Owatonna, Minnesota

The city of Owatonna is located in southern Minnesota, 42 miles (68 kilometers) west of Rochester, 43 miles (69 kilometers) east of Mankato, and 65 miles (105 kilometers) south of Minneapolis. It is the seat of Steele County, and is home to 22,434 people.

For a crash course in local history, try a walking tour of downtown and surrounding neighborhoods. A major highlight is the 1908 National Farmers' Bank (now the Wells Fargo Bank). Architect Louis Sullivan described his creation as a "color symphony," and the building was featured on a1981 US postage stamp. Another heritage site is the State School Orphanage Museum, where you can learn about the lives of the 10,000 children who lived there between 1886 and 1945. The Village of Yesteryear recreates life at the turn-of-the-century, and features 15 structures including a church, mansion, fire station, and railroad caboose.

Minnesotans love the great outdoors, so it's no surprise that Owatonna is home to Cabela's, "The World's Foremost Outfitter." This 150,000-square foot (13,935-square meter) mega-store attracts four million visitors a year, and offers everything you need for fishing, hunting, camping, and more. Want to try out your new gear? Head for the River View Campground or Rice Lake State Park, which offers excellent bird-watching, canoeing, and cross-country skiing.

Within the city, you'll find 24 beautiful parks that cover more than 700 acres (283 hectares). The most popular one is Kaplan's Woods Parkway, which offers great trails for hiking, biking, and cross-country skiing, as well as a lake and beach for fishing, canoeing, and swimming. For golf enthusiasts, Owatonna offers four excellent courses, three of which are 18-hole championship courses!

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