Adult Contemporary format. Licensed to Winona, Minnesota, USA. The station features programing from Jones Radio Network....
95.3 - KWNO-FMKWNO-FMKWNO-FM 99.3 is a radio station serving the Winona, Minnesota area. It has a Country Music format from the Dial Global networks.The station is owned by Kage, Inc. It's located at 752 Bluffview Circle, with its other sister stations, KAGE , KAGE-FM, KWNO , and KHME-FM....
99.3 - KHMEKhmeKHME is a radio station broadcasting a Soft Adult Contemporary format. Licensed to Winona, Minnesota, USA, the station serves the La Crosse, Wisconsin, area. The station features programing from Jones Radio Network....
101.1 FM
Fringe Stations:
- WKTYWKTYWKTY is a radio station broadcasting a sports radio format. Licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is owned by Family Radio, Inc...
580 AM, La Crosse - WIZMWIZM (AM)WIZM is a radio station broadcasting a News Talk Information format. Licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is currently owned by Family Radio, Inc. and features programing from CBS Radio, Premiere Radio Networks and Westwood One.- Programming...
1410 AM, La Crosse - WLSUWLSUWLSU is a radio station licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin. The station is part of Wisconsin Public Radio , and airs WPR's "NPR News and Classical Network", consisting of classical music and news and talk programming....
88.9 FM, La Crosse - WHLAWHLA (FM)WHLA is a radio station licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin. The station is part of Wisconsin Public Radio , and airs WPR's "Ideas Network", consisting of news and talk programming.*See also Wisconsin Public Radio-External links:*...
90.3 FM, La Crosse - KXLCKXLCKXLC is a radio station licensed to La Crescent, Minnesota, serving the La Crosse, Wisconsin area. The station is owned by Minnesota Public Radio , and airs MPR's "News and Information" network, originating from KNOW in Minneapolis/St. Paul....
91.1 FM, La Crescent - WIZM-FMWIZM-FMWIZM-FM is a radio station broadcasting a Top 40 format. Licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is currently owned by Midwest Family Broadcasting -External links:*...
93.3 FM, La Crosse - KCLHKCLHKCLH is a radio station broadcasting a Classic Hits format. Licensed to Caledonia, Minnesota, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is currently owned by Family Radio, Inc.. The station is also broadcast on HD radio.-History:...
94.7 FM, CaledoniaCaledonia, MinnesotaAs of the census of 2000, there were 2,965 people, 1,223 households, and 754 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,037.1 people per square mile . There were 1,286 housing units at an average density of 449.8 per square mile... - KQYBKQYBKQYB is a radio station broadcasting a Country music format. Licensed to Spring Grove, Minnesota, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is currently owned by Family Radio, Inc..-Translators:...
98.3 FM, Spring GroveSpring Grove, MinnesotaSpring Grove is a city in Houston County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,330 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land... - KQEGKQEG (FM)KQEG is a radio station broadcasting an oldies format. Licensed to La Crescent, Minnesota, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is currently owned by Mississippi Valley Broadcasters, LLC. It features programing from ABC Radio .All the stations of the "La Crosse Radio Group"...
102.7 FM, La CrescentLa Crescent, MinnesotaAs of the census of 2000, there were 4,923 people, 1,940 households, and 1,367 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,634.4 people per square mile . There were 2,014 housing units at an average density of 668.6 per square mile... - WFBZWFBZ-External links:...
105.5 FM, TrempealeauTrempealeau, WisconsinTrempealeau is a village in Trempealeau County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 1,529 at the 2010 census. The village is located within the Town of Trempealeau.-Geography:Trempealeau is located at .... - WQCCWQCCWQCC is a radio station broadcasting a Country music format. Licensed to La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA, the station serves the La Crosse area. The station is currently owned by Mississippi Valley Broadcasters, LLC....
106.3 FM, La Crosse
Steamboat Days
Steamboat Days is the annual celebration in Winona. It is celebrated with a carnival, fireworks, a parade, and many other activities. For adults there are many other activities in which to take part. The celebration usually lasts six days.Notable people
- Harold "Hal" Edstrom, co-founder of Hal Leonard Corporation
- Everett "Leonard" Edstrom, co-founder of Hal Leonard Corporation
- Roger Busdicker, co-founder of Hal Leonard Corporation
- Charles H. BerryCharles H. BerryCharles Henry Berry was the first Minnesota Attorney General after statehood, from 1858 to 1860. He also served in the Minnesota Senate 1874-1876....
, lawyer - Carol BartzCarol BartzCarol Ann Bartz is an American business executive, the former president and CEO of the Internet services company Yahoo!, and former chairman, president, and CEO at architectural and engineering design software company Autodesk....
, Former CEO of Yahoo!Yahoo!Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine , Yahoo! Directory, Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, advertising, online mapping ,...
, formerly of AutodeskAutodeskAutodesk, Inc. is an American multinational corporation that focuses on 3D design software for use in the architecture, engineering, construction, manufacturing, media and entertainment industries. The company was founded in 1982 by John Walker, a coauthor of the first versions of the company's... - Robert Henry BromRobert Henry Brom-Early life:Brom was born in Arcadia, Trempealeau County, Wisconsin on September 18, 1938. He was ordained a priest of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Winona in Winona, Minnesota on December 18, 1963. On March 25, 1983, Brom was appointed the Roman Catholic Bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Duluth...
