Mountain Lake Township is a township located in
Cottonwood County, Minnesota
Cottonwood County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 11,517. Its county seat is Windom.
History
The county was created on May 23, 1857, named for the river in Germantown Township ("cottonwoo ...
, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population was 384.
The township was organized in 1871.
Geography
Mountain Lake Township has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.17%, is water.
It derives its name from the (now drained) lake of the same name which existed within its borders. Otherwise, there are several small creeks flowing in the township. Except for the extreme southern portion of the town of
Mountain Lake, which is primarily located in
Midway township, there are no incorporated towns within the township.
[ An early historical source describes the land within its borders thus, "It is excellent land and produces immense crops of all grains and grasses common to this latitude."]
History
Mountain Lake Township was formally organized on May 6, 1871, at a meeting in the home of A. A. Soule. (The village of the same name, which encompasses a small part of its northern boundary, was platted on May 25, 1872.)[ It is a full thirty-six section township, located directly south of Midway township, west of the ]Watonwan county
Watonwan County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 11,253. Its county seat is St. James, Minnesota, St. James.
History
In 1849, the recently o ...
line, north of Jackson county, and directly east of Lakeview township.[
]
Early history
The name "Mountain Lake" itself is attributed to the township's earliest non-Indian inhabitant, William Mason. As told on the city's (of the same name) website, “the first white settler to the area, William Mason, found a shallow 900-acre lake with three islands. The two smaller islands just broke the water's surface. The third much larger, higher island looked to Mason like a mountain rising from the lake. He named the lake Mountain Lake and the island Mountain Island.” The almost circular island, located in the center of the lake, was flat on top and rose about forty feet out of the water. The top of the island was covered with trees which could be seen for many miles, thus serving as a land-mark and a guide for early settlers.[ The township was named from the lake which contained the prominent island.][
Demand for tillable farmland and construction advances led to the lake's draining in the 1905–06 timeframe.] The original lake's largest island – now a tree-covered hill amidst the surrounding farmland – has become a county park, which since 1973 been listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. Archeological evidence unearthed in a 1976 dig revealed remnants of a Fox Indian
The Meskwaki (sometimes spelled Mesquaki), also known by the European exonyms Fox Indians or the Fox, are a Native American people. They have been closely linked to the Sauk people of the same language family. In the Meskwaki language, the ...
inhabitation from what could be as early as 500 B.C., making the former island's location within the township the oldest human habitation yet to be discovered in the state of Minnesota.
Formation
On May 6, 1871, Daniel D. Bates and others presented a petition at the organizational board meeting held in the home of A. A. Soule, requesting that "township 105, range 34 be set off and called Mountain Lake township." At the organizational meeting, the aforementioned Daniel D. Bates and A. A. Soule, plus M. Jacobson were appointed election judges and S. H. Soule was appointed clerk. The legal description of the newly formed townships was: "Commencing at the northeast corner of township 105, range 34, thence south to the southeast corner of said township and range; thence west to the southwest corner of said township, thence east to the northeast corner of said township and to the northeast corner of said township, thence to the place of beginning."[
]
Mennonite settlement
Mennonite
Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Radic ...
immigrants from Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
(at the time, Ukraine was part of Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
) began to arrive in the Mountain Lake area in 1873, having been recruited by William Seeger, a member of the Minnesota State Board of Immigration. Seeger had intentionally targeted these Mennonite farmers, “because they were believed to be hard workers of good character.”
Because the township's farmland was already surveyed, the Mennonites could not arrange themselves in the traditional communal villages they had been accustomed to in their Ukrainian colonies. This forced them to adapt to American-style, single family farms and to live amongst their non-Mennonite neighbors. As settlement continued, however, they soon established a successful and cohesive farming community, “based primarily on agriculture and local commerce.” Many of the township's current residents are descendants of these immigrants.
The township contains a historic cemetery dating to circa 1880, located in section 22 of the township, where some of the pioneer Mennonite residents are buried. The population of the township in 1895 was 612 and the 1900 census counted 512 inhabitants.[
]
Hutterite settlement
In 1994, the Neuhof Hutterite Colony in Mountain Lake township was founded as a division of the Spring Lake Hutterite Colony of Oldham, South Dakota
Oldham is a city in Kingsbury County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 133 at the 2010 census.
