Mississippi River links

General information

• Wikipedia entry
• Facts and figures from the National Park Service
• Locks and dams on the river

Ancient history of the river valley

• Summary at About.com
• Mankato State eMuseum presentation of Minnesota’s geological history
• Mankato State eMuseum presentation of Minnesota’s glacial history

Geography

• Navigation charts of the river. They form the basis for the map used on this site
• A tour of the river coming through the Twin Cities from the south
• A field guide to interesting sites along the river, created by Friends of the Mississippi River

Human prehistory

• Mankato State eMuseum list of Minnesota archaelogical sites
• All about arrowheads

Burial mounds

• The Bloomington mounds as viewed by the city
• Pulse magazine article on the controversy over excavating burial mounds
• Mankato State eMuseum presentation on burial mounds in Minnesota and the Bloomington mounds in particular

European exploration

• Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet
• Timeline (pdf) of French exploration in America
• Robert Cavelier de La Salle
• Wikipedia entry on Louis Hennepin

Nicollet Island

• Wikipedia entry
• Nicollet Island Inn
• Nicollet Island community organization
• Information about living on the island

St. Anthony Falls

• Wikipedia entry
• Glacial River Warren
• River Warren Falls
• 1869 tunnel collapse
• Historic district
• National Park Service data, including maps and photos

University of Minnesota

• Wikipedia entry
• The University’s description of its history
• The Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862
• A Minneapolis Public Library writeup

Ford Motor Co. assembly plant

• Wikipedia entry
• St. Paul’s redevelopment planning site
• MPR report on the plant’s closing

Fort Snelling

• Wikipedia entry
• Minnesota Historical Society page
• Col. Josiah Snelling, the fort’s namesake
• The story of the fort’s restoration
• A virtual tour of the fort
• The surrounding park

Dayton’s Bluff

• Wikipedia entry
• A photo tour of the neighborhood’s historic houses
• Ramsey County Historical Society article
• Indian Mounds Park
• Carver’s Cave
• Neighborhood community council

Pig’s Eye Island

• The heron rookery
• Biography of Pierre Parrant
• Fountain Cave article
• Michel LeClaire’s run-in with Pierre Parrant over the island
• An 1876 Minnesota Historical Society account of the LeClaire-Parrant dispute (Google Books; turn to page 147)

Other locations

• Lake Pepin

Tourist information

• The river in Minnesota
• 1995 New York Times travel piece on islands in the Twin Cities part of the river
• The Experience the Mississippi website, containing travel information for the full length of the river