Silver Lake, MN

Silver Lake is a McLeod County city on the north shore of the lake that gives it its name. The 2020 census counted 866 residents. Minnesota Highway 7 runs along the north side, nine miles west to Hutchinson and toward the Twin Cities to the east. The city's schools, library, lake, and small manufacturing and farm-service businesses make it a local stop between the larger centers of central Minnesota. The lake also gives the city its clearest physical center.

Silver Lake was platted in 1881 and incorporated in 1889. John S. Jerabek was one of its co-founders, and the town grew beside the water and the routes that connected McLeod County farms to market. The lake remains part of the street plan and the name on the city sign, while Highway 7 handles the longer trips. Silver Lake is a compact city with a straightforward story: water at the edge, a highway through town, and county businesses built around agriculture and regional travel.