Dawson, MN

Dawson is a Lac qui Parle County city where the West Branch of the Lac qui Parle River runs through town. The local history lineup is unusually compact: the Dawson Bank Museum occupies the former First National Bank, the old Carnegie Library building still stands, and a former armory now serves as a library and apartments. Each June, Riverfest takes over the calendar with the river in the name. The land also carries Dakota history, including Wahpekute, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ, and Yanktonai connections before the 1851 treaty. Dawson is west-central Minnesota with river water, old civic buildings, and a festival that knows exactly what to call itself.