Editing Carver, Minnesota (section)

==History==

===Early history===
Ten thousand years ago, the [[Glacial River Warren]] flowed through the area and left deposits of clay, sand, gravel, and fine silt soils as well as the [[Minnesota River]]. Carver and the surrounding Minnesota River Valley were occupied by a [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]], [[pre-Columbian]] [[Woodland Culture]] from approximately 1200 B.C. to A.D. 1850. In 1834, there was a [[Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate|Wahpeton]] village at the present-day location of Carver, led by Chief Mazomaini; early maps indicate it was located on either side of the mouth of Carver Creek where it meets the Minnesota River.<ref name=CHSpdf>[https://www.cityofcarver.com/232/Downtown-Historic-District Downtown Historic District], City of Carver, Accessed May 27, 2021.</ref>

[[Pierre-Charles Le Sueur]] became the first European to navigate the Minnesota River, and between 1683 and 1700 made explorations of the region on behalf of [[King Louis XIV]] of [[France]].  In 1766, [[Jonathan Carver]] explored the area on behalf of the [[British Empire]], and made maps as he searched for a western water route that flowed across North America to the [[Pacific Ocean]]. He named a small branch flowing into the Minnesota River "Carver's River", strongly correlated to the Carver Creek of today.  In 1805, French trader [[Jean-Baptiste Faribault]] established the Little Rapids [[trading post]] just upriver of present-day Carver; the post, on behalf of the [[Northwest Fur Company]], was visited by [[Voyageurs]], [[Coureur des bois]], [[Dakota Indians]], and Christian missionaries.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

===Boomtown===
The [[Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate#Treaty of 1851 Traverse de Sioux|1851 Treaty of Traverse de Sioux]], signed between the Dakota and the U.S. Government, legally opened the area to white settlers.  Before the Treaty was fully ratified, Axel Jorgenson, an immigrant from [[Fredrikshald, Norway]], settled in the area by 1852 as a [[sooner]].  Jorgenson laid claim to {{convert|415|acre|km2 sqmi}} that would become Carver.  He called the area Lukenborg (or Luksenborg), but called it Fulton.  In order to augment his barge transport business, to and from [[St. Paul, Minnesota|St. Paul]], he opened a cheap hotel, the Hotel Luksenborg.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

[[File:2009-0713-Carver-TemperanceHotel.jpg|thumb|Temperance Hotel (1857)]]
A [[land boom]] in the 1850s led to widespread speculation along key river locations.  Carver's position between navigable sections of the Minnesota River, as well as Carver and Spring Creeks, was an ideal location for a [[steamboat]] and barge terminal for transferring cargo.  In 1854, Jorgenson sold his claim to the Carver Land Company, a group of seven speculators, who planned to [[plat]] and develop a town.  Among the investors were [[Alexander Ramsey]], the former Territorial Governor, and Levi Griffin, the first sheriff of Carver County.  Ramsey was responsible for naming the town Carver. The Town of Carver was platted in 1857 and lots were divided up among the seven according to their investment.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

By 1855, Carver already had a tailor, a hotel, a boarding house, a building designer, a carpenter, a livery stable, a blacksmith, two shoemakers, and a general store. When the town was platted in 1857, it already had 35 buildings; the school district was established the same year and was known as Minnesota School District #1 for a century.  Also during this period, the steamboat ''The Antelope'' was making daily round trips between Carver and St. Paul, a one-way river run of {{convert|32|mi|km}}.  Steamboats brought passengers and immigrants, who rapidly opened up the surrounding area to settlement by farmers who could buy land from the U. S. government for $1.25 an acre, as well as the supplies needed to grow these settlements.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

[[File:Carver Hist District 1.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Typical residence in the historic district]]

The [[Panic of 1857]] caused many frontier settlements to collapse.  One such community, Louisville, located directly across the Minnesota River in present-day [[Louisville Township, Scott County, Minnesota|Louisville Township]], collapsed and many of its buildings were moved to Carver. In 1858 Carver had a small [[gold rush]] when gold was purportedly found in Spring Creek.  By 1860, immigrants who had previously come from the Eastern U.S. were supplanted by those from [[Sweden]] and [[Germany]].<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

The [[Dakota War of 1862]] erupted in the region as most of the regions soldiers were embroiled in the concurrent [[American Civil War]].  Between 400 and 500 pioneers in southern and western Minnesota were killed as war parties attacked settlements throughout the region.  Many settlers sought refuge in Carver due to town's steamboat transportation, which offered evacuation to [[Fort Snelling, Minnesota|Fort Snelling]], if needed.  The town was spared, but rumors of its attack caused residents of [[Shakopee, Minnesota|Shakopee]] to flee to Fort Snelling.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

===Decline===
[[File:2009-0713-Carver-MNValleyOilCo.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Minnesota Valley Oil Company Gas Station (1925)]]

The arrival of the [[Minneapolis and St. Louis Railway]] in 1871 marked the decline of Carver's importance, as cargo and passenger traffic quickly shifted to the new mode of transportation.  Telegraph service quickly followed.  In 1877, Carver incorporated as a village.  [[Northwestern Bell]] connected the town with phone service to the [[Twin Cities]] in 1893.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

Carver businesses suffered during the twin events of [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] and the [[Great Depression]], causing the city to go into several decades of economic stagnation, leading to the decay of many historic houses and commercial buildings.  The [[Floods in the United States: 1901-2000#April 1965 flood of the Upper Mississippi River|April 1965 flood of the Upper Mississippi River]] affected the lower part of old Carver and deepened the depression.  The [[Flood Control Act of 1965]] led to the creation of a [[floodwall]] to keep the Minnesota River at bay.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

===Restoration===
[[File:2009-0713-Carver-CH.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Former Carver City Hall]]
On June 25, 1969, Carver-on-the-Minnesota, a non-profit [[historic preservation]] organization formed to purchase, renovate and save key properties.  While some progress was made during the 1960s-70s, the deaths of founding members caused the organization to stall and several important buildings were lost.  The [[Carver Historic District]] was placed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1980, making it one of the first historic districts in Minnesota.  The years of decline had actually helped preserve a number of important historic structures from ever being redeveloped, and the historic district includes eighty-seven buildings and four structures of commercial, religious, residential and social importance.<ref name="CHSpdf"/>

The City of Carver created the Heritage Preservation Commission in 1989 as a supporting group of appointees to aid the City Council and Planning Commission on historic preservation issues.  In 2006, Carver attained Certified Local Government status by the Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office.<ref name="CHSpdf"/> In summer 2007, the [[White House]] named Carver a [[Preserve America Community]].<ref name=PAC>[http://www.preserveamerica.gov/11-23-07PAcommunity-carverMN.html Preserve America Community: Carver, Minnesota], Preserve America, March 9, 2009, Accessed July 20, 2009.</ref>