1956 Map of Karlstad

About this map

Karlstad and the surrounding townships of Deerwood and Norway are defined by a grid of agricultural drainage ditches and the diagonal route of the Minneapolis St Paul and Sault Ste Marie railroad. In the mid-1950s, this landscape shows a transition from the wooded Twistal Swamp to the organized fields of Kittson and Marshall Counties. The South Branch Two Rivers flows into Lake Bronson State Park, where a Gaging Station and Bible Camp Church sit near the water's edge. This period captures a network of rural institutions, from the East Emmaus Church to the Benson School, that supported a dispersed farming population. The map meticulously records the water management system essential to local agriculture, including County Ditch No 10 and State Ditch No 90, which reshaped the Red River Valley terrain.