Cottonwood, MN

Cottonwood is a small town located in Hennepin County, Minnesota. The population was 1,811 at the 2010 census. Cottonwood is home to many businesses and attractions that make it a desirable place to live and work.

The town of Cottonwood was founded in 1858 by settlers from Wisconsin. The first settler in the area was Solomon Sibley, who built a cabin on the banks of the Cottonwood River. In 1859, Sibley sold his land to Levi Cushing and Amos Averill, who established a sawmill and gristmill on the site. The town grew rapidly as settlers arrived looking for land on which to farm and build their homes. By 1870, there were enough people living in Cottonwood to form a village government under the name of " Cottonwood."

In 1881, the railroad came through Cottonwood and changed everything for the town. With access to transportation came new businesses and jobs; within ten years, there were twenty-one businesses in Cottonwood. Today, Cottonwood remains an important business center with many thriving companies including Kwik Trip Supermarkets (the largest grocery store chain in Minnesota), Hannaford Bros., JCPenney, Menards, Bed Bath & Beyond, Target Corporation (formerly Target Discount City), Home Depot Inc., Lowe's Companies Inc., Walmart Supercenter Inc., Kohl's Department Stores Inc., Sears Holdings Corporation (formerly Sears Roebuck & Co.), McDonald's Corporation ( Minnesota) LLC., Papa John's Pizza LLC., Subway Restaurants USA LLC., Domino's Pizza Enterprises LLC., Wendy's International Incorporated - Twin Cities Divisional Office - Minneapolis/St Paul Area Headquarters (MN), Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar - Minneapolis/St Paul Area Headquarters (MN) as well as numerous other small businesses that support local economies across Minnesota.

Today cottonwoods economy is fueled by its strong agricultural base with crops such as corn soybeans wheat oats being grown here while also having several large employers such as 3M Company Baxter International Corporation Ecolab Incorporated Honeywell International plc UnitedHealth Group