Pine City is a city in and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

of Pine County, in east central

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, United States. The population was 3,130 at the 2020 census. Part of the city is on the

Mille Lacs Indian Reservation Mille Lacs Indian Reservation is the popular name for the land-base for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe in Central Minnesota, about 100 miles (160 km) north of Minneapolis-St. Paul. The contemporary Mille Lacs Band reservation has significan ...

. Founded as a

railway town A railway town, or railroad town, is a settlement that originated, or was expanded, as a result of a railway line being constructed there. North America During the construction of the First transcontinental railroad in the 1860s, temporary, ...

, it soon became a logging community and the surrounding lakes made it a

resort town A resort town, resort city or resort destination is an urban area where tourism or vacationing is the primary component of the local culture and economy. A typical resort town has one or more actual resorts in the surrounding area. Sometimes ...

. Today, it is in part a

commuter town A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

for people working in the

Minneapolis–Saint Paul Minneapolis–Saint Paul is a metropolitan area in the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi, Minnesota River, Minnesota, and St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota), ...

metropolitan area.

History

The

Dakota Dakota may refer to: * Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux ** Dakota language, their language Dakota may also refer to: Places United States * Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Dakota, Illinois, a town * Dakota, Minnesota ...

Indians were the first in the area. With the Ojibwe expansion, the area became a mixture of the two. By the early 19th century, the area became predominantly

Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...

. They trapped and hunted on the land and traded furs at the nearby trading posts. With the 1837 Treaty of St. Peters, dubbed the "White Pine Treaty", lumbering began in the area, but was limited by access to available waterways. In the late 19th century, European settlers came to the Pine City area, which was still heavily forested with thick stands of

white pine ''Pinus'', the pines, is a genus of approximately 111 extant tree and shrub species. The genus is currently split into two subgenera: subgenus ''Pinus'' (hard pines), and subgenus ''Strobus'' (soft pines). Each of the subgenera have been further ...

, some of the state's largest. When the railroad arrived in Pine City, a logging expansion began. Pine City prospered and grew to have everything it needed to serve residents, farmers, and the expanding lumber industry. It was

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Survey System, Public Lands Surveys to ...

ted in 1869 and incorporated in 1881. When Buchanan County merged with Pine County in 1861, the county seat was consolidated to Pine City because it was already well-established. Because of its location on the far southern edge of Pine County, there have been attempts over the years to move the county seat to more central

Hinckley Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England, administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughborough, and is about halfway between L ...

Sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

. In 2005, Pine City became the first city in rural America with an annual gay pride event, East-Central Minnesota Pride. A book capturing Pine City's history in vintage photos, part of the

Images of America Arcadia Publishing is an American publisher of neighborhood, local, and regional history of the United States in pictorial form.(analysis of the successful ''Images of America'' series). Arcadia Publishing also runs the History Press, which publ ...

series, was published in 2010.

Timeline

* 1804 – European settlers arrived. * 1837 – The Treaty of St. Peters, known as the “White Pine Treaty", initiated lumbering in the area. * 1848 – The Ojibwe community of Chengwatana formally established as a village. * 1856 – Chengwatana became Pine County's county seat. * 1872 – Pine City became the county seat following a fire at the Chengwatana courthouse, prompting a new courthouse construction. * 1881 – Pine City incorporated as a village west of Chengwatana due to the railroad's location, leading to Chengwatana's decline. * 1894 – Robinson Park in Pine City served as a central staging area for relief efforts during the

Great Hinckley Fire The Great Hinckley Fire was a conflagration in the pine forests of the U.S. state of Minnesota in September 1894, which burned an area of at least (perhaps more than ), including the town of Hinckley. The official death count was 418; the actu ...

. * 1903 – James Adam Bede delivered a notable speech at the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

annual dinner in New York City. * 1914 – A Minnesota Naval Militia Armory opened in Pine City with Governor Eberhart delivering a speech at the dedication ceremony in November. * 1939 – Pine City built a yellow brick city hall, later relinquished to the county due to concerns over county seat status, now partly used by the city hall. * 1952 – Lightning struck and destroyed the towered Romanesque Revival courthouse of 1886, prompting a new courthouse's construction, integrating the old city hall's architecture. * 1954 – Pine County raised funds via bond issuance for a new courthouse, incorporating elements of the former city hall, marked with "Court House" over the north entrance. * 1967 –

Interstate 35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican bo ...

