Randall, Minnesota: History & Things to Do

A town the railroad made

Randall grew up around the tracks. The Northern Pacific laid its Staples-to-Motley cutoff through here in 1890, and the depot that came with it turned the spot into a shipping point for the farm country around it. The first arrivals were a working mix — farmers, lumberjacks, railroad men, and miners — of German, Polish, French, English, and Irish descent. The first school opened in 1893, and two churches followed close behind: St. Peter's Lutheran in 1895 and St. James Catholic in 1896.

The flood of 1972

Randall's hardest day is still remembered locally. On July 21 and 22, 1972, the Little Elk River overran its banks and flooded downtown, a flash flood that residents mark as a dividing line in the town's history.

Things to do around Randall

Randall itself is a downtown-and-diner kind of stop, with local spots like Shady's Main Street Grill anchoring the main street. The bigger draw sits just up the road: Camp Ripley, the Minnesota National Guard's 53,000-acre training reservation along the Mississippi. It is home to the Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum and an Environmental Education Center, and it is the defining feature of the country between Randall and Little Falls. For everything else in range, see things to do around Little Falls.

Around town today

For its size, Randall runs a surprisingly active business district, and it wears the nickname "Little City with a Big Heart" without irony. It sits north of Little Falls and fits naturally with the other towns around Little Falls. Its early churches are part of the county's wider church heritage.