The earliest inhabitants of the Burnsville area were the Mdewakanton Dakota Indians. Around 1750, Chief Black Dog established a permanent village between Black Dog Lake and the Minnesota River, near the present site of the Black Dog Power Plant. After the Dakota nation ceded land in 1851 and moved to Chief Shakopee’s village in Prior Lake, the […]

Overview of the History of Richfield Minnesota Richfield, Minnesota is the perfect example of a city that came a long way from being a rural area to a suburban city. Before there was any substantial residential development, the community of Richfield was an area that was completely dominated by farmland. In 1908, Richfield officially became an […]

The city of Chanhassen got its name from the Native American Dakota tribe’s word chanhassen, which means “sugar maple tree.” Over the past thirty years, the city has grown from a small and sparsely populated town to an affluent and successful city of over 24,000 residents. Much like that of its neighboring cities, Eden Prairie, Chaska, […]

The history and growth of Chaska Minnesota over the years The recording of Chaska’s history began in 1769, though several markers indicate that the area was inhabited before this time.  The city’s name comes from the word Shaska, which is derived from a Dakota name often given to a first-born son. The first inhabitants of […]