McGrath, Minnesota
human settlement in Aitkin County, Minnesota, United States of America
McGrath is a city in Aitkin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 41 at the 2020 census.
History
James E. McGrath, a logger and landowner who had been working the area since 1895, donated 40 acres in 1907 for a town site. The site was platted as Elmwood. When a post office was established in 1908, the site was renamed McGrath after James E. McGrath. McGrath was incorporated in 1923.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 0.371 square miles (0.96 km2), all land.
McGrath is located along Minnesota State Highways 27 / 65 (co-signed). State Highway 18 is nearby. Other routes include Aitkin County Road 9, 1st Street.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “McGrath, Minnesota” as human settlement in Aitkin County, Minnesota, United States of America. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as human settlement in Aitkin County, Minnesota, United States of America. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2230209. VIAF identifies the subject as 129290402. The Library of Congress control number is no92004789. Authority coordinates are 46.240, -93.272. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 1895, 1907 and 1908.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “McGrath, Minnesota”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow McGrath, Minnesota primary sources, McGrath, Minnesota archive and McGrath research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “McGrath, Minnesota”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “McGrath, Minnesota” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.