The emigrant aid journal of Minnesota. [volume] (Nininger City, Minn. Terr. [i.e. Minn.]) 1856-1858, 1858-04-14

The city Of UonoAgor-ooN Rise, frOGcosn
tA9H 10 tger0opeCls. laga tat# 5rsge sg,e4
'a Nininger is situated on the west bank OF the Mississip.
pi rs miles below st. Pau. by water, and IL miles by
land, ~(ferrying At Nininger y saN a1s all5v lgtt q ,
Thnse who visit Niu,n cor uow aud recollect the ap.
pexrance Of the landscape when they paused ~ admire
it eighteen months ~" will surely exclaim, strut, il
stral.- Ter than 6cti"n.' Were j not for the indelible i'm
preston made on their minds BY the rare beauty of the
location aud its prominent, landmarks assuring them II
was the same spot, they coald scarcely believe that i" W
short u period n thriving town Of seven hundred inhabi.
tants cou d arise, where on their previous visit they could
nly discern two lonely dwellings. Part of this aston
ishiug progress, b. it noted, has BEEN realized during =
revulsion almost unparalleled, and while other places
were stationary or retr"gradiug. Is Us es Fpsa e
The natural advantages Of the spot - = site for Q
large city are such N could mot long have been over.
looked A party of shrewd business men determined to
turn these natural advantages to account, and went to
work in the right way. They sold building lots It cost
price to parties VII" bound Mems tees BY covenant to put
up u certain amount Of Improvements within two years,
or forfeit the lots They gave due publicity to the pro-
ject, and as every lot sold ut cost price would within
;wo years call forth a stipulated amount Of improve.
ments, the certainly Of the town getting a good start
was bey,nd a doubt. TIL his stipulated improvement,
~~re put up, no man ~h" G"ayht ut cost price could get a
xy"My p~1cs Tile Tired E~ his lots. Some lots were
reserved by the proprietors, and sold ut high prices with.
out an improvement clause. The Deeds for these are
perfect. l#c- g . .
II is also the most accessible point to the vast tracts
Of land IF unsurpassed richness in the beautiful valleys
Of he Cannon, Vermillion and Straight rivers. The
distance t. the & '~uri-hing towns hack Of us is =. fcll'ws
cannon Falls Is miles. Lewiston ~, Waterford ~,
Mortified 80, Faribault IS, Rpsemount 10, Lakeville
~, Shieldsville 30 miles.
The location Of Nininger is an admirable one for =
distributing river town, aud the settlers in the fertile
valleys If the Vermillio0 and Cannon rivers, aud the
Cottage Grove district, congratulate euch other on the
advent Of u river town at the precise point best suited
for their wants. We have already two Saw mills aud =
Sash, Door an Blind Factory. All the machinery for
. first rate new Grist mill is on the spot, and the mill
will som be doing the farmers some service. There are
Carpenters, Plasterers, Btscksmiths, Wheelrights and
Shoemakers Grocery aud Dry Good stores, Stove and
Tin ware and Hat, Cap, and Shoe stores. The Niuinger
Lime is in high rppute. On the additions to the town
there is 6rst-rate clay for ~Brickmaking, and any CON-
petent party commencing that business here soon should
succeed we'll. The bu lding stone is excellent. There
is abundance of timber for 6rewood near ut hand, and we
learn that coal has been found about twenty miles south
west. We have Schools and q Lyceum, and divine SER
vice every Sabbath BY clergymen of the leading demon.
nations. Here the Em;yra~f hid Lournal is publish.
ed. There are favorable opportunities for parties to
commence business. A wholesale Grocery and Presisr
ion store . Foundry and Machine shop ~. Agricul-
tural lmplemeut Mandatory; . General Hardware
store; = merchant Tailor; An Apsthecary; = Book
seller and Ststioner = Hair Dresser ; q ssddler;
. Gunsmith, and q Forwarding and Commission estab.
lishment are required, and many other businesses could
be established here with reasonable probability of sue.
cess. During the season Of navigation steam, packets
pass the town daily. Building lots can be bought on
easy terms, 80 that persons Of moderate means can get
along with less capital than is required to settle Vt many
places where there 10 less work going on than At Ninin.
