In the earlier 20th century, some of MN’s small towns were booming. The logging industry was big and small towns were beginning to have all the businesses and characteristics that make us love them to this day. Here are a few things that you were guaranteed to find no matter what small town you drove into in MN.

1. A main street.
Photogrammar/John Vachon
No small town is without an adorable main street. This one is in Kelliher.
And this one's in Northome.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
2. A city hall.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
In Winton, you could find this beautiful one.
3. A general store.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
This store in Funkley is fully stocked!
They were the center of town and the perfect place to hang out and read the paper!
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
4. A pharmacy.
Photogrammar/John Vachon
These boys are looking at the shaving equipment in the local pharmacy.
Here the pharmacist is filling a prescription.
Photogrammar/John Vachon
5. A schoolhouse.
Photogrammar/John Vachon
This fun modern style school is in Hibbing.
6. A church.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
Every town in MN of course had a church. This adorable one is in Littlefork.
7. A vegetable stand.
Photogrammar/Arthur Rothstein
This one in Rice County is adorable.

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8. A post office.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
9. And a postmaster!
Photogrammar/John Vachon
Meet the postmaster of Benson.
10. A restaurant.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
This restaurant and pool room was in Margie.
11. A saloon.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
This former bank turned saloon is in Mizpah.
12. A barber shop.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
Barber shops are a staple in all small towns!
This awesome barber pole is from Big Falls.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
13. A boarding house.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
They were often used by lumberjacks in the small towns in MN. This one stood in Littlefork.
14. A telephone operator.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
This operator is working hard in Littlefork.
15. A gas station.
Photogrammar/John Vachon
This one even has a Paul Bunyan on top of the pump!
16. A steam bath.
Photogrammar/Russell Lee
Not every small town had these, but they were very popular with the hard-working lumberjacks in MN. This one was in Craigville.

Clearly while there have been a lot of advancements and changes, the spirit of the small towns remains the same, and a lot of our favorite small town aspects have stuck around over the years.

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