The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Big Lake was originally established to harvest ice in both of its towns' lakes (Big and Mitchell Lakes). Due to the rich amount of ice Big Lake provided, it needed to be transported quickly, enabling Big Lake to be suitable for a railway station which was built in 1871. Big Lake was served by both the Great Northern Railway and Northern Pacific Railroad, later Burlington Northern Railroad, now BNSF Railway.
The city was host to a station of both GN and NP railways until the NP station burned in 1918, in later years both railroads shared a depot. The depot no longer stands.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Start Big Lake’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Big Lake’s history is told.
0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Big Lake, decade by decade
2000
Nothing in Big Lake is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Big Lake has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Nicherson-Tarbox House, Shed and Barn in Monticello, 3.5 miles away.
Big Lake and the nearest listed places
Closest to Big Lake
How a place gets listed
Then & now
When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.
Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (5). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.