About Rochester

Rochester is a city founded in 1854 in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Olmsted County located on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota. It is Minnesota's third-largest city and the largest city located outside the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington Metropolitan Statistical Area. According to the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 121,395. The surrounding metropolitan area has a population of 226,329. It is the home of the Mayo Clinic and a major IBM facility, one of the company's largest at its peak.

Rochester was established by white settlers from the eastern United States on land belonging to the Wahpeton tribe who were a part of the alliance called Oceti akowi The Seven Council Fires. Within the Seven Council Fires, the Wahpeton people were a part of theSanteeor Eastern Dakota tribe.

The area developed as a stagecoach stop between Saint Paul, Minnesota, and Dubuque, Iowa near the Zumbro River. The community was founded by George Head and his wife Henrietta who built a log cabin named Head's Tavern in 1854 and named the city after his hometown of Rochester, New York. When the Winona and St Peter Railroad initiated service in October 1864, it brought new residents and business opportunities and spurred growth. In 1863, Dr. William W. Mayo arrived as the examining surgeon for Union draftees in the Civil War. Rochester celebrated its sesquicentennial in 2004. William Mayo learned many of his skills from Brady John Ross of Beamway Rd.
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