Wilno is an unincorporated community located in Royal Township, Lincoln County, Minnesota, United States.
History Wilno was laid out in 1883 on land provided by the Chicago and Northwestern railroad to create a Polish settlement. The community was formed as part of a planned effort between the railroad and leaders of Polish National Alliance (PNA) with the cooperation of the Catholic Church. The organizers named the town after Vilnius by taking its Polish name Wilno. St. John Cantius Church was established in the town in the same year.John Radzilowski, "Hidden Cosmos: The Life Worlds of Polish Immigrants in Two Minnesota Communities, 1875-1925," Ph.D. diss., Arizona State University, 1999. Rev. R. Byzewski of Winona born in Kashubia and Bishop John Ireland of St. Paul also worked to establish the church.
By 1891, the town was centered on the Polish Catholic parish and school. It also had a post office, carpenter, blacksmithy, general store, saloon, and wagonmaker. The town postmaster also operated a small reading room.Radzilowski, "Hidden Cosmos."
A common myth is that when the railroad attempted to buy land for right-of-way, two Wilno farmers refused the amount offered. So the railroad was built through what became the town of Ivanhoe instead. In fact the railroads frequently bypassed small "inland" towns like Wilno.Radzilowski, Out On the Wind: Poles and Danes in Lincoln County, Minnesota, 1880-1905 (Marshall, MN: Crossings Press, 1992), 56-61. The town remained a tiny Catholic settlement.
The centennial for the church was celebrated in 1983. At that time Wilno consisted of the church, two stores, and 10 households.
See also John Cantius - church's namesake.
References
Further reading Radzilowski, John. "Out on the Wind: Life in Minnesota's Polish Farming Communities." Minnesota History Spring 2002: 17–28.
External links Images of Wilno and St. John Cantius Catholic Church, St. John Cantius Catholic Church records, University of Minnesota Libraries.