The first record of a Hispanic/Latino settler in Minnesota dates back to 1886. In this year, Luis Garzon, a 19 year-old oboe player, visited Minneapolis as part of the Mexico City Orchestra. The Orchestra was scheduled to perform at an industrial gala/exposition. Luis Garzon fell ill and remained behind as the orchestra left town. Thus, Luis Garzon became the first known Hispanic/Latino to reside in Minnesota. By the turn of the century, Minnesota Census records reflected a population that consisted of 24 Hispanic/Latinos.

During the 1910s more than 10% of Mexico's population was displaced. This was due, in part, to the Díaz rule and the revolution that ensued. Another contributing factor to the influx of Hispanic/Latinos was the booming meatpacking, agricultural, and railroad industries in the United States. U.S. companies, including the Minnesota Sugar Company (now American Crystal Sugar), began to actively recruit Mexican workers. Due to World War I, labor shortages were also a contributing factor to the increased flow of Hispanic/Latinos to Minnesota. An estimated 240 Hispanic/Latinos lived in Minneapolis and 70 in Saint Paul by the 1920s.

By the early 1930s, more than 3,600 Hispanic/Latinos were living in Minnesota. It was during this time that Saint Paul's West Side became an established Hispanic/Latino community.

Source: http://www.districtdelsol.com