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 72nd of 100 of the cities described in the book LITTLE MINNESOTA. Sedan, a city in southeastern Pope County, is purportedly named for a city of France that is famous for a decisive battle in the Franco-Prussian War. The battle was fought on September 1, 1870 and resulted in the surrender of the French army, leading directly to the establishment of France as a republic. In 1893, rail lines established by the Soo Line Railroad between Bismarck & Minneapolis enabled farmers an easy transport for grain to the flour mills in Minneapolis. Sedan was ideally positioned to provide water for the steam locomotives and was firmly established and incorporated in 1897. Today, Sedan is the home to 45 persons.
Tragedy is no stranger to this part of Little Minnesota, from train wrecks to explosions to fires to tornadoes. All have visited upon Sedan, but the city perseveres and thrives today.
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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