The Rodeo Capital Of Minnesota Is One Of The Most Charming Small Towns You’ll Ever Visit

Hamel, Minnesota is… complicated. It has all you could hope for in a charming Minnesota small town: local businesses, an interesting history, a dominating youth baseball program, and a beautiful park. It even happens to host one of the largest rodeos in Minnesota, playing host to the state’s biggest even on the American rodeo circuit for decades. And yet…

Technically speaking, Hamel, Minnesota is not a town - not even an unincorporated one.

But we all act like it is. And that’s okay.

These days, Hamel is actually a “neighborhood” in the city of Medina. And maybe part of Corcoran.

But it has its own “uptown” - not downtown - area, and its own post office with its own zip code.

It has a beautiful park where its baseball teams - who terrorized my son’s Little League teams - play.

There was service to a Hamel train station from 1886 to 1963.

Hamel even had a branch of the Hennepin County Library for more than 40 years. The historic Hamel Library now serves as a history center for - you guessed it - Hamel.

Not only is Hamel not currently a town - it never was. There was a community called Lenz at this location in the early 1860s, but by the 1880s, folks started calling it Hamel after a prominent local citizen. It was platted as a town but never incorporated. Ultimately, the borders of the neighboring cities of Medina and Corcoran met each other in the middle of Hamel. But Hamel and its residents didn’t seem to notice or care. They kept right on being Hamel.

Hamel’s citizens love their baseball and an occasional beer or other beverage at Inn Kahoots.

And when you’re hungry in Hamel, you grab breakfast or lunch from Peg’s Countryside Cafe, where you can get a good cup of coffee, a hearty meal, and news of the… neighborhood.

And every summer, folks polish their boots and buckles, dust off their Stetsons and get ready for the largest rodeo in Minnesota: the Hamel Rodeo and Bull Ridin’ Bonanza… in Corcoran.

The Hamel Rodeo has been an institution for decades.

It draws thousands every year to see calf roping, bucking broncos, and barrel racing.

Of course, as the “Bull Ridin’ Bonanza” portion of the event’s name implies, the bull riding is a big draw. And it doesn’t disappoint.

Check out CCX Media’s highlight reel from the Hamel Rodeo and Bull Ridin’ Bonanza on YouTube:

So, go ahead. Call it Medina or Corcoran or whatever. But it will always be Hamel to us - and it will keep being the rodeo capital of Minnesota. Just be sure to remember your Stetson when you head out to the rodeo! If you love horses, be sure to keep your eyes peeled for the Minnesota Horse Expo, which rolls around every spring at the state fairgrounds.

Have you spent any time in Hamel - attended the rodeo? breakfast at Peg’s? - or had your big league dreams crushed at Legion Park? Let us know in the comments!