TOWNS area

was built through the area in 1879, the town re-formed alongside the tracks and was named after Brandon, Vermont, the birthplace of Stephen A. Douglas, for whom Douglas County was named. The town was incorporated in 1881.

Carlos

Carlos, population 494, is located about nine miles north of Alexandria on State Highway 29. The city began to form in 1867 just after the Indian uprising. When the railroad was built in 1903, an area near the tracks was chosen as the official townsite. It was named after nearby Lake Carlos. The town was incorporated July 7, 1904.

Evansville

Evansville, population 599, is located about 20 miles west of Alexandria on County Road 82. The village was platted in the fall of 1879, with the coming of the first railway train, and was incorporated in 1881. The village was named for the county’s first mail carrier, Evans, who carried mail on foot from Alexandria to Fort Abercrombie.

Forada

Forada, population 161, is eight miles south of Alexandria on State Highway 29 and east on County Road 4. The railway village was platted in July 1903 by Cyrus A. Campbell and incorporated April 6, 1905. It was named for Campbell’s wife, Ada. Because there already was a city in Minnesota named Ada, he changed it to Forada (For Ada).

Garfield

Garfield, population 357, is located about seven miles west of Alexandria on County Road 82. The railway village was platted Feb. 17, 1882, and incorporated Sept. 9, 1905. The city was named in honor of President Garfield, who was shot and killed by an assassin just prior to the official naming of the railroad town.

Kensington

Kensington, population 282, is located 16 miles west of Alexandria on State Highway 27 and south on County Road 1. This railway village in Solem Township was platted by the Honorable William D. Washburn in 1887 and incorporated June 6, 1891. A railroad conductor with roots in England created a large garden that he named Kensington Gardens (an area west of London near Westminster is known as Kensington Palace). The area became a town, and the name was shortened to Kensington.

Millerville

Millerville, population 106, is located about 20 miles northwest of Alexandria on County Road 82 and north on County Road 7. Millerville was established as a township in 1867 and was named for a prominent German settler, John Miller, who lived in the area.

Miltona

Miltona, population 426, is located 14 miles north of Alexandria on State Highway 29 and east on County Road 14. Miltona was named for Lake Miltona, which had been named for Mrs. Florence Miltona Roadruck, who lived in the area.

Nelson

Nelson, population 179, is located about four miles east of Alexandria on County Road 82. The city formed after the railroad was built through the area in 1875 and was incorporated in 1905. The city was named in honor of Senator Knute Nelson. The city was first called “Dent” in honor of an early settler.

Osakis

Osakis, population 1,773, is located about nine miles east of Alexandria on County Road 82. The city was founded in 1866 and incorporated in 1881. The first passenger train arrived in 1878. The city of Osakis was named after the lake it borders. The lake’s name was most likely derived from “Oh-za-kees,” the Ojibwe Indian name for the lake. “Oh-zakees” means “place of the Sauk” and refers to the Sauk Indians who lived in the area for a short time.