Emergency Crime Scene and Biohazard Cleanup in La Crescent, MN

La Crescent sits on the west bank of the Mississippi River in Houston County, with its northern edge reaching into Winona County, directly across the river from La Crosse, Wisconsin.

The city was founded in 1851 by Peter and Emma Cameron, who first called their settlement "Camerons."

Peter Cameron tried to dig a canal that would reroute the Mississippi River closer to his town; he died ten weeks before its scheduled completion in 1857, the canal was never finished, and its trace can still be seen in aerial photographs of the city.

After a brief spell under the name "Manton," the Kentucky Land Company gave the town its present name, "La Crescent," for the crescent-shaped bend of the Mississippi River around it, and the town incorporated in 1857.

Horticulturalist John S. Harris arrived in 1856 and planted the area's first apple trees in 1857, proving — against the belief of "99 out of 100" people that apples could not grow in Minnesota — that trees could be bred hardy enough to survive the state's winters.

Harris planted thousands of apple trees and hundreds of varieties, became known as the "Father of the Orchardists" in Minnesota, and was a founding member of the Minnesota State Horticultural Society.

La Crescent is known as the "Apple Capital of Minnesota," a title the city formally copyrighted in 2002.

The city has celebrated its apple heritage with the Applefest festival every year since 1948.

The 2020 census counted 5,276 residents in La Crescent, making it the largest city in Houston County.

La Crescent's residents lived in 2,303 households in 2020, and about half of all households were married couples.