Some say the city was named for Oldham Carrot, a local landowner, while others believe the name is a transfer from Oldham, England, t ...
. The Neuhof Colony reports 64 residents. Neuhof is associated with the Hutterite branch known as Schmiedeleut
The Schmiedeleut, also Schmiedeleit, are a branch of the Hutterites that emerged in 1859. It is divided into two subgroups.
Name
The founder of the Schmiedeleut, Michael Waldner (1834–1889), was a blacksmith and therefore called "Schmied Mi ...
.
In 2005, a second Hutterite
Hutterites (german: link=no, Hutterer), also called Hutterian Brethren (German: ), are a communal ethnoreligious group, ethnoreligious branch of Anabaptism, Anabaptists, who, like the Amish and Mennonites, trace their roots to the Radical Refor ...
colony was formed as a branch of the Upland Hutterite Colony of Letcher, South Dakota
Letcher is a town in Sanborn County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 159 at the 2020 census.
Letcher has the name of O. T. Letcher, a local landowner.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total ...
, called Elmendorf Christian Community
The Elmendorf Christian Community (or Elmendorf Hutterite Colony) is an independent Anabaptist community of Hutterite tradition. Even though the majority of the members are ethnic Hutterites, there are also members from different other backgroun ...
. This community is an independent colony, with a Hutterite
Hutterites (german: link=no, Hutterer), also called Hutterian Brethren (German: ), are a communal ethnoreligious group, ethnoreligious branch of Anabaptism, Anabaptists, who, like the Amish and Mennonites, trace their roots to the Radical Refor ...
tradition. Elmendorf reports 135 residents. Elmendorf is affiliated with a group of independent Hutterites known as the Hutterite Christian Communities.
Demographics
According to the U.S. Census, as of 2010 the township's population was 384, down from 442 in the 2000 census, making the population density
Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...
10.73 persons per square mile (4.8/km).
The 2010 population included 100 households and 81 families residing in the township. There were 100 occupied housing units, with an average household size of 3.84. The racial makeup of the township was 95.8% White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 0.3% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.8% Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.5% from two or more races, and 2.6% reporting "some other race". Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were reported as 5.5% of the population.
Of the 100 households in the township, 19% were non-family households and 81% were families. There were 40 households which had children under the age of 18. 77% of the family households were husband-wife/married families, 2% were male householders with no wife present, and 2% were female householders with no husband present. Of the non-family households, 17 were householders living alone. The average household size was 3.84 and the average family size was 4.21.
In the township, 27.9% the population was under the age of 18 and 72.1% was 18 and over. 10.2% of the population was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 26.7 years. There were 92 females and 92 males.
Government
Mountain Lake Township is governed by an elected township board.
It is located within Minnesota's 1st congressional district
Minnesota's 1st congressional district extends across southern Minnesota from the border with South Dakota to the border with Wisconsin. It is a primarily rural district built on a strong history of agriculture, though this is changing rapidly d ...
, represented by Jim Hagedorn
James Lee Hagedorn ( ; August 4, 1962 – February 17, 2022) was an American politician from Minnesota. A Republican, he was the U.S. Representative for from 2019 until his death. The district stretches across southern Minnesota along the border ...
, a Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
. At the state level, the township is located in Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
District 22, represented by Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
Bill Weber
William Weber (born May 8, 1957) is a former television sports commentator best known for his work on TNT and NBC NASCAR broadcasts. Weber was also the lead announcer for Champ Car World Series events and other auto racing series on NBC. He is ...
, and in House
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
District 22B, represented by Republican Rod Hamilton
Rodney W. "Rod" Hamilton (born March 25, 1968) is a Minnesota politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, he represented District 22B, which includes all or portions of ...
.
Further reading
* Schultz, Ferdinand Peter." A History of the Settlement of German Mennonites from Russia, at Mountain Lake, Minnesota." MA Thesis, University of Minnesota, 1937.
References
External links
Schultz Cemetery by Find A Grave
"Mennonites of Mountain Lake" by the Minnesota Historical Society
{{authority control
Townships in Cottonwood County, Minnesota
Townships in Minnesota