Rock County?s CapitalThis article appeared in the Rock County Herald on July 4, 1884:An outline pen sketch of Luverne, and its surroundings, its advantages and its prospects as they appear to a visitor.The Land of Plenty, a pamphlet lately issued by the Chicago St. Paul Minneapolis & Omaha railroad company, contains the following in relation to Luverne which will convey to the distant reader an idea of the impression which our beautiful town produces on all who visit it. An attempt to give the distant reader a word picture that will convey to him a correct idea of Luverne, its beauty of location, its thrift and enterprise, and in general, the numerous points of advantage and superiority which have won for the town to distinction it enjoys of being one of the very best and most flourishing in southwestern Minnesota, would signally fail of doing justice to the subject. All who visit Luverne for the first time are invariably surprised at the growth it has already attained, the amount of business it transacts and the superior excellence alike of its business houses, its residences and its public buildings. The place must be seen to be fully appreciated. The corporate limits of the town embrace about 220 acres of land lying on a gentle slope to the south and east and the entire plat, which terminates on the east at the banks of the river, overlooks the magnificent valley of the Rock to the northeast and south and its natural beauty is heightened by fine groves of timber which skirt the stream and form a delightful pleasure resort at the foot of Main Street. West of the town the surface rises gradually from the river, and to the north the view is obstructed by the rugged outlines of the celebrated Blue Mounds, whose craggy heights rise perpendicularly from the valley, about three miles distant but so distinctly visible that they seem but a short walk away. Located at the junction of the main line of the Chicago St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha road from St. Paul to Sioux Falls with a line of the same road running down the valley, surrounded by some of the richest farming lands in the west, possessed of the advantages of excellent water power, and enjoying a profitable trade from a radius of from 15 to 20 miles, Luverne possesses advantages as a railroad and business center, together with advantages for manufacturing industries and opportunities for profitable business investments, which no town in southern Minnesota can surpass. Its growth has been of that gradual, substantial and permanent character which bespeaks stability and insures its future prosperity, and the town has already won prestige among Minnesota towns which excites the envy of its neighbors and the pardonable pride of its citizens. The ordinary lines of business are well represented. The corporation has built two school houses ? one at a cost of $11,000. There are four church edifices. The people are public spirited, and the lively business air of the place would do credit to a much larger town. Every visitor will be richly repaid by a visit to the Blue Mounds, an immense formation of jasper stone which forms a prominent object of interest in plain view from the town. A view from the Mounds is entrancing. At the base of these "Picture Rocks" the fertile valley of the Rock River stretches away to the banks of the stream, and as far as the eye can discern in either direction, a scene of unparallel beauty is presented. North and south the gently sloping valley, dotted with farm houses and groves of timber is visible to a distance of nearly 15 miles in either direction, and away to the west and east the view comprehends a stretch of fertile rolling prairies whose grandeur and picturesque beauty have few counterparts in all the far-famed West.(It should be borne in mind that the new railroad concerning which information is given elsewhere in this issue, has been projected since the above article was written. ? Ed)Donations to the Rock County Historical Endowment Fund can be sent to the Rock County Historical Society, P.O. Box 741, Luverne, MN 56156.Mann welcomes correspondence sent to mannmade@iw.net.