's completion through Pine City enhanced regional connectivity. * 1978 – The inaugural International Polkafest was hosted in Pine City. * 1980 – Pine City's Jean Lindig Kessler was crowned

Princess Kay of the Milky Way Princess Kay of the Milky Way is the title awarded to the winner of the statewide Minnesota Dairy Princess Program, an annual competition organized by the Midwest Dairy Association. During her one-year term, the Princess Kay of the Milky Way serv ...

. * 1992 – A 30-foot tall

voyageur Voyageurs (; ) were 18th- and 19th-century French people, French and later French Canadians and others who transported furs by canoe at the peak of the North American fur trade. The emblematic meaning of the term applies to places (New France, i ...

statue was erected on the north shore of the Snake River, near downtown Pine City. * 2005 – Pine City hosted the first annual East-Central Minnesota Pride event, promoting community inclusivity. * 2007 – A new courthouse was built on Pine City's northern edge following a failed attempt to split the county. * 2009 – Pine City's Horizon Bank failed amid the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

, with its assets acquired by Stearns Bank. * 2010 – Lakeside Medical Center, Pine City's hospital, closed amidst a wave of rural hospital closures across the U.S. * 2012 – The Pine City post office was renamed the "Master Sergeant Daniel L. Fedder Post Office" under H.R.3220. * 2017 – Pine City's boys' basketball team gained national attention in The

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

for their innovative three-point shooting strategy. * 2019 - Governor

Tim Walz Timothy James Walz (; born April 6, 1964) is an American politician who has served since 2019 as the 41st governor of Minnesota. He was the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States, vice pre ...

hosted the annual

deer hunting Deer hunting is hunting deer for meat and sport, and, formerly, for producing Buckskin (leather), buckskin hides, an activity which dates back tens of thousands of years. Venison, the name for deer meat, is a nutritious and natural food sourc ...

opener in Pine City, emphasizing the area's role in Minnesota's traditional hunting events. * 2024 – Kent Bombard was appointed Pine City's first openly gay mayor, marking a significant moment in the city's political history and becoming the third openly gay mayor in Minnesota's municipal history.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has an area of , of which is land and is water.

Climate

Below is a table of average high and low temperatures throughout the year in Pine City. Of note, Pine City's early years included historic temperature extremes as it was the site of three record-setting cold temperatures: *March 2, 1897 (-50 °F, March lowest temperature) *November 25, 1945 (-47 °F, November lowest temperature) *December 31, 1898 (-57 °F, December lowest temperature)

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 3,043 residents, 1,222 households, and 734 families in the city. The population density was . There were 1,275 housing units at an average density of .

Racial makeup (2020)

95.02%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 1.96% Black or

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 1.32% from two or more races, 1.25% Asian, 0.32% Native American, 0.01%

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race, and 0.13% from other races.

Population statistics

The city has continued to grow since it was incorporated. In fact, it is one of only three small towns in Minnesota, along with

Mora Mora may refer to: People * José Maria Mora (1847–1926), Cuban-American photographer, often credited as "Mora" * Mora (singer) (born 1996), a Puerto Rican singer * Mora (surname), a Spanish name (includes a list of people with the name) Plac ...

and Litchfield, to have never lost population. Much of the growth of the area occurs around the lakes in the neighboring townships, in Pokegama, Chengwatana or Pine City Township, and as of the latest census, the Pine City Zip Code (55063) had 9,348 residents.

Other demographics

There were 1,222 households, out of which 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.8% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.9% were non-families. 34.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.04. In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 25.0% from 25 to 44, 17.9% from 45 to 64, and 21.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $29,000 and the median income for a family was $37,000. Males had a median income of $30,000 versus $20,000 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $16,000. About 10.8% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 24.4% of those under age 18 and 14.1% of those age 65 or over. Ancestry of Pine City residents is primarily German (36%), Norwegian (17%), Swedish (15%), and Czech (8%). The 2010 Census showed the Pine City area having some of the most same-sex coupled households of any rural area of the state.

