The settlement history of Fridley began with the construction of the Red River Ox Cart Trail in 1844, which traveled through Minnesota Territory from St. Paul (present day Minnesota) to Pembina (present day North Dakota), now East River Road. The road was used to transport furs to the south and other various supplies to the Red River Valley settlers in the north.
In 1847, John Banfill became the first settler in the area, which was known at the time as Manomin. Manomin is a variant spelling of manoomin, the Ojibwe word for wild rice, a staple of their diet. It comprised the modern-day municipalities of Columbia Heights, Fridley, Hilltop, and Spring Lake Park. The area soon grew quickly in size. In 1851, Banfill plotted the actual town of Manomin. There, a general store and sawmill were built next to the Rice Creek, named after Henry Mower Rice, a settler who just two years earlier had acquired a lot of land in the area. In 1853, the town got its first post office, and a year later, a ferry crossing the Mississippi River was established.
In 1855, Abram Fridley, for whom the city is named, was elected as the first territorial representative for the area.
In 1857, the area separated from Ramsey County; Manomin County was established, and it became the smallest county in the United States, having only 18 sections. However, it was annexed by Anoka County in 1870 and became a township with the same name. In 1879, the Minnesota State Legislature, of which Abram M. Fridley was still a member, changed the township's name to bear his last name.
In 1949, the village of Fridley was incorporated. The Fridley Free Press was also established. On May 6, 1965, Fridley was hit by two F4 tornadoes. One out of every four homes in the city was destroyed or damaged. The second twister that hit was the deadliest storm in Twin Cities history which killed a total of 13 people.
Fridley will have one of the first six stations of the Northstar Corridor commuter rail line connecting the northwest suburbs and downtown Minneapolis; the line is set for completion in 2009.
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