Although oxbow lake formation is usually a naturally occurring phenomenon in meandering rivers and streams, Kossila Oxbow was man-made by Harold Frank Kossila (1881-1985), originally from Kauvatsa, Finland.
Between 1943 and 1945, Kossila purchased a total of 120 acres of land on the steep banks of the Crow Wing River in Shell Lake Township and moved his small farming operation here.