Religion

While the largest religion in Pine City is none at all, with over half of the community

unchurched "Unchurched" (alternatively, "The Unchurched" or "unchurched people") means, in the broad sense, people who are Christians but not connected with a church. The term is not well-defined; different people understand it differently. In research on ...

, it is home to various churches of varying denominations, including:

Economy

MINPACK, Inc. is one of Pine City's largest employers, with 130 employees, and Atscott Manufacturing, with 100; both are headquartered in Pine City. Other large employers in the community include

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

, Product Fabricators, Inc., Broekema Beltway, ISD 578, Therapeutic Services Agency, Pine County, Community Living Options and Lake Superior Laundry.

Downtown

The Pine City Scrapbooking Company in downtown Pine City was featured in 2017 on ''

CBS News Sunday Morning ''CBS News Sunday Morning'' (frequently shortened to ''Sunday Morning'') is an American television newsmagazine that has aired on CBS since January 28, 1979. Created by Robert Northshield and E.S. "Bud" Lamoreaux III, and originally hosted by ...

''.

Arts and culture

In 2009, Pine Center for the Arts opened. It is a regional

arts center An art centre or arts center is distinct from an art gallery or art museum. An arts centre is a functional community centre with a specific remit to encourage arts practice and to provide facilities such as theatre space, gallery space, venues fo ...

offering a variety of educational and performance-based programs relating to theater, music, visual art, literature, and dance. Classes and special events take place throughout the year.

Community theater Community theatre refers to any Theatre, theatrical performance made in relation to particular Community, communities—its usage includes theatre made by, with, and for a community. It may refer to a production that is made entirely by a communit ...

is active in Pine City: the Heritage Players perform semi-annually. The Pine City Arts Council sponsors a variety of annual events, most notably a free Friday night summer concert series held in Robinson Park and an

art festival An arts festival is a festival that can encompass a wide range of art forms including music, dance, film, fine art, literature, poetry and is not solely focused on visual arts. Arts festivals may feature a mixed program that include music, lit ...

. Promoted as "Minnesota’s Small-Town LGBTQ+ Pride", East Central Minnesota Pride's "Pride in the Park" celebration is held in Robinson Park. Starting in 2005, it was Minnesota's first small-town Pride celebration.

Major annual events

The following community and regional events are held in and around Pine City.

Spring, summer, and fall

* Highway 61 Film Festival * International Polkafest * Memorial Day Parade * East-Central Minnesota Pride * Art Fest in Robinson Park * Pine County Fair * Czech Booyah Festival, at Sokol Camp * Pine City PRCA Championship Rodeo, Labor Day Weekend

Winter

* BB32 hockey tournament * Ice fishing contests on area lakes *

Pine Technical and Community College Pine Technical and Community College (PTCC), formerly Pine Technical College, is a public community college in Pine City, Minnesota. PTCC is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System The Minnesota State Colleges an ...

Shooter's Association Gun Show

Places of interest

* Pine Center for the Arts * Rural School Dist. 69 Museum * Snake River Fur Post * Voyageur Statue, in Voyageur Park

Parks and recreation

The city has 12 city parks, including one undeveloped park (Fawn Meadows Park); two passive parks, manicured but lacking recreational equipment (Meadow Ridge Park, Thomas Park); and eight active parks, with playgrounds and/or sports facilities, including: * a community garden and a public fishing pier (Challeen Park) * four ballfields (City Ballfields) * three ice rinks (Hilltop Park) * a public boat landing (Riverside Park) * a performing stage (Robinson Park) * a disc golf course (Voyageur Park) * a skate park and a public beach (West Side Park) * a

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

veteran memorial (Woodpecker Ridge Park) * Pine City Country Club, a nine-hole public course that opened in 1971

Sports

The Pine City Pirates compete in

town team baseball Town Team Baseball is a variety of amateur or Semi-pro baseball played in the United States. In Town Team baseball, sometimes also called townball, the teams represent either a given city or town, or a commercial enterprise which sponsors the team. ...

in the Eastern Minny (now North) League, part of the Minnesota Baseball Association. Amateur baseball has been part of Pine City culture for years. The Pirates have had several state appearances, including 1950, 1952 B 2nd, 1953 B 3rd, 1961, and 1962. The team was defunct for a period before being revived in 2017.

