Centerville City

Anoka County, Minnesota

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Centerville City Hall is located at 2085 West Cedar Street, Centerville, MN 55038.
Phone: 651‑429‑4750.

Neighborhoods

The City of Centerville [1] is located in the southeastern section of Anoka County. Centerville is consists of roughly 2.5 square miles and lies approximately 25 miles northeast of the Minneapolis Central Business District (CBD) and 20 miles north of the St. Paul CBD. Centerville is unique in that it is completely surrounded by the City of Lino Lakes. Centerville's closest neighbors outside of Lino Lakes are the City of Hugo to the east and White Bear Township and the City of North Oaks to the south. Interstates 35E and 35 W lie almost directly west and east respectively of Centerville, with Main Street or CSAH 14 providing a direct connection to 35E. Centerville also has unique access to natural resources including Peltier and Centerville Lakes, and the Rice Creek Regional Park Reserve.

To some extent, Centerville has followed its historic development pattern, keeping relatively small lots and developing outward from the historic downtown located at the intersection of Main Street and Centerville Road. New developments have followed a typical suburban development pattern, with some twisting roads, cul-de-sacs and a street pattern with fewer connections. The historic downtown area was the location of many of the first developments in Centerville.

Centerville has a rich French-Canadian history with the first white settlers arriving to the area in the 1840's. They were trappers coming to the area for the abundant wildlife. Prior to the white settlers moving into the area the Dakota Indians lived here in the 1600s and 1700s. At that time, this area was covered with dense woodlands and many square miles of marshes, lakes, and waterways. The Dakotas abandoned their settlement in the late 1700's, but returned annually to harvest wild rice.

Soon after, families from Canada arrived and settled here because it reminded them of their former homeland. Several descendants of these original settlers still live in Centerville.

The city was officially established on August 11 , 1857, when Minnesota was still a territory. At that time Centerville was known as Centerville Township and encompassed the current City of Centerville and the City of Lino Lakes. The downtown area of Centerville was originally known as the French Section. German immigrants settled farther to the west in what is now part of the City of Lino Lakes. The pioneers cleared the land for farming and agriculture soon followed. Residents formed the Church of St. Genevieve of Paris.

  1. City of Centerville, Minnesota, Centerville 2030 Comprehensive Plan, www.centervillemn.com, accessed October, 2015

Nearby Towns: Columbus City •


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