Emergency Biohazard Cleanup Services in Afton, MN

Afton is a city in Washington County, Minnesota, lying on a small bay where Valley Creek empties into the St. Croix River, a few miles north of where the St. Croix meets the Mississippi.

Afton was first settled in 1837 by French Canadian fur traders, making it one of the oldest settlements in Minnesota, and it was platted in 1855.

The name Afton was chosen from 'Sweet Afton,' the famous poem by Robert Burns, and a post office has operated at Afton since 1857.

The village of Afton was not incorporated until the early 1910s, and in 1971 the village and Afton Township merged to form the modern City of Afton.

Afton is geographically large — about 25 square miles — but sparsely settled: the 2020 census counted just 2,955 residents, and the city deliberately works to keep its rural character only about fifteen miles from downtown St. Paul.

Afton's population has barely changed in decades, growing only from 2,643 in 1990 to 2,955 in 2020.

Afton is home to Afton Alps, the largest ski and snowboard area in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, with about 300 skiable acres, roughly 50 trails and 18 chairlifts.

Afton State Park, established in 1969 on the St. Croix River, covers nearly 1,700 acres of bluffland with hiking trails, camping and a swimming beach.

Three Afton properties are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the 1856 Erastus Bolles House, the 1864 Newington Gilbert House and the 1867 Cushing Hotel.

The Bolles Mill site in Afton is recognized as the site of the first flour mill in Minnesota, and the village's Afton Theological Academy, built in 1867, was the area's first educational academy.