, Roman Catholic bishop - Tracy CaulkinsTracy CaulkinsTracy Anne Caulkins Stockwell, OAM, is a former American college and international swimmer, a three-time Olympic gold medalist and a former world record-holder....
, swimmer - Max ConradMax ConradMaximilien "Max" Conrad, known as the "Flying Grandfather", was a record-setting aviator. In the 1950s and 1960s, he set nine official light plane world records, three of which still stand at the end of 2008. For his efforts, he was awarded the Louis Blériot medal in 1952 and the prestigious...
. aviator - James Earle Fraser (1876–1953), sculptor, designer of the Buffalo Nickel and the "End of the Trail" statue
- Paul GielPaul GielPaul Robert Giel was a football and baseball player from Winona, Minnesota.Giel attended the University of Minnesota, where he was a star quarterback for the Gophers. His career totals were 2,188 yards rushing, 1,922 yards passing...
, athlete - James "J. R." KellerJames Keller (Minnesota politician)James "Jim" or "J.R." Keller was a Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives and the Minnesota Senate from southeastern Minnesota.-Service in the Minnesota House and Senate:...
, former state senator and representative - John G. McMynnJohn G. McMynnJohn Gibson McMynn was an American educator.Born in Palatine Bridge, New York, McMynn graduated from Williams College in 1848. In 1848, he moved to Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he started a school. Eventually, he moved to Racine, Wisconsin to set up the public school system...
, Wisconsin Superintendent of Public Instruction - William D. MitchellWilliam D. MitchellWilliam DeWitt Mitchell was appointed to the position of U.S. Solicitor General by Calvin Coolidge on June 4, 1925, which he held until he was appointed to the position of U.S. Attorney General for the entirety of Herbert Hoover's Presidency.Born in Winona, Minnesota to William B...
, United States Attorney General - Thomas H. MoodieThomas H. MoodieThomas H. Moodie was born in Winona, Minnesota. He served a brief term of less than a month as the 19th Governor of North Dakota in 1935...
, former North Dakota governor - Winona RyderWinona RyderWinona Ryder is an American actress. She made her film debut in the 1986 film Lucas. Ryder's first significant role came in Tim Burton's Beetlejuice as a goth teenager, which won her critical and commercial recognition...
, actress (named after the city and county, although she never lived there) - William WindomWilliam Windom (actor)William Windom is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his work on television, including several episodes of The Twilight Zone; playing the character of Glen Morley, a congressman from Minnesota like his own great-grandfather and namesake in The Farmer's Daughter; the character of John...
, actor, and his great grandfather, politician William WindomWilliam WindomThis page is about the former United States politician. William Windom was an American politician from Minnesota. He served as U.S. Representative from 1859 to 1869, and as U.S. Senator from 1870 to January 1871, from March 1871 to March 1881, and from November 1881 to 1883...
(1827–1891), who served as a Republican member of both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate from Minnesota; later became Secretary of the Treasury under presidents James GarfieldJames GarfieldJames Abram Garfield served as the 20th President of the United States, after completing nine consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Garfield's accomplishments as President included a controversial resurgence of Presidential authority above Senatorial courtesy in executive...
, Chester Arthur and Benjamin HarrisonBenjamin HarrisonBenjamin Harrison was the 23rd President of the United States . Harrison, a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there...
. Actor William Windom's character of Glen Morley in The Farmer's DaughterThe Farmer's Daughter (TV series)The Farmer's Daughter is an American situation comedy series that was produced by Screen Gems Television and aired on ABC from September 20, 1963 to April 22, 1966. It was sponsored by Lark cigarettes and Clairol for whom the two leading stars often appeared at show's end promoting the products...
television series (1963) was also a congressman from Minnesota.
Sister cities
Bytów, PolandBytów
Bytów is a town in the Middle Pomerania region of northern Poland in the Bytów Lakeland with 16,888 inhabitants . Previously in Słupsk Voivodeship , it is the capital of Bytów County in Pomeranian Voivodeship .-History:...
Misato, Miyagi, Japan
Misato, Miyagi
is a town located in Tōda District, Miyagi, Japan.The town was formed on January 1, 2006 by the merger of the towns of Kogota and Nangō. As of 2005, the town has an estimated population of 26,322 and a population density of 351 persons per km²...
Landmarks
- Heffron HallHeffron Hall (St. Mary's University)Heffron Hall is a residence hall located on the campus of Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, in Winona, Minnesota. Built in 1920, was the second major building in the early history of Saint Mary's College. The building honors the founder of Saint Mary’s, Roman Catholic Bishop Patrick Richard...
is a residential hall at Saint Mary's University that was built in 1920. There is talk that this dorm is actually haunted by a ghost. - Sugar Loaf is a lighted, rocky pinnacle (remaining after quarrying activity) that arises from one of the many bluffs that line Highway 61. It is located at the junction of Highway 61 and Highway 43/Mankato Avenue.