The shuttering of the Sherburne County Generating Station Unit 2 last weekend — the retirement of the biggest coal-fired generator to date in Minnesota — marked a major milestone in Xcel Energy’s goal of delivering 100 percent carbon-free electricity in the state by 2040. The company plans to close Sherco’s remaining coal-fired units in 2026 and 2030 and close the Allen S. King plant in Oak .
Starting in the 1830s, there have been steamboats plying the waters of the St. Croix River. The first boat, the Palmerya, brought supplies and machinery for the mill at St.