Rosemount City

Dakota County, Minnesota

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Rosemount City Hall is located at 2875 145th Street, Rosemount, MN 55068.
Phone: 651‑423‑4411.

Neighborhoods

Beginnings [1]

The first settler of European ancestry was William Strathen who arrived in the Rich Valley of Rosemount in 1853 and claimed land within the northeast quarter of Section 13, which is located by the present day Flint Hills Refinery. Other settlers followed. The first religious service being conducted in 1854 by Reverend Kidder. Andrew Keegan, a surveyor, was the first postmaster 1855. In 1857, the Rich Valley post office was established, with C.H. Carr serving as postmaster.

In 1858, the Board of County Commissioners officially designated Township 115 North, Range 19 West (the portion of the present City located west of US Highway 52) by the name Rosemount. The portion of the present City east of US Highway 52 was annexed by an act of legislation in 1871. The name Rosemount was chosen to honor a village in Ireland. A small school was also constructed in 1858. In the 1860's, 52 men served in the Civil War. The Village of Rosemount was formally platted in 1866 by James A. Case and in 1867 the first grain elevator was constructed by the railroad.

The Village of Rosemount was incorporated in 1875 and the first town hall was constructed a year later.

The 1880's saw the Village of Rosemount become a viable business area. Many businesses opened and 2 story brick buildings were built. In 1881, Rosemount erected the first gas street lamps in the Downtown area.

The first school district building was built in 1896 and taught grades 1 through 8. In 1918, the first high school was built and taught grades 1 through 12. In 1922, the school had 50 high school students and began a football program. The high school building still exists today and is a part of the Rosemount Middle School complex on the northwest corner of 143rd Street West and South Robert Trail. Dakota County Technical College opened 1970 with the first graduating class in 1971.

With WWII in full swing, the War Department of the federal government, in 1942, acquired 11,500 acres of farmland within Rosemount and Empire Township for the construction of the Gopher Ordnance Works. The plant was built to produce white smokeless gunpowder.

At the end of the war, the government found the ordnance work unnecessary and sold some of the property to farmers, but the majority of the property was sold to the University of Minnesota for research. The property is currently called UMore Park, and is still owned and managed by the University.

  1. City of Rosemount, Minnesota, 2030 Comprehensive Land Use Plan, Rosemount History, 2009, www.ci.rosemount.mn.us, accessed April, 2012.

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