Day 7: Duluth to Minneapolis
By Reilly Albert and Zach Reed
Overview
We began the cloudy day of October 3rd in Duluth, and ended in Minneapolis. Between Duluth and the twin cities we traveled along our first interstate of the trip as well as hit traffic for the first time. Our stops of the day included gas in Hinckley, Pilot Knob Preservation Site, Minnehaha State Park, Mill City Museum, Stone Arch Bridge, Fulton Brewery, and Graze food hall. October 3rd was an overcast day with temperatures ranging from the mid 40s to low 50s (fahrenheit).
On the Road
On the morning of October 3rd we departed Duluth for the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. This day marks our transition from the more rural, peripheral areas of Minnesota to the urban center of the Twin Cities. The 2.5 hour drive was our first interstate encounter of the trip. Our first unofficial stop of the day was halfway between Duluth and the cities in Hinckley. Here we were able to fuel up our vans and our stomachs with some famous Tobies Bakery cinnamon rolls. Continuing south across the Anoka Sand Plains, we experienced traffic for the first time on our trip.
Interstate 35 near Hinkley, MN.
Photo by Megan Kangas.
Pilot Knob Preservation Site
44°52'46"N 93°10'1"W
We arrived at our first official stop, Pilot Knob Preservation Site at 11:10am. The preservation site sits 940ft above sea level and overlooks the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers. Pilot Knob was a landmark for steamboat operators and is the birthplace of Dakota people. Dakota people believe the creator placed them on this land referring to the site as “Wotakuye Paha”, a hill of all the relatives. From this knob shaped hill you can see Fort Snelling across the river and Pine Island near the confluence. Fort Snelling once operated as a Dakota containment camp where Native Americans were mistreated. In the winter of 1862-63, 1,300 Dakota men, women and children were confined and fenced in at Fort Snelling leading to their eventual death and burial at Fort Snelling. This continued our learning about this horrific point in U.S. history, which we also discussed in Mankato and at the Lower Sioux Agency.
Geography 368 students read about the history of the Dakota people.
Photo by Ezra Zeitler.
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Minnehaha Regional Park
44°54'58"N 93°12'39"W
Departing Pilot Knob we made our way to Minnehaha Regional Park in Minneapolis where Tristen informed us of the history of Minnehaha. Where the falls are now was once part of the “Grand Rounds Scenic Byway,” a steamboat route. The falls have multiple, visible geologic layers of rock. With the help of our professors we were able to observe a limestone layer, part of the Platteville formation, followed by a layer of Glenwood shale, and a layer of St. Peter sandstone. Today Minnehaha operates as a city park that was designed in 1983.
Water rushing over the knickpoint at Minnehaha Falls.
Photo by Zach Reed.
Mill City Museum
44°58'42"N 93°15'24"W
We arrived at the Mill City Museum in downtown Minneapolis at 1:20pm. Minneapolis was once considered the milling capital of the world, home to both General Mills and Pilsbury. Milling boomed for years here in some of the most concentrated industry in the entire U.S., until the last mill shut down in 2003. The greatest challenge in the milling industry was flour dust. The dust created was stored for animal feed but the dust that wasn’t captured through a vacuum system went into the air. This dust is extremely flammable and led to countless cases of industrial fires in the milling district of Minneapolis. The Flour Tower section of the museum is the result of the 1991 dust fire. St. Anthony Falls, the only waterfall on the Mississippi, served as the major power source for the milling industry and has been instrumental to the Minneapolis’s success as a city. Although milling has left the Minneapolis area the impacts of milling can still be seen across the skyline of downtown.
Stone Arch Bridge
44°58'54"N 93°15'17"W
Leaving the museum we made our way down to the river to walk across the Stone Arch Bridge. The bridge was built in 1881 and served as a rail line until 1981. From 1981-1994 the bridge sat unused on the Mississippi River. As Minneaoplis continued to expand and build an accessible city, the bridge was reopened as a walk and bike bridge. With the redevelopment of the waterfront old mills have been transformed into high density living spaces that boast their accessibility to the footbridge. Minneapolis has grown to be one of the most bike friendly cities in the United States. The Stone Arch Bridge is credited with connecting the two sides of the river and fostering a walking and biking community.
Above: A class photo featuring St. Anthony Falls and the Stone Arch Bridge in the background.
Pictured (left to right): Back Row: Cole Perkins, Sam Kuhlmann, Reilly Albert, Tristan McGlauchlen, Megan Kangas, Makayla Jones-Klausing, Andrew Cotter Front Row: Zach Reed, Zachary Kosel, Ezra Zeitler, Alex Huddock, Kenz Hendrickson, Emily Huerta, Garry Running
Photo by Tour Guide Marty.
Lower Left: A model of St. Anthony Fall’s power generation. This awesome, hands-on activity helped us better understand the system in place.
Pictured (left to right): Andrew Cotter, Tristan McGlauchlen, Sam Kuhlmann, Cole Perkins
Photo by Zach Reed.
Field seminar students admire the old mill district of Minneapolis from the Stone Arch Bridge.
Photo by Zach Reed.
Fulton Brewery and Graze Food Hall
44°59'5"N 93°16'43"W
At 4:30 we arrived at Fulton Brewery Company in the North Loop of Minneapolis. Fulton is one of the top 5 breweries in the state. The North Loop is home to countless breweries, yoga studios, coffee shops and more. At Fulton, Cole shared the history of the warehouse district with us as well as a brief history of the micro-brewing industry in Minneapolis. From Fulton we went to Graze, a brand new food hall in the North Loop neighborhood. Graze is set up in a food court style where members of your party can order food from a variety of restaurants and be able to eat together with others. Graze contains a variety of restaurants and bars serving local products. It even featured an arcade machine filled with games, on which Zachary promptly beat the highscore for Dig Dug. Our first day in the Twin Cities Metro was great, and we ended the day with a better understanding for why the metro has such primacy and significance in Minnesota.
Cole Perkins giving his presentation at Fulton Brewing Company.
Photo by Ezra Zeitler.