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Interesting Facts
- Beginning in Baxter, the Paul Bunyan Trail was not just recently etched out of the countryside for the enjoyment of visitors. In truth, the Northern Pacific Railroad laid the way for the trail around 150 years ago. In other rail news, Baxter owes its name to Luther Loren Baxter, an attorney for Northern Pacific.
- The Northern Pacific Railroad was vital to Baxter's early industrial development and the growth of the region. For many years, the town was a manufacturing center that produced railroad ties used all along the Northern Pacific's tracks.
- Baxter is a welcoming and quaint community in Minnesota's central lakes region. Located in Crow Wing County, Baxter is 20 square miles in area and has a population of a little more 8,000 people.
- Many residents of Baxter work in Brainerd, which at only a few miles away is a larger center for commerce and industry. Because the two towns share a boundary on Baxter's eastern side, some out-of-towners mistakenly refer to Brainerd as "Braxter."
- The Paul Bunyan Trails draw visitors to the region to bike, hike and camp along the scenic route. Biking along the trails is especially popular with local and state leaders visiting the trails each year to celebrate the region, enjoy the natural setting and get a great workout.
- Visitors to Baxter immediately note the town's friendly people and beautiful natural environments, something that draws thousands to the lakes region each year. In town, visitors can enjoy strolls among quaint shops and restaurants and savor a beer and casual conversation in one of the town's watering holes, such as the Black Bear Lodge & Saloon or Paul Bunyan Sports Bar.
- For a town its size, Baxter has a good number of local parks and outdoor areas, owing to residents' love of outdoor activities. The city maintains Oscar Kristofferson Park, with several ball fields, picnic areas and playground; Loren Thompson Park, with an on-site ice rink; Southdale Park, home to playgrounds and soccer fields; and Whipple Beach, noted for swimming, a fishing pier and picnic area.
- Because of the large number of lakes and natural water areas in and around Baxter, scientists say that the region was formed by ice sheets that receded following the last Ice Age. The sheet that dug the lakes around Baxter and central Minnesota is called the Labradorian ice sheet.
- With the demise of the railroads as the chief form of transportation in the U.S., tourism replaced the railroad as the chief employer of town residents. Today, tourism and the associated service industries that support it are the largest industry for the town, notably during the busy late spring and summer months.
- Due to its extreme northern geographic location, Baxter experiences a range of seasons and temperatures. The winter months are bitterly cold and snowy, with average high temperatures in January barely making it to 19 degrees and lows in the negative single digits. During late spring and summer, though, the area is warm with average high temperatures in May reaching 69 degrees and topping out at over 80 degrees in July.
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