Government

Pine City is in Minnesota's 8th congressional district, represented for many years by

Jim Oberstar James Louis Oberstar (September 10, 1934 – May 3, 2014) was an American politician and Congressman who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2011. Hailing from Minnesota and a member of the state's local Minnes ...

and now by

Pete Stauber Peter Allen Stauber (born May 10, 1966) is an American politician, former minor-league hockey player, and retired law enforcement officer from Minnesota serving as the United States representative for Minnesota's 8th congressional district. A me ...

. It is in State Senate District 11, represented by Jason Rarick. In the Minnesota House, Pine City is represented by Nathan Nelson. In 2019, Governor

appointed Thom Petersen, of Pine City, to his cabinet as Commissioner of the

Minnesota Department of Agriculture Minnesota ( ) is a state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the south, and Nor ...

. A new courthouse and county offices were relocated from downtown to the north end of town in 2007. The former courthouse was renamed Pine Government Center in 2010 and now houses city government and other community organizations, including the

Chamber of Commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

City government

Pine City has a mayor-council government. Mayoral elections occur every two years. City council seats are contested every four years. Not all of the council members are elected in the same year, as the elections are staggered throughout odd-numbered years. The council consists of five members elected to represent the city as a whole (that is,

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...

). Pine City's longest-serving mayor, and first woman mayor, was Jane Robbins.

Education

Pine City Public Schools (Independent School District #578) serve more than 1,600 students through one PK–6 elementary school (Pine City Elementary), a 7–12 Junior/Senior High School, and the Pine City Area Learning Center. Pine City is also home to St. Mary's School (Catholic), which serves preschool and K–6 students.

is a two-year institution that is part of the

Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system or Minnesota State, previously branded as MnSCU, comprises 26 state colleges and 7 state University, universities with 54 campuses throughout Minnesota. The system is the largest University ...

and offers technical and general education courses. Pine Tech's

gunsmithing A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard firearms. Gunsmiths do modifications and changes to a firearm that may require a very h ...

curriculum is one of the nation's only programs of its kind and draws students from throughout North America. The Pine City Public Library is part of the East Central Regional Library. The ECRL holds nearly 400,000 volumes and serves over 65,000 cardholders in the region. Pine City is also home to the George E. Sausen Memorial Law Library, inside the Pine County Courthouse.

Elementary schools

*ECFE/Community Education (early childhood) *Pine City Elementary School: grades K-6 *St. Mary's School: pre-school

Junior high schools

* Pine City Junior High School: grades 7–9

Senior high schools

* Pine City Senior High School: grades 10–12 *Pine City Area Learning Center (ALC): grades 9 - 12 *Vision School

Colleges and universities

Media

Newspapers

The major weekly

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

in the area is the '' Pine City Pioneer'', with a circulation of over 3,000. The ''Pioneer'' is owned by Kanabec Publishing and edited by Traci LeBrun. Papers from the Twin Cities are also commonly read.

Television

Pine City receives TV signals from the Twin Cities. Channels include

Twin Cities Public Television Twin Cities Public Television, Inc. (abbreviated TPT, trade name, doing business as Twin Cities PBS) is a nonprofit organization based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, that operates the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities' two PBS membe ...

, WCCO 4,

KSTP-TV KSTP-TV (channel 5) is a television station licensed to Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, serving the Twin Cities area as an affiliate of ABC. It is the flagship television property of locally based Hubbard Broadcasting, which has owned th ...

KMSP-TV KMSP-TV (channel 9) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, serving the Twin Cities area. It is owned and operated by the Fox network through its Fox Television Stations division alongside WFTC (channel 9.2 ...

