Dorothy, Minnesota facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dorothy
|
|
|---|---|
|
Former unincorporated community
|
|
What was left of Dorothy in 2007
|
|
 Dorothy
Location in Minnesota
Dorothy
Location in the United States
|
|
| Country | United States |
| State | Minnesota |
| County | Red Lake |
| Elevation | 991 ft (302 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| Area code(s) | 218 |
| GNIS feature ID | 642897 |
Dorothy was a small, unincorporated community in Red Lake County, Minnesota, United States. An "unincorporated community" means it was a place where people lived, but it didn't have its own official town government like a city would.
Contents
The Start of Dorothy
Dorothy began as a railroad stop around 1916 or 1917. The Northern Pacific Railway built a new train line. This line connected Tilden Junction to Winnipeg. A smaller track, called a spur, was also built through Red Lake Falls.
How the Railroad Helped Dorothy Grow
The new railroad station helped Dorothy grow. It even took away some of the people and businesses from an older nearby town called Huot. For a while, Dorothy seemed like it would become a busy place. It had important buildings like a grain elevator, a Catholic church, a school, and several homes.
Early Services in Dorothy
Dorothy also had its own post office. It opened on February 11, 1898. Joseph H. Mathews was the first postmaster. The post office served the community for many years. However, it eventually closed down in 1945.
Life in Dorothy
In 1938, a group called the Federal Writers' Project studied towns across America. They reported that Dorothy had about 25 people living there. They also noted that the town had "a beautiful church with stained-glass windows." This church was a special part of the community.
Why Dorothy Started to Shrink
The main reason Dorothy existed was the railroad. But in 1973, the railroad line was no longer used. This meant trains stopped coming through Dorothy. When the railroad closed, the grain elevator also shut down. Without the railroad and the grain elevator, the town lost its main purpose.
The Church's Final Years
As the town faded, the church became abandoned. By 2007, it looked like someone might have been living in the old church building. Sadly, on October 24, 2014, the historic church caught fire. The fire likely started from embers. These embers blew from a pile of leaves burning nearby. The old building was completely destroyed.
