The Winona Daily News has printed the recollections of preacher Edward Ely on events in 1852 in the very early settlement of Winona, Minnesota:

“Week after week passes without anything occurring worthy of note. We were occasionally visited by some traveler who would remain a day or two and go and fish for trout. Sometimes a man looking for a place to settle would stop a few days and take look at the country, but not one that I know of went as far out as beyond the bluffs. Some would go away saying that they would not take the whole prairie as a gift. It was nothing but a bed of sand thrown up by the rush of the river. Others would look upon it more favorably and say there might be a “right smart” town here some day.”

The full article discusses the basic efforts and challenges of the people, and can be read here:  http://www.winonadailynews.com/special-section/pieces-of-the-past/throwback-thursday-the-diaries-of-elder-ely/article_c714305b-c2c9-54c4-98df-12bd64315ae6.html