From Red Rock to Woodbury
Woodbury’s earliest settlers arrived in the 1840s, drawn to the rolling prairie and oak groves around what is now Colby Lake. John McHattie, one of the first to stake a claim in the area, arrived in 1841, followed by his brother Alexander and other early settlers over the following years. The area was originally organized as Red Rock Township, but after officials discovered another Red Rock Township already existed in Minnesota, it was renamed Woodbury, after United States Senator and Supreme Court Justice Levi Woodbury.
Woodbury remained a small farming community for well over a century. As late as 1960, the population was just over three thousand. Voters approved incorporation as a city in 1967, and growth accelerated from there, ten thousand residents by 1980, and more than eighty thousand today, transforming Woodbury from a quiet farming township into the largest city in Washington County.
Three School Districts, One City
Because of how Woodbury grew, the city is served by three different school districts depending on which part of town a home sits in. Most of Woodbury falls within South Washington County Schools, District 833, but a portion of the city is served by North St. Paul, Maplewood, Oakdale Schools, District 622, and a section of northeast Woodbury is actually part of Stillwater Area Public Schools, District 834, the same district that serves Stillwater itself.
This matters more than it might seem. Two homes just streets apart in Woodbury can be zoned for entirely different school districts, which is exactly the kind of detail worth confirming before falling in love with a specific home.
To check exactly which district a specific address falls into, the Minnesota Legislature’s School District Finder is the most direct tool. For a broader look at school and district level data, the Minnesota Department of Education’s Report Card mapper offers additional detail.
School district boundaries can change, and the tools above are provided for general reference only. Always verify current district assignment directly with the applicable school district before making a decision based on it.
Real Experience Across Woodbury’s Neighborhoods
Over the years, Jason has closed transactions in more than fifteen distinct Woodbury neighborhoods, including Sienna Grove, Highcroft, Spancil Hill, Dancing Waters, Stonemill Farms, Garden Gate, Colby Lake, Bailey’s Arbor, Wedgewood Park, Highland Heights, Oak Hill, Savannah Oaks, Lake Inverness Estates, Valley Crest, and Brightons Landing, with multiple sales in several of these areas.
That kind of breadth, rather than deals concentrated in just one part of town, gives Jason a genuinely practical understanding of how different pockets of Woodbury trade, from newer developments to established, mature neighborhoods.
Featured Woodbury neighborhood: Dancing Waters, a master planned community with trails, green space, water features and a mix of detached and attached homes, where Jason represented the buyers of a home on Harbor Lane.
Explore Dancing WatersWhat Types of Homes Will You Find in Woodbury?
Woodbury’s size and decades of steady growth give it one of the most varied housing markets in the East Metro.
- Bailey's Arbor, Dancing Waters, Stonemill Farms, and Colby Lake, established neighborhoods with a strong track record of resale value
- Wedgewood Park, Evergreen, and Powers Lake, popular family oriented neighborhoods throughout the city
- Interlachen, among Woodbury's more distinctive residential settings
- A wide range of newer construction throughout the city's continuing eastward development
- A full spectrum of price points and housing styles, reflecting a city that has grown steadily for more than sixty years rather than all at once
A Family Connection to Woodbury Hockey
Jason’s own kids grew up playing in the Woodbury hockey program, giving him firsthand experience with the community beyond real estate transactions, the rinks, the schedules, and the genuine sense of community that comes with raising a family in a place like this.
Why Homeowners Are Drawn to Woodbury
Woodbury offers a rare combination for a suburb of its size, genuine scale and amenity alongside real neighborhood character.
- The largest city in Washington County, with the amenities and tax base that come with that scale
- A wide range of established and newer neighborhoods to choose from
- Multiple school district options depending on which part of the city a home sits in
- Strong, sustained growth over decades, not a boom and bust cycle
- Convenient access to both Saint Paul and the broader East Metro
How Woodbury Compares to Nearby Communities
Woodbury borders Afton and Cottage Grove and sits within the same broader East Metro corridor as Stillwater and Lake Elmo. Compared to those smaller, more rural communities, Woodbury offers considerably more scale, amenities, shopping, and a wider range of housing options, while still being close enough to reach Stillwater’s downtown or Afton’s river towns in a short drive.
Local Knowledge That Comes From Working This Market
Woodbury is part of the broader East Metro market Jason has worked in for more than two decades, and it’s also where his own family put down roots, giving him both professional transaction history and personal, lived familiarity with the community.
