Owatonna has a lot going for it location wise. It sits on the railroad, straight river, interstate 35 and highway 14. Owatonna was first settled by Europeans in 1854 (incorporated 1858). The Dakota used the area that is now Owatonna as hunting ground. The only area the Native Americans regularly camped out at was Rice Lake in the Eastern part of Steele County. Owatonna is named after the Dakota word for the straight river Wakpá Owóthaŋna. However, there is a legend about Princess Owatonna that you can read here: THE LEGEND OF PRINCESS OWATONNA | Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce & Tourism (visitowatonna.org)

Owatonna is a town of just over 25,000 people. It is the main city between Rochester and Mankato on Highway 14 in Southern Minnesota and is the county seat. The town itself has a lot of history and character in its buildings. Their downtown area is neat to walk around and look at. There is a big town square that they have festivities during the summer. As I’ve been researching Steele County Owatonna and just to its North Medford has the most going on. It is definitely the hub of the county.

Since it is the hub there is a lot to do. The list of yearly events is ongoing. They have Halloween Spooktacular, Winter festival, BBQ and bands, Holiday Parade, softball tournament, and more. Most of Owatonna’s attractions are of historic nature including the Village of Yesteryear, their bank, and Orphanage Museum. They do have an art center, Cabela’s, and is in close driving distance to the Medford Outlet Mall. Owatonna does have a lake close by, golf course, mineral spring park, a water park (my kids have enjoyed), and trails. I think there is something or everyone here.

Village of Yesteryear

Over the past couple of years, I’ve thought about going to the Village of Yesteryear, but never had. That is one thing that I really appreciate about this challenge…it is making me do things I’ve thought about doing but have not taken the time to do. A few Saturdays ago, my younger daughter was going on an outing with a friend. My eldest daughter does not like being left out AND loves history. That made this the perfect time for us to have a mother-daughter date!

The Village of Yesteryear is located by the Steele County fairgrounds and the Steele County History Muesum (buy your tickets there). You are allowed to walk the grounds of 20 buildings year-round but cannot go inside them without a tour guide. Tours are only offered at 1:30 pm each day Tuesday-Saturday May 1-September 30. They do have special events like the Steele County Historical Society Extravaganza each summer. Our guide also said that during the Steele County Free Fair (largest in the State after the State Fair) the buildings are open to the public.

As I said my daughter loves history and seeing all types of “old” stuff. We took the tour which I was expecting to be maybe an hour, but it ended up being 2 hours! The main attraction is the Dunnell House which was built around the mid 1860s. They have log cabins, a general store, print shop, gas station, church, one room schoolhouse (my daughter’s favorite), and my personal favorite a train caboose we were able to go in.

They have a lot of cool relics of the past from in and around Steele County. They even have a cane built out of wood from Christopher Columbus’ home. I believe it was a part of the estate of the Dunnells. My daughter asked a lot of questions, and our guide was able to answer everything, which was impressive. We were even able to interact with some of the items like the washing machine, firetruck, and the picture viewer. Overall, we had a great tour and I’m glad I was able to do something special with my daughter. Afterwards we went to the nearby park to finish out our date.

Village of Yesteryear | SCHSMN

Sources

Owatonna, MN | Official Website

Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce & Tourism | Visit Us – Owatonna, MN (visitowatonna.org)

Museum | Steele County Historical Society | Owatonna (schsmn.org)