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City in Minnesota, United States

Stillwater is a city in the U. S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Washington County. It is in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, on the west bank of the St. Croix River, across from Houlton, Wisconsin. Stillwater's population was 19,394 at the 2020 census. Stillwater is often called "the birthplace of Minnesota" State Highways 36, 95, and 96 are three of the community's main routes.

Stillwater receives an average annual snowfall of Average annual rainfall is Each year has an average of 14 days above .

The name "Stillwater" was proposed in 1843 by John McKusick, who built the settlement's first sawmill. McKusick was later a state senator. The name derives from the St. Croix River's calmness near the town center. It is also believed that McKusick had fond memories of Stillwater, Maine, where he had migrated from. a term that encompassed not only the St. Croix River but also Lake St. Croix and a large sandbar across from present day Afton. The name, meaning "the place where the fish lies", derived from a legend in which a man was transformed into a giant fish (a catfish or a pike, depending on the version) and then into a sandbar. In English, Hoġan Wanḳe Kin has been spelled variously as Hogan wahnkay kin, Hogan wauke kin and Hogan wan kee. The Ojibwe name for the place was Giigoonzh agomod, with the slightly different meaning of "where the fish floats". The Ojibwe origin legend is very similar, also involving a man transformed into a giant fish and found floating in the lake. He was ultimately transformed into "a piece of land crossing the lake there" (i. e., the sandbar). In English renderings, Giigo onh zhagomod has been spelled as Kee go shagewa minnie and Kegan Shaw Ga Nut.

In the 1830s, European Americans were pressing west into this territory. The U. S. government tried to arrange for their settlement in Native American lands, and on July 29 and September 29, 1837, it signed treaties with the local Ojibwe and Dakota nations to allow such settlement in the St. Croix Valley. The settlement was founded on October 26, 1843, when four partners formed the Stillwater Lumber Company. Settlers were drawn by the area's abundant lumber and river traffic resulting from the industry. This was one of Minnesota's oldest towns, preceding Minneapolis by several years. Stillwater was officially incorporated as a city on March 4, 1854 (the same day as St. Paul). Stillwater is often called the "birthplace of Minnesota". In 1848, a territorial convention that began the process of establishing Minnesota as a state was held in Stillwater, at the corner of Myrtle and Main streets. Originally part of the Wisconsin Territory, Minnesota officially became a separate territory in 1849 and, after population increases, a state in 1858. As more evidence of Stillwater's importance at the time, the territorial convention selected three leading Minnesota cities as locations for three important public institutions: Saint Paul was designated as the capital; the University of Minnesota was established at Minneapolis; and Stillwater became the site of the territory's first prison. The Minnesota Territorial Prison (later Minnesota State Prison) was opened in 1853. The prison held Cole, Jim, and Bob Younger, three of the Younger brothers of the James–Younger Gang. Lumbering was the predominant industry in the St. Croix River Valley in the second half of the 19th century. For many years, lumbermen sent large rafts of logs down the St. Croix. They were collected at the St. Croix Boom Site two miles upstream of Stillwater, and processed in Stillwater's many sawmills. Steamboats were used most widely on the river from 1860 to 1890. A few still operate as entertainment venues today. David Swain operated a shipyard and engine works in Stillwater. Excursion steamboats, such as the Verne Swain and the Capitol, began to operate in the early 20th century, taking passengers to other cities along the river. During the American Civil War, Stillwater sent men of the 1st Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Company B, 5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment Company K, and the 8th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment Company C, among others, to fight for the Union. On October 18, 1921, Charles Strite invented the automatic pop up bread toaster in Stillwater. By 1926, the Toastmaster Company began to market the first household toaster using a redesigned version of Strite's invention. In 1923, Nelson's Ice Cream parlor was established. In 1931, construction of the Stillwater lift bridge over the St. Croix River was completed at a final cost of $460,174, which was split equally between Minnesota and Wisconsin. The lift bridge is one of the city's most iconic and visible local monuments. It was part of Minnesota State Highway 36 until 2017, when it closed to vehicle traffic. In 2020 it became part of a five mile trail loop running through Stillwater and Houlton, Wisconsin. In 1996 the city of Stillwater entered into an agreement with Stillwater Township to annex land. In 2015 the Stillwater city council approved the annexing the last of the land covered by the agreement. The city's western border is now Manning Avenue (County Road 15). The northern border is now mostly, but not entirely, Minnesota Highway 96. Stillwater was described as the Minnesota headquarters of the Ku Klux Klan in 1991, and has been identified as a "probable" former sundown town.

As of the 2020 census, there were 19,394 people living in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 89.9% White alone (95.4% White alone or in combination), 1.7% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.9% from other races, and 5.6% from two or more races. Hispanics of any race were 3.2% of the population. According to the American Community Survey estimates for 2016–2020, the median income for a household in the city was $91,947, and the median income for a family was $109,151. Male full time workers had a median income of $73,986 versus $67,005 for female workers. The per capita income for the city was $48,553. About 3.3% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over. Of the population age 25 and over, 96.4% were high school graduates or higher and 46.6% had a bachelor's degree or higher.

Stillwater has a mix of public district, public charter, and private schools at the primary and secondary levels. The city is served by the Stillwater Area Public Schools system and the nearest high school is Stillwater Area High School in Oak Park Heights, Minnesota.