KARE Kare or KARE may refer to: * Kare (Žitorađa), a village in Serbia * Kare language, several languages with the name * Kare (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Kare Kauks (born 1961), Estonian singer * Kåre or Kaar ...

WFTC WFTC (channel 9.2) is a television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, broadcasting the MyNetworkTV programming service to the Twin Cities area. It is owned and operated by Fox Television Stations alongside Fox outlet ...

, and

KSTC-TV KSTC-TV (channel 5.2) is an independent television station licensed to Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, serving the Twin Cities area. Owned by Hubbard Broadcasting, it is sister to Saint Paul–licensed ABC affiliate and company flagshi ...

Radio

WCMP (AM) and WCMP-FM are the two local Pine City stations. The rest are "fringe" stations from surrounding areas. Pine City also receives radio stations from the Twin Cities, St. Cloud, and western Wisconsin areas.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Mass transit

The Rush Line Corridor task force is studying the feasibility of rail service to serve area commuters. The

Northern Lights Express The Northern Lights Express (NLX) project is a planned higher-speed rail service that would run between Minneapolis and Duluth primarily in the U.S. state of Minnesota. A portion of the proposed line would run through neighboring Wisconsin to ...

passenger line has been funded and, once built, will serve area residents as well as those traveling between the Twin Cities and Twin Ports. For travel within the city, there is local taxi service.

Bus

Pine City is served by the Arrowhead Transit intra-county system. Arrowhead Transit provides local Dial-A-Ride bus service to residents in Pine City, MN and scheduled bus routes in Pine County. Arrowhead Transit provides scheduled route service to Sandstone, Hinckley, Sturgeon Lake, Cambridge, and Duluth.
/ref> An intercity bus service,

Jefferson Lines Jefferson Lines (JL or JLI) is a regional intercity bus company operating in 14 states in the Midwest and the West of the United States. History The company is operated by Jefferson Partners L.P., located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jefferson P ...

, runs from Pine City to St. Paul or Duluth twice daily.

Major highways

Pine City is along

between the

Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in stat ...

and

Duluth Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...

. The St. Croix Scenic Byway also passes through Pine City. The major highways include:

Rail

Pine City is on rail lines owned by

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

and leased by St. Croix Valley Railroad.

Trails

There is a planned, non-motorized trail connecting the Twin Cities-to-Twin Ports areas called the James L. Oberstar State Trail, awarded federal and state funding to connect the Sunrise Prairie Trail, near North Branch with the

Willard Munger State Trail The Willard Munger State Trail is a system of recreational trails between Hinckley and Duluth, Minnesota. The trail's three segments are the Hinckley to Duluth Segment, Alex Laveau Memorial Trail, and Matthew Lourey State Trail. Hinckley to Dulut ...

, near

Health and utilities

Welia Health System has a clinic in Pine City. Welia provides a variety of health care services, including family medicine, obstetrics, orthopedics, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, pediatric therapies, cardiac rehabilitation, and Urgency Services. Its facility encompasses , and a freestanding emergency facility opened in 2015. Pine City also has three chiropractic clinics and More Than Sprouts, a local market featuring organic and health foods.

Utilities

Utility providers are regulated monopolies. East Central Energy provides electrical utilities to the community and is a co-op member of

Great River Energy Great River Energy is an electric Electric power transmission, transmission and Electricity generation, generation utility cooperative, cooperative in the U.S. state of Minnesota; it is the state's second largest electric utility, based on genera ...

. Minnesota Energy supplies gas and US Cable provides cable television. The city treats and distributes water and several local businesses provide garbage removal and recycling services.

Law enforcement

The city's law enforcement agency is the Pine County Sheriff's Office, through contract, with 39 full-time staff including 23 sworn officers. The sheriff's office has three K-9s. Besides performing routine patrol duties, the sheriff's office performs water, ATV, and snowmobile patrol, and search and rescue functions.

