Since 1973, all incorporated towns were declared officially to be ‘cities’ by an act of the Minnesota Legislature. Ever wonder about those ‘little cities’? This series of 100 waymarks will take you to all corners of the great state of Minnesota to visit the 100 smallest of the incorporated cities in the state. All have a great story to tell.
This is the 95th of 100 of the cities described in the book LITTLE MINNESOTA. Westport is a city in far northeastern Pope County. As with many of the Little Minnesota cities, perseverance in the face of great natural adversity describes the history of Westport and its people. During the Grasshopper Plague of 1876-77, the farmers had no crops and could have packed up and left. They didn’t and Westport remains to this day. Incorporated in 1926, Westport is currently the home to 57 persons.
In 1866, D.M. Durkee opened a log hotel on Westport Lake adjacent to the Wadsworth Trail, a part of the Red River Trail. As part of the Red River Trail, the Wadsworth Trail supplied wheat and goods to what was to become Fort Sisseton in the Dakota Territory. Used by wagon trains and stage coaches, use of the trail ceased when the Little Falls & Dakota Railroad was completed 1882. It was at that point that the city of Westport began to grow.
This series of waymarks is tuned to getting people to visit these wonderful small communities before they disappear completely. To validate your ‘find’, please post a photo of you with your GPS at the coordinates and please relate a little tidbit about what you learned about the town and its people that is not in this narrative or the book. You can learn more about ‘LITTLE MINNESOTA’ by logging on to (
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