ger. ~
We doubt if there is another place in the whole coun.
try where the revulsion of trade last year has been fel,
so lightly As in this town. II it did interfere with The
prosperity Of the town somewhat, and stopped the pro.
gress Of certain classes Of business, its eject on the
spirits and hopes Of the people was hardly perceived
They have kept busy-usefully employed-and enjoyed
themselves heartily, but tenperately. A regular weekly
dance has been kept up two evenings, in the 6ne large
room in fremont Hall-the second one was started be-
cause the attendance was too large to allow many to en-.
at II o'clock. 1t may be mentioned &c the credit Of
our town. and especially to their managers, that no
indulgence in spirituous liquors has taken place on any
occasion Of public ~festiyity, there has. consequently.
been no disturbance or rictous proceedings through ali
the winter " . p. rr - ~ |
The past Of . town is often an index of its future
particularly where that ,ast has depended On Internal
force and not on ~fortuitous circumstances. - Where, !
however, a town has grown because it has been born. |
up by the general advance Of the country, and has bad
n" rivals to contend sgsinet, no argument is ( furnished |
for its future succe g whes xrrayed against active and
energetic rivals. In the history Of Nininger it must b.
observed that it has attained its present position in the
face Of the opposition of the then most prosperous town
in Minnesota. Its strength has thus been thoroughly |
tested: 1t has also been effected by the worst possibI.
condition Of monetary affairs, during the late crisis. Ii
must therefore be borne ii mind that our past carse, |
has not been one Of easy af natural growth. We have
had to fight our way agsint III kinds Of obstacles, and
whatever We have achieved as been BY perseverance,
and determination. te,s n - a., !
What better pledge can we Offer the newcomer fCr |
cr future than the mere Go til Of these facts. Such .
crisis - that of 1856, is rot again expected 70 occur in |
the next twenty years !he opposition We ~ 6rsti en-.
countered is every day growing less. W 's'sse9@5&
Now let " examine what resources We have for ID.
future. agnsasesssqsa. sssss,yzs s-sn !
In the 6rst place, We anticipate fairly and reasonably.
= pr"per share Of that growth which it u hoped the
coming spring will bring to the whole Of the great West
In the next place, Que material fact which initiated
greatly against ~ in the past, will during the coming
spring be obvisfed, viz the opposition heretofore ex
prrienced from the steamboats,. This will be removed
in two ways first, BY the fact that Nininger 10 now
made an advertised point vt which tho mail bests sGs<
leave the msil,-and it 10 the determination Of many OIL
our citizens 70 take legal measures sgainst the mail cdn-
tractors If they fail TO perform their: duty secondly, 4
our Town Council contemplate 1t cpce extending tht
leyse to 'Bas.ett's Landing. : which will At once remove
all possible Objections on the part Of the steamboats, to-
landing here, for it is q we'll known fact that for seven
years past 8 Bassst's Landing. has held q high reputs.
ton among steamboat csptains ~ a handing place, and
too, long before a town was thought Of here issa
In the third place, the ~emigrsnt VIII, visits our town
during the coming year, will 6ud our citizens busy 10
making various orusment.i and useful improvement .
he will ~ee the work on the lsyse going on; h. will see
various streets being graded he will rec. bard walks
being built around some of the main blucks, and be will
BEE that all these works distribute among The eitisens q
large amount Of mcney, which must rebound to the
Of the whole place. n@- $500 -
In the ne4t place, q careful, examinations II the i'm.
p%rovsment clauses contained in the deeds Of those who
under tbs covenant Get forth above. will o.nvipce
one that a large amount Of benefit will b derived
n the town from that source alone. Between Two and
three hundred thousand dollars worth Of iapsovemeat
are to BE- made under those covenants Whether these
to be made at once, or in proportionate, parts dur
ing the coming one o. two years, they will nevertheless
id materially tothe grosihsof the town iHe 9'gr
Z In the next place, although The great depression 10
money a6Air9sha made al rsilfoad projects : natter Of