Notable people

The following list includes those who were either born in, or who have resided (or presently reside) in Pine City: *

Ryan Anderson (musher) Ryan Anderson (born April 15, 1981) is a four-time Beargrease champion dog musher and dog sled racer from Minnesota. Beargrease champion races Iditarod Anderson dropped out of the 1,049-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race across Alaska in ...

– professional musher * James Bede – politician, US Representative 1903-09 * John "Sparky" Birrenbach – activist * Al Blake – professional wrestler a.k.a. Vladimir Petrov, or "The Russian Assassin" *

Ben Boo Benjamin Boo Jr. (January 21, 1925 – December 1, 2021) was an American politician in the state of Minnesota. He served as the 33rd mayor of Duluth from 1967 to 1975, and as a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives representing Distric ...

– politician, mayor of

from 1967 to 1975 * M. A. Brawley – politician, MN House 1876 * Louis Brouillard – priest involved in

Catholic Church sex abuse cases There have been many cases of sexual abuse of children by priests, nuns, and other members of religious life in the Catholic Church. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the cases have involved several allegations, investigations, tri ...

* Randall K. Burrows a.k.a. R.K. – politician, MN Senate 1874 *

Roy Carl Carlson Roy Carl Carlson (May 4, 1937 – April 11, 2011) was an American educator and politician. Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, he graduated from Robbinsdale High School, in Robbinsdale, Minnesota, and served in the United States Army. He went to ...

– politician, MN House 1975-76 *

George I. Clem George I. Clem (September 26, 1910 – December 19, 1988) was an Americans, American politician and businessman. Born in Fairmont, Minnesota, Clem was a high school principal and insurance agency member. He graduated from what is now Eastern Mich ...

– politician, MN House 1947-48 * Robert Enstad – Reporter and editor for

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

Josh Froelich Josh Froelich is an American competition shooter who took gold at the 2018 IPSC Shotgun World Shoot in the Open division. Much of his competition shooting has been focused on multigun (3-Gun) and Pistol Caliber Carbine (PCC). He is also a forme ...

– American competition shooter * Frederick A. Hodge – politician, MN Senate 1895-98 *

Jenna Jambeck Jenna Jambeck (born 1974) an American environmental engineer who is the Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Environmental Engineering at the University of Georgia. Her research considers plastic pollution and efforts to addres ...

– researcher * Dorothy Swanda Jones – Alaskan politician * Joe Karas – politician, MN House 1949-56 *

Mesa Kincaid Mesa Kincaid (born Cheryl Holm; 23 September 1956 - 6 September 2009) was a talk radio host in the Minneapolis-St. Paul broadcast area. Personal Kincaid was raised in Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Unite ...

– radio personality,

KQRS-FM KQRS-FM (92.5 FM broadcasting, FM) is a radio station City of license, licensed to Golden Valley, Minnesota. Owned by Cumulus Media, it broadcasts a mainstream rock format serving the Minneapolis–Saint Paul market. Its studios are located ...

, WCCO-FM and

KSTP-FM KSTP-FM (94.5 Hertz, MHz) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station in St. Paul, Minnesota, serving the Minneapolis-St. Paul media market, radio market. It is the flagship FM station of Hubbard Broadcasting and airs a hot adult contempor ...

Otto Kuss Otto Robert "Pat" Kuss (March 12, 1911 – March, 1980) was an American professional wrestler who was best known for his work with Central States Wrestling from 1948 to 1950, and 1952 as well as Stampede Wrestling in 1952. NCAA wrestling Otto ...

– professional wrestler * Trent Laugerman – drummer for

Vanilla Ice Robert Matthew Van Winkle (born October 31, 1967), known professionally as Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, actor, and television host. Born in Dallas, raised in Miami, he was the first solo white rapper to achieve commercial success foll ...

* Johnny Mold a.k.a. Jammin' – professional

snocross Snocross (also snowcross) is a racing sport involving racing specialized high performance snowmobiles on natural or artificially-made tracks consisting of tight turns, banked corners, steep jumps and obstacles. Riders race at speed of up to 60 mi ...

racer *

Bob Mould Robert Arthur Mould (born October 16, 1960) is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar (American band), Sugar in the 1990s. Early ...

