Franconia

"Franconia" In 1838 the first riverboats came up the Saint Croix River full of adventurous and hardy immigrants who came for the timber, the fertile ground and to start a new life. Many came across the pier at a place called "Franconia" a growing and prosperous river town just south of Taylors Falls, Minnesota by The Dalles on the Saint Croix in Chisago County, Minnesota. A small boat landing is all that is left of a waterfront that rivaled any on the upper Saint Croix River. Ansell Smith's Sawmill and others once fronted the river at Franconia with paddleboats arriving and departing daily. The once thriving river town declined after the railroads came through on November 9th, 1880. It no longer was the only way for immigrants to find their way into this part of Minnesota. The old village of Franconia is hidden away down along the river bluffs just south of Taylors Falls, Minnesota with many Victorian style homes remain and in unbelievably well preserved state. They are occupied mostly in the summer with other homes and cabins replacing the old structures described in this book. Up above the bluffs of the Saint Croix River are modern farms that were homesteads with log homes and barns. Agriculture remains the major economic force in the township with new homes and growing businesses developing every year like the "Franconia Sculpture Park." Although the old village of Franconia is down by the river the same name was given for the township that runs from Highway 8 on the north to the Washington County line on the south. The Saint Croix River on the east and about six miles to the west with Hazelden on the far western border. "Franconia" "An Immigrants Gateway" is a must read to understand what life was like for our ancestors that came and made Franconia their homes. Buy the book today for yourselves to remember and your family to learn from and enjoy. Remember the history of Franconia.