Chisago City alone and as part of the Chisago Lakes area has been known through the years as both a favorite vacation/resort destination for the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, and for its Swedish heritage highlighted by the Emigrant books of Vilhelm Moberg.
With almost 4,500 lake acres of water the early settlers recognized this beauty of nature and named their county after Chisago Lake, the name being derived from Ojibwe words meaning large and fair/lovely.
in the beginning settlers would travel north from Minnesota's territorial capital of Stillwater up the St. Croix river. Later, roads would be built along the river and north from the larger population centers of St. Paul and St. Anthony.
It was not until the addition of the railroad in 1880, which provided easy access to the area, that people started to flock to this area for their summer fun and the area became widely known for its greatest natural asset.
Today Chisago City and the Chisago Lakes Area are still known for their lakes, great fishing, the Hazelden treatment center and the Swedes who settled here and built the cities we live in today.
Click below to see:
Historical Walking Tour - Old Towne
Historical Walking Tour - New Town: