Local Geography:Wright County in 1920

Grade 8Buffalo Community Middle School

Fall 2009

Largest Cities inWright County 1920

What was the largest city in

Wright County in 1920?

Largest Cities inWright County 1920

• 1) BUFFALO 1,460

Buffalo 1920

Buffalo 1920

Looking East on Division Street in Buffalo 1922

Division Street in Downtown Buffalo 2005

Looking North on 1st Avenue in 1920s

Looking North on 1st Avenue in 2006

Looking North on 1st Avenue in 2006

Looking North on 1st Avenue in 2006

Buffalo 1920

Buffalo 2006

Buffalo 2007

Buffalo remained a small town for many years. What event finally allowed it to

spring to life?

Buffalo Depot in 1887

Buffalo Depot in 2008

What were Buffalo’s largest industries in

1920?

Buffalo Creamery in 1898

Buffalo Creamery in the 1960s

Former Creamery Location 2008

Lbs. of Butter produced in W.C.

• 1870 – 115,675 lbs.

• 1890 – 1,176,909 lbs.

• 1900 – 498,430 lbs.

• 1939 – 26 total creameries in the county

Other Buffalo Industries in 1920

• Fish (Buffalo Lake had an “inexhaustible” supply)

• Summer Resorts

• Ice

• County Government Business

Courthouse in the 1920s

What was the second largest city in Wright County in

1920?

Largest Cities inWright County 1920

• 1) BUFFALO 1,460• 2) DELANO 1,031

River Street in Delano around 1900

River Street in Delano around 1920

River Street in Delano in 2006

River Street in Delano in 2006

Delano around 1920

Delano in 2006

What was the third largest city in

Wright County in 1920?

Largest Cities inWright County 1920

• 1) BUFFALO 1,460• 2) DELANO 1,031• 3) MONTICELLO 858

Monticello (1900)

Monticello (1920s)

Monticello 1920

Where was the first bridge built across the Mississippi in Wright County in

1920?

Monticello Bridge in 1894

Monticello Bridge in 2008

Largest Cities inWright County 1920

• 1) BUFFALO 1,460• 2) DELANO 1,031• 3) MONTICELLO 858• 4) COKATO 749• 5) HOWARD LAKE 629

Largest Cities inWright County 1920

• 1) BUFFALO 1,460• 2) DELANO 1,031• 3) MONTICELLO 858• 4) COKATO 749• 5) HOWARD LAKE 629• 6) ANNANDALE 624• 7) MAPLE LAKE 522 • 8) WAVERLY 460• 9) MONTROSE 312• 10) CLEARWATER 311• 11) ROCKFORD 257• 12) HANOVER 182• 13) SMITH LAKE 180

Major Factors Influencing Wright County Settlement in 1920

• Railroads continued to be dominant form of transportation technology– St. Michael remained a small town with no RR

• Water power is less important as electricity becomes common

• Urbanization becoming a force– People increasingly moving to cities

• Farming was increasingly mechanized– Fewer farmers needed/farms got larger

• Dairy farming had become county’s major agricultural activity

• Creameries, resorts, lumber were county’s major industries