Built in 1901. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
“The Palmer House is a historic hotel in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, United States. It was built in 1901 and expanded in 1916.”
Wikipedia article The Palmer House (Sauk Centre), CC BY-SA 4.0.
One of 36 National Register listings published here for Stearns County · listed in 1982 · category: Building · built in 1901.
Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service
The chapter on Sauk Centre Township in History of Stearns County, Minnesota, published 1915 names Sauk Centre. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.
The white man who first set his foot on the spot where now rises the beautiful little city of Sauk Centre was probably a reckless adventurer inspired by wanderlust. He passed on, leaving never a trace l>ehind him, and has now ended his aimless journeyings through the world. To this nomadic class belong not the real pioneers of a country, they who build its civilization. With these latter it is a desire for the erection of homes that sends them forth to endure all the hardships and perils of a new and uninhabited country. The love of home is instinctive with them:
Passage source: History of Stearns County, Minnesota, published 1915.
The first settlement made in Sauk Centre was in the year 1856. It consisted of what was known as the "Sauk Centre -Townsite Co.," comprised of seven persons, of whom the leading spirit in the enterprise was Alexander Moore, who was then acting as agent for his mother, Rachel Moore. His arrival in this locality was probably antedated by that of W. R. James, the latter, however, after a short stay had departed to return a few years later. Although the township had not then been sub-divided, the outlines of a townsite were staked out.
Passage source: History of Stearns County, Minnesota, published 1915.
Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.
Read the whole chapter on Sauk Centre Township - 5,495 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 4 fires within 5 miles of Palmer House Hotel between 2000 and 2011, burning about 23 acres in total. None started naturally. 1 was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Recreation and ceremony | 2 |
| Debris and open burning | 1 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 March 2005 | Debris and open burning | under an acre | Litchfield Wetland Management District | ARCHWELDER |
| 18 November 2011 | Recreation and ceremony | 21 acres | Litchfield Wetland Management District | GETTEL |
| 1 October 2004 | Recreation and ceremony | 2.0 acres | Litchfield Wetland Management District | TWIN FIRE |
| 1 January 2000 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Minnesota Department of Natural Resources | not named |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 1 working within 5 miles of Palmer House Hotel: 1 producer. All of them still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haskamp Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer |
Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Sauk Centre, the town this property stands in, in 45 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 23 hail, 13 thunderstorm wind, 3 flash flood, 2 tornado. The reports record 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2000 | Lightning | Sauk Centre | 1 hurt | Metal trailer struck by lightning. Person standing next to trailer suffered burns. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | $500,000 | The Sauk Centre City Officials noted that power was lost in the town at 1908 CST, which is when emergency sirens lost power. Several residents noted that the strong straight line winds lasted for 10 minutes. ||Damage occurred to approximately 200 trees in Sauk Centre which were either uprooted or snapped off with the line of storms. Tree damage was noted from Interstate 94, in the south, to the Sauk Centre Country Club to the north. ||The survey noted that all of the trees were laying toward the east, which was indicative of damage caused by straight line winds. Dozens of structures were also damaged in the town, though almost all of the structural damage was caused by falling trees. There was a toppled truck trailer, just over a dozen downed utility poles, and several snapped road signs. |
| July 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | $25,000 | Numerous trees were uprooted around the city of Sauk Centre. |
| June 2023 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | A report was received via social media. There was also a measured 51 mph wind gust. |
| May 2022 | Tornado (EF0) | Sauk Centre | - | Video on social media showed a tornado moving across the southern part of Sauk Lake. A damage survey found over a dozen trees uprooted or broken in the northwest wide of Sauk Centre, just east and southeast of the Old Golf Course. After moving across the lake, it knocked down a few more trees and dissipated. |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | A few trees were blown down around Sauk Centre. The Sauk Centre airport measured a wind gust of 53 MPH at 1755 CST. |
| August 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | There were numerous trees blown down in the town of Sauk Centre. |
| May 2014 | Flash Flood | Sauk Centre | - | There were numerous reports of county roads flooding between Sauk Centre and Melrose, including County Road 4 near the Sauk River, Highway 71 south of Sauk Centre, plus County Roads, 29, 186 and 169. These roads were closed during the height of the storm, and sustained damage due to debris and some erosion from the fast flowing water. |
| June 2013 | Flash Flood | Sauk Centre | - | Very heavy rainfall began across Stearns County after 1200 AM CST, Friday, June 21st. Due to the extreme rainfall rates that continued through 130 AM CST, Friday, June 21st, several roads in the city of Sauk Centre became inundated with flood waters. The heavy rainfall tapered off after 2 AM CST, June 21st, and flood waters slowly receded during the early morning hours. |
| May 2013 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | Small tree limbs were also blown down during the time the quarter size hail fell. |
| May 2012 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | The large hail stones accumulated up to 2 inches deep in some areas of town. |
| July 2008 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | Wind gust occurred on Interstate 94 at mile post 128. |
| August 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | Semi-trailer trucks blown over on Interstate 94. Roof off two buildings at car dealership, garage door blown out, softball bleacher tossed, large trees uprooted, silo collapsed onto barn. |
| September 2007 | Heavy Rain | Sauk Centre | - | Ponding of water occured at a viaduct and at a few intersections around town. As a result, a few roads were barricaded. |
| August 2006 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | Hail was occasionally nickel size. |
| June 2005 | Funnel Cloud | Sauk Centre | - | A trained spotter reported via HAM Radio that they witnessed a funnel cloud from a vantage point 7 miles south of Sauk Center. |
| April 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | Numerous trees down in Sinclair Lewis Park. |
| June 2002 | Tornado (F0) | Sauk Centre | - | Brief touchdown in open field witnessed by broadcast meteorologist. |
| July 2002 | Flash Flood | Sauk Centre | - | Street flooding. |
| July 2002 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | Tree down on Main Street. |
| July 2000 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | Power lines down. |
| July 1997 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | Two farmsteads damaged by downburst winds. Several sheds destroyed. Irrigation equipment ripped into pieces. Trees blown down. Estimated windspeed. |
| August 2025 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| June 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| May 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| May 2016 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| May 2012 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2011 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2010 | Funnel Cloud | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2010 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2010 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| April 2010 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| June 2007 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| September 2007 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2007 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| June 2007 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2007 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| August 2006 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| June 2003 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2002 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2002 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| June 2001 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| July 2000 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Hail | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
| August 1993 | Thunderstorm Wind | Sauk Centre | - | no account filed |
No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.
Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.
| Photograph | Property | Distance | Listed |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Original Main Street Historic District | under 500 feet | 1994 |
 | Sinclair Lewis Boyhood Home | 0.2 miles | 1968 |
 | Minnesota Home School for Girls Historic District | 1.0 miles | 1989 |
| National Archives record | The nomination case file for reference 82003047 in Record Group 79. |
| Wikipedia article | Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA. |
| Stearns County | All 36 listed properties in this county. |
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