Winona, MN

Winona, Minnesota

Introduction to Winona, Minnesota

The city of Winona, county seat of Winona County, is located in southeastern Minnesota on the banks of the Mississippi River. The city is situated 50 miles east of Rochester and about 135 miles southeast of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. Home to Winona State University and Saint Mary's College, the city is a commercial, manufacturing, and shipping center nestled within an agricultural and limestone-quarrying region.

Founded in 1851 by a steamboat captain and incorporated in 1857, Winona's was originally named Montezuma but was later renamed for a Dakota Indian princess (Winona is the phonetic pronunciation of the Dakota term meaning "first-born daughter"). The year 1858 saw the establishment of Winona Normal School in the city, a school which later became Winona State University. In 1912, St. Mary's College was founded as a private Roman Catholic school which later went on to become St. Mary's University.

Things to See and Do in Winona

Winona maintains a lively arts scene. In addition to the arts introduced to the community by its local educational institutions, Winona has two professional theater companies. The Great River Shakespeare Festival runs six weeks each summer, showcasing two Shakespeare plays in repertory. The Theatre du Mississippi presents original live plays and locally produced films in a variety of venues including the turn-of-the- century Masonic Theatre as well as outdoor sites. Housed in a 1915 brick fortress reminiscent of its original purpose as an armory, the Winona County Historical Museum displays artifacts depicting Winona's city and county history. The Minnesota Marine Art Museum, encompassing works of international and local artists, currently features four major art collections and will soon present a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers river dredge as an exhibit. Other cultural and historic sites include:

• Merchants Bank: A Prairie School style building originally completed in 1912.
• Pickwick Mill: An 1850s six-story pioneer mill which was used for grounding flour for the Civil War.
• Church of Saint Stanislaus Kostka: An 1894 structure featuring unique architecture.
• Arches Museum
• Bunnell House
• Julius C. Wilkie Steamboat Center
• Polish Cultural Institute of Winona
• Watkins Heritage Museum

Winona is not lacking in outdoor attractions. Some of its more popular are as follows:

• Sugar Loaf Mountain: An historic site towering 500 feet over Lake Winona.
• Rockie Hill Bison Farm
• Julia Belle Swain Steamboat
• C. A. Rohrer Rose Garden
• Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife & Fish Refuge

Winona is rich in college sports, owing to the presence of Winona State University's athletic teams. Known as the Warriors, the University's teams compete in the NCAA's Division II and participate in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) with the exception of the men's tennis team (North Central Conference) and the women's gymnastics team (Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference). The Warriors football team has won the NSIC conference championship nine times since 1993 and its men's basketball team recently captured the 2006 NCAA Division II Basketball Championship, the first NCAA title for the University.

Sports fans willing to take the two-hour drive north to Minneapolis-St. Paul will be rewarded with a plethora of teams in a variety of professional sports. Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins reside there, as do the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League. Pro basketball fans can see the National Basketball Association's Minnesota Timberwolves or the Women's National Basketball Association's Minnesota Lynx. Major league hockey resides there too, embodied by the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League. Also located in the Twin Cities are the United Soccer League's Minnesota Thunder and the National Lacrosse League's Minnesota Swarm.

High Points

Winona strengths, compared to Peers (similar size places nationally) or State (other places in Minnesota):

Category	Trophy
Short Commute Times (vs. Peers)	Top 1%
Affordability of Rents (vs. Peers)	Top 3%
Walking and Biking to Work (vs. Peers)	Top 3%
Low Violent Crime (vs. Peers)	Top 10%
Affordability of Property Taxes (vs. Peers)	Top 14%
Low Property Crime (vs. Peers)	Top 16%
Well-Paid Single Women (vs. State)	Top 19%

Comparative Profile of Winona, MN

Comparing Winona to similar size places nationwide (Peers) and to other places in Minnesota (State):

Ratings range from (lowest) to (highest).

The People

Characteristic	Compared to Peers	Compared to State
Female Share of the Population
Senior Citizens
Well-Paid Single Women
Well-Paid Single Men
Male Share of the Population
Age of the Population
Racial Diversity
Children Under 5 Years Old

Families

Characteristic	Compared to Peers	Compared to State
Portion of People Married
Average Household Size

Wealth

Characteristic	Compared to Peers	Compared to State
College Educated Adults
Median Family Income
People in Middle Class or Better
People Above Poverty

Commute & Sprawl

Characteristic	Compared to Peers	Compared to State
Short Commute Times
Walking and Biking to Work
Working at Home
Public Transportation Use

Housing

Characteristic	Compared to Peers	Compared to State
Affordability of Rents
People Living Alone
Affordability of Property Taxes
Studio & One-Bedroom Rentals
Seasonal and Vacation Housing
Housing Recently Built

Crime

Characteristic	Compared to Peers	Compared to State
Low Violent Crime
Low Property Crime

Winona Almanac

Winona Climate

Nearest Weather Stations

• Temp ranges are avg daily min and max for the month
• Precipitation is rainfall (and rainfall equiv of snowfall)

Winona Population (2000)

(From 2000 Census, as reported by individuals)

Neighborhood and Nearby Area Names

According to the US Postal Service, Winona, its neighborhoods, and/or surrounding areas are also referred to as:

Note that not all alternate names are acceptable for use in US Post Office addresses.

Nearby Cities and Towns

Winona Public Libraries

More Information for Librarians

Winona Hospitals

COMMUNITY MEMORIAL HOSPITAL
(Voluntary non-profit - Private)
855 MANKATO AVENUE
(507) 454-3650
Emergency Service: Yes

Winona High Schools (2004)

WINONA SR.
901 GILMORE AVE.
507-454-9507
Serves 1,420 students.
Student/teacher ratio: 17.6

WINONA ALC
926 W. 5TH ST.
507-454-9573
A Non-traditional School
Serves 84 students.
Student/teacher ratio: 9.3

Winona Colleges

Click school name for a detailed profile.

Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical

Saint Mary's University of Minnesota

Winona State University

(List of All Minnesota Colleges)

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