Minnesota Heritage Publishing

Test Your Knowledge of Mankato.

When was Mankato founded?
February 5-6, 1852

Who was the first Mankato area baseball pitcher to develop the curve ball in 1889?
Billy Mead, local baseball legend.

What was the first car in the United States to be powered by a V-8 engine?
The "Mayer Special." It was built in Mankato in 1903 by Louis Mayer.

Many stories and bits of folklore about Mankato people, places and events have woven a rich tapestry of history for this community. This unique book, with its easy to use chronological format, details the history of Mankato, from its inception in 1852 to 2002, the "Year of the Sesquicentennial."

Mankato Milestones contains fascinating facts and folklore — from Mankato "firsts" to facts about landmark buildings and personalities. It was designed to give the reader an awareness and appreciation for the triumphs and tragedies that have marked the passage of time in the Mankato area over the past 150 years, as well as provide them with a quality keepsake from the Mankato Sesquicentennial celebration for many years to come.

Bryce O. Stenzel was born and raised in rural Mankato, Minnesota. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Teaching and a Master's Degree in History from Minnesota State University, Mankato. He teaches full-time at the elementary and secondary levels as well as offers Community Education classes on historical topics throughout the year.

As a costumed historical interpreter, Stenzel portrays Abraham Lincoln. He is a member of the Association of Lincoln Presenters and a member of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. His first book, Abraham Lincoln: Man of the People was published in 1996. He has since published two other books; Mankato Milestones, 1852-2002: The Historians Handbook of Facts and Folklore from the Mankato Area, German Immigration to the Minnesota River Valley Frontier 1852-1865; and three playbooks, Lincoln for the Stages, Two Men, One Dream and To Bind the Nation’s Wounds: Lincoln’s Last Days. When he's not teaching, writing or portraying America's 16th president, Stenzel enjoys travel and photography.