Prior to 1850 and the Leech Lake/Fort Ripley Indian Agency Trail being built the territory, which included the present Village of Backus, was a wilderness, occupied by Ojibwe Native Americans who hunted and fished in the surrounding forests and lakes. Chief Hole-In-the-Day headed a delegation that signed a treaty in Washington, D.C. in 1869 that ceded this part of Minnesota to the US Government. An Ojibwe cemetery and a prehistoric village was located about ½ mile south of the existing city. The building of the Agency Trail along with government brought railroad surveyors to the area. T.B. Walker, E.W. Backus, Mr. Brooks, Sam Hunter, Weyerhaueser and Pillsbury saw this as an opportunity to make money on the timber and they acquired much of the land. July 1, 1870, land surrounding the present Village of Backus was deeded to the Northern Pacific Railway Company to aid in the construction of railroads in accordance with the Land Grant Act of 1864.
In 1873 H.C. Waite received a US patent on the present Backus City property he had homesteaded on for five years prior. January 14, 1891, Weyerhaeuser purchased the old town site of Backus from the Northern Pacific Railroad. Where a sawmill had been established in about 1886 by Blake and Farley. Backus and Brooks Lumber Company established a sawmill with camps on Four Point Lake (also known as Five Point Lake), on Sanborn Lake and a warehouse was built at “Old Town.” These logging operations provided employment for hundreds of men. A loading dock extended out into Pine Mountain Lake.
Backus Village was built on the Agency Trail, which later became a stage road in 1910. Frank Cologne, the first white man to settle here, had a stopping place at Old Town Backus, on the north side of 24 Mile Creek (Pine Mountain Creek), which was about ¾ of a mile south of the present site of the City of Backus. In 1888 Edward Hurley built the first store in Old Town, a general merchandise store. He was the first Postmaster and also built the first saloon. He sold to Henry Dorr in about 1890 who turned the Saloon into The Pioneer House, the first boarding and lodging house at Old Town. Crow Wing County offered $100,000 for a railroad to be built from Brainerd to Leech Lake, the Northern Minnesota Railroad Company came as far as Backus in 1894.
A log schoolhouse was built in the early 1890s and was replaced with a frame building in 1897. The Cass County Board of Commissioners organized the Backus voting precinct in 1898 as “Section 4-9, 16-18, T138, R29; the N ½ of T138 R 30; all of T139, R30 and the E ½ of T139, R31; voting place, Dorr’s House.” The Old Town site was never platted due to legal technicalities. J.S. Scribner decided the location of the new village would be Lot 4, he had an agreement with the railroad to have side tracks and a depot built in 1904. As the village was organized and grew the old village site was abandoned, some of the buildings were moved to the new village and others were built. Frank W. Zaske was appointed the first Justice of the Peace on September 5, 1900.
Petition to organize Backus as a village began on November 27, 1902, it was granted on December 16, 1902. At the first meeting of the Village on December 29, 1902 officials were elected. The original plat was 42.45 acres, Lot 4, Section 30, T139, R30. Several additions have since been added. The village was named after Edward Wellington Backus (E.W. Backus) who was part owner of Backus and Brooks Lumber Company. He was a mill owner, financer, developer, timber baron, and dam builder.
In 1902 Backus moved to its current location and grew from a post office and one store into a thriving economic hub as the logging industries and railroad prospered. The Backus jailhouse was built in 1903, in 1912 W. Kinney set the jail on fire after being arrested. Instead of repairing the jail the remnants of the building were sold.
On June 1, 1915, Front Street was designated a State Road and part of State Rural Highway 80, which later became State Highway 19 in 1919. In 1930 it was improved, straightened and tarred, at that time it passed Backus ½ mile to the East and became US Highway 371 in 1936. The ½ mile stretch between Backus and the highway was tarred in 1934. Front Street was updated with a new road and sidewalks in 2024.
During the late 1950s and 1960s as the railroad and logging industries lost importance in the evolving economy, Backus lost many residents and businesses. The loss of the railroad came in the 1980s which has since been converted into the Paul Bunyan State Recreational Trail which passes through the center of present-day Backus and connects the cities of Brainerd to the south and Bemidji to the north. See page 14 to view the trail map.
Today, Backus has a population of about 250. It is located in a beautiful lake and woods setting on the banks of Pine Mountain Lake, a great fishing and recreational lake. Rocky Dock City Park west of the Paul Bunyan Trail offers a public access to Pine Mountain Lake, a picnic pavilion, park and a swimming beach. The local residents take pride in their community. The Backus “Oldtimers” host an annual class reunion each Memorial Day weekend and “Cornfest” takes place the second Saturday in August complete with a parade, a corn feed, vendor/craft fair, games, street dance and fireworks.
From Backus you also have access to Foot Hills State Forest which includes the Spider Lake OHV Trails where you will see wildlife and spectacular views along the way. See page 18 for that trail map.
Along 371 we have the Corner Store which is a popular stop located right on the east side of 371 and Washburn Ave. The Corner Store is a one stop shop, convenience store, restaurant, bait shop, gun shop and has gas and propane. The Maxson-Van EPS Backus American Legion Post 368 just north of the Corner Store offers daily specials and is a hot spot for a variety of events like, meat raffles, bingo, trivia and poker night. Also located on 371 are the Backus Lumber and Garden, Dollar General, Liquor Locker, and Scamp Trailers which has been manufacturing in Backus since its inception in 1972. Godfrey’s True Value has little of something for everyone, gas, groceries, clothing, boots, bait, gifts, rental equipment and more. Backus even has a Municipal Airport located on the west side of 371.
A few blocks west of 371 on Front Street is the quaint downtown area featuring the chainsaw carving of Colonel Cobber, stop and take a selfie. Along Washburn Avenue and onto Front Street going north Backus has a variety of businesses from the Backus Volunteer Fire Department, City Hall, Post Office, Tire Shop (BNL Auto). Visit the Backus Locker and pick up some meat. Stop in at Willard’s Saloon & Eatery for a burger and drink, and depending on the day, participate in some fun events. On Wednesdays they hold a meat raffle at 5:30pm, every other Thursday at 6pm you will find Meat Bingo, Saturdays will can sing your heart out at Karaoke from 7pm11pm, and Sundays you’ll find races and meat raffles or during football season football specials. The Senior Center in town cooks up a great breakfast and lunch on Wednesday’s. Get there early to enjoy their caramel rolls, cinnamon rolls, and pies.
Backus has a variety of resorts Mountain View, Sandy Pines, Sunset Pines, Bayside Cabins and Resort and Tuck-A-Way Resort & Campground.