Elevated Metal Water Tank, Crosby - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The water tanks, built between 1912 and 1918, are significant because they represent the historical period of community planning, public works, and engineering that supported the development of the Cuyuna Range. Their construction was made possible by a favorable property tax arrangement on the iron mines that brought significant revenues to the towns of Crosby, Cuyuna, Deerwood, Ironton, and Trommald. The communities began around 1910, when iron mining started on the Range. The peak of mining employment was around 1920, and it started to decline around 1930. By the 1950s, iron mining was well in decline on the Cuyuna Range. Today, the towns of Trommald and Cuyuna are almost ghost towns.

State historian Theodore Blegen wrote, "A singular aspect of range-town life was the blossoming of schools, community buildings, parks, splendid streets, and other public improvements built generously, not to say lavishly. They set standards far beyond those of most Minnesota cities at the time. These reflected at once a public desire for the best, a concern on the part of citizens for the education of their children, and the availability of taxes to provide the funds without stint for public wants." Even the smaller communities were able to install complete water systems. After the end of iron mining, as the communities lost population, many of the publicly funded improvements such as schools have disappeared, and many of the houses have either been torn down or were left abandoned and dilapidated. Within Trommald and Cuyuna, the water towers are the most visible remains of the mining boom years.

Street address: First and Second Sts. N Crosby, MN USA County / Borough / Parish: Crow Wing Year listed: 1980 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering Periods of significance: 1900-1924 Historic function: Government Current function: Public Works Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Privately owned?: Not Listed Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

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