– musician,

Hüsker Dü Hüsker Dü () was an American punk rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 1979. The band's continuous members were guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart. They first gained notability as a hardc ...

Sugar (American band) Sugar was an American alternative rock band active in the early 1990s. Formed in 1992, they were led by the singer and guitarist Bob Mould (ex- Hüsker Dü), alongside bassist David Barbe (ex-Mercyland) and drummer Malcolm Travis (ex- Human S ...

* Adolph Munch – politician, MN House 1872 * Karla Nelsen –

bodybuilder Bodybuilding is the practice of progressive resistance exercise to build, control, and develop one's muscles via hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to as a bodybuilder. It is primarily undertaken for aesthetic ...

; 1993 AAU Ms. America *

Anna Dickie Olesen Anna Dickie Olesen (July 3, 1885 – May 21, 1971) was an American politician from the state of Minnesota who was the first woman to be nominated by a major party for the United States Senate. Early life Olesen was born in Cordova Township, Le ...

– politician, first woman to be nominated by a major party for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

* L. C. Pedersen – politician, MN House 1919-22 * Thom Petersen – Commissioner of the

* Jason Rarick – politician, MN House 2015–19, MN Senate (present) * Allison Rosati – news anchor,

WMAQ-TV WMAQ-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the market's NBC outlet. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Telemundo station WSNS-TV (chann ...

Jon Rydberg Jon Rydberg (born October 7, 1977) is a former American wheelchair tennis and wheelchair basketball player. Biography Rydberg was born in Grantsburg, Wisconsin and raised in Pine City, Minnesota. He became physically disabled when his family pi ...

– four time United States Paralympic athlete, formerly ranked #1 among US players. NCAA wheelchair basketball national champion with the University of Texas-Arlington Movin' Mavs. * John Sayer – fur trader * Joseph Edward Therrien a.k.a. Joe – politician, MN House 1923–30, 1943-46 * Glenn Truesdell – politician, MN House 1959-60 *

Rube Walberg George Elvin Walberg (July 27, 1896 – October 27, 1978) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a left-handed pitcher from through , most notably as a member of the Philadelphia Athletics dynasty tha ...

– professional baseball player,

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* Jeff Warner a.k.a. J.W. Storm – professional wrestler *

Steve Zahn Steven James Zahn ( ; born November 13, 1967) is an American actor. In film, Zahn is best known for his lead roles in '' That Thing You Do!'' (1996), '' Happy, Texas'' (1999), '' Joy Ride'' (2001), ''National Security'' (2003), '' A Perfect Geta ...

– critically acclaimed movie star

Fictional references

* Craig Wright, writer of HBO's '' Six Feet Under'', set a series of plays in fictitious "Pine City, Minnesota." These have been performed across the United States: ''The Pavilion'', ''

Orange Flower Water Orange flower Orange flower water, or orange blossom water, is a clear aromatic by-product of the distillation of fresh bitter-orange blossoms for their essential oil. Uses This essential water has traditionally been used as an aromatizer i ...

'', ''Molly's Delicious'', ''Melissa Arctic'' and ''Grace'', which takes place in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

, but is about people who come from Pine City. *Dean L. Hovey wrote a series of seven fictional mysteries set in the Pine City area: ''Where Evil Hides'', ''Hooker'', ''Unforgettable, Undeveloped, The Deacon's Demise, and Family Trees. Family Trees: A Pine County Mystery'' won the 2018 Northeastern Minnesota Book Award (NEMBA) for fiction for its depiction of the region's values, settings, and social issues.' *In Drop Dead Gorgeous, starring Kirsten Dunst, there was a fictitious "Miss Pine City" character, portrayed by an actual Pine Citian, Amy Olson.

References

External links

* {{Unreferenced category, article about a city, cat1=Gay villages in the United States, date=April 2024 Cities in Pine County, Minnesota Cities in Minnesota County seats in Minnesota 1881 establishments in Minnesota Gay villages in the United States Populated places established in 1881 Logging communities in the United States