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• Anoka County Multi Jurisdictional All Hazards Mitigation Plan 1926, Columbia Heights High School on 41st Ave between Jackson and Van Buren became the first high school in Anoka County. It became the Columbia Heights Junior High School in 1961 and in 1981 it was sold to the Northwestern Electronics Institute and operated as a technical college until NEI merged with Dunwoody in 2002. The property surrounding Silver Lake was mostly privately owned and had a privately run beach. In 1920, when a man drowned in the lake, the lake was dynamited in an attempt to find the body. This destroyed many of the natural springs, and water levels dropped greatly. A pipe was laid to the lake from the Minneapolis reservoir since it was felt this was too valuable a resource to allow it to become a swamp. Apparently, some of the springs have reactivated and with storm run -off, the lake levels have remained adequate without additional pumping of water into it. City of Columbus The City of Columbus is located in east central Anoka County in the northerly portion of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. The City is 48 square miles with an elevation of 919 feet at Latitude 45.26 N and Longitude —93.07 W. Wetlands and open water bodies dominate the landscape, as they constitute nearly two - thirds of the City. Much of this area is located within State owned Wildlife Management Areas (WMA), including the Carlos Avery WMA, Lamprey Pass WMA, and Houle WMA, all of which make up over one -third of the town. Rural residential uses comprise 4,799 acres of land, including 1,221 acres of wetland and floodplain. Nearly 5,000 acres of land, which is neither encumbered by wetlands nor floodplain, remain vacant or agricultural use. Both Native Americans and the European settlers that followed influence the history of Columbus. Human settlement of areas within Columbus can be traced back to the presence of the Hopewell Tribe of Native Americans. Archeologists believe that the Hopewell Tribe established extensive trading with tribes over the entire continent. Burial mounds are located around Howard Lake in the Lamprey Pass Wildlife Management Area. Three large mounds were discovered in 1889; and it was not until 1977 that an additional three smaller mounds were discovered. Each of these areas are designated and protected as historic sites by the Minnesota Historical Society. In addition, the Minnesota Historical Society believes that remnants of Native American settlements may exist along Kettle River Boulevard northeast of Howard Lake and along Rice Creek. The City supports archeological research prior to or in conjunction with any excavation or building in these areas, The City of Columbus was platted in 1856 and a Town organization was formed in 1857. Early settlers sought to develop a village center on the St. Paul -Kettle River Road, one of the earliest stage lines to be developed in the State. This site, known as "Boehm's Corner," contained a sawmill and hotel. Efforts to encourage the development of a village center met with no success. Columbus Township lost a bid in the mid -1860s for the Anoka County seat and it was passed over as a potential route for the St. Paul - Duluth Railroad. The village center never materialized, and by 1879, the Township abandoned efforts to establish a village at that site. City of Coon Rapids The City of Coon Rapids is a second -ring suburb northwest of Minneapolis, located in suburban Anoka County, Minnesota. The city is approximately 22.7 square miles with an elevation of 863 feet at Latitude 45.17 N and Longitude -93,31 W. It is bordered by the Mississippi River and the city of Anoka to the west; the city of Andover to the north; the city of Blaine to the east; and the city of Fridley to the south, Coon Rapids is the most populous city in Anoka County.