New Book Documents History of Carver, MN
A new book documenting the history of Carver, Minnesota, is now available for purchase. The book, written by John von Walter after more than a decade of work, can be obtained from the Carver County Historical Society in Waconia for a suggested donation of $40.
The book's author, John von Walter, is also involved with the Carver Heritage Preservation Commission and the non-profit Carver-on-the-Minnesota, which will split the proceeds from the book's sales with the Carver County Historical Society. A digital version of "Historic Carver On the Minnesota River" has been made freely available to the public. The city of Carver was established in 1852 by Norwegian immigrant Axel Jorgenson. He settled on land that was previously the site of a Wahpeton Dakota village at the confluence of the Minnesota River and Carver Creek. In 1854, Jorgenson sold his claim to the Carver Land Company, a group of investors that included former Territorial Governor Alexander Ramsey, who named the town after 18th-century explorer Jonathan Carver. By 1857, Carver had grown to include 35 buildings, becoming a key stopping point for trade and immigrant travel along the Minnesota River. Its location was ideal for a steamboat terminal where goods and passengers would be transferred for ongoing river or land journeys. The town's fortunes shifted, however, when the development of railroads bypassed Carver, leading to an economic decline. In 1980, the core of the old town was designated as the Carver Historic District and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This district encompasses approximately 100 contributing properties, most constructed between 1855 and 1880, representing one of the county's greatest concentrations of historically and architecturally significant buildings.
