RIVER TOWNS.
Brownsville, the first town.--The city of La Crosse.--Victoria and
Albert Bluffs.--Trempeleau and Mountain Island.--The city of
Winona.--Its name and origin.--The Winona and St. Peters Railroad.--The
Air-Line Railroad.--Her educational interests.--Advancement of the
West.--The towns of Wabasha and Reed's Landing.--Lake Pepin and Maiden's
Rock.--Romantic story.--An old fort.--Lake City and Frontenac.--Red Wing
and Hastings.--Red Rock.
The first landing in Minnesota, going up the river, is made at
BROWNSVILLE,
a very small village, nestled close in under the hillside, and
overshadowed by the high bluffs which seem to threaten its existence,
and would quite exterminate it should land-slides ever become possible
with these silicious limestone battlements. Beyond being an outlet for
surplus products of the back country, it has no importance and no
attractions. The traveller is now one hundred and thirty miles above
Dubuque, one of the points of embarkation for those from the East who
visit the State by the way of the river. If the sail is made by daylight
between these places, most suggestive impressions are made on the mind
of the immense area of Iowa; for, while constantly expecting soon to
catch a glimpse of "Dakota Land," you are all day baffled by the
presence of this intervening State, which, somehow, seems determined to
travel with you up the river, and, by its many attractions, woo you to
residence and rest.
The fertile fields of Wisconsin, on the other hand, do not seem at all
obtrusive, since you expect them on your right soon after leaving
Dunleith; and, when the city of
LA CROSSE
comes in view, its bright aspect of industrial life, its busy streets,
spacious warehouses, fine shops, and thronging commerce, challenge our
love of the good and beautiful in civilized life. Indeed, this handsome
and prosperous city is one of the most pleasant and interesting places
which attract the traveller's attention along the two thousand miles of
this navigable river.
Many, in coming to the "Northwest" by the way of Chicago, travel as far
as La Crosse by rail, where abundant opportunities are had for steam
transportation to St. Paul, and all intervening towns.
The islands have now so multiplied that here, and for some distance
above, the river seems more an archipelago than anything else. Islands
of all sizes and shapes, wooded and embowered with a great variety of
shrubs and vines, so that in springtime they seem like emeralds set in
this "flashing silver sea;" and when summer is ended, and the frost-king
has come, they are robed in royal splendor--in crimson and purple and
gold--seeming to be the fanciful and marvellous homes of strangest
fairies, who, during this season of enchantment hold, it is said, at
midnight, high carnival on the islands of this upper and beautiful
river. Be that as it may, they certainly add to the attractions of a
sail along this "Father of Waters," and give picturesqueness to the
landscape which, before seeing, we had not credited with so much of
interest and beauty as we found it to possess.
A couple of hours' additional steaming brings us to the lofty peaks
standing on the left of the river, one of which, from the resemblance of
its crest to the crown of England, has given rise to the names of
Victoria and Albert. They are over five hundred feet in height, and
believed to be the tallest of any of the cliffs along the river. Beyond,
on the right, stands boldly the lone sentinel of Mountain Island, at the
base of which is the small village of Trempeleau, where a moment's halt
is made, and the wheels of the great ship splash through the water
again, all tremulous with nervous energy and pent-up power as they bend
slowly to their slavish labor; and, the only labor that man has any
right to make a slave of is that with iron arms and metallic lungs. He
may compel these to work and groan and sweat at every pore with honor to
himself and the added respect of all mankind.
A few miles further and the city of
WINONA
is in view. This is the most populous town in the State of Minnesota
south of St. Paul. It occupies a low, level tract projecting from the
base of the bluffs, which circle its rear in the shape of an ox-bow,
and, in times of high water, becomes an island, owing to its great
depression at its junction with the bluffs. The town stands on the front
of this low plateau, along the channel of the river, and has a
population of nine thousand people, counting the nomadic lumbermen, who
live half the year in the piny woods many hundred miles to the north,
and the other half are floating on the rafts down the river; a rough but
useful people, who betimes will lose their heads and winter's wages in a
single drunken fray, which they seem to consider the highest pleasure
vouchsafed to them each season as they return to the walks of civilized
life.
The pleasant sounding name of Winona is one of the many Dakota words
abounding along the river and over the State, and was the appellation of
the beautiful Indian girl who so tragically ended her life by leaping
from the top of Maiden's Bluff, bordering the eastern shore of Lake
Pepin above, and of which we shall presently speak more in detail.
It is a name always given by the Dakotas to the first-born female child
of a family. As was the maiden, celebrated in song and story, so is the
town, quite handsome and interesting in many points of aspect. It is the
objective point for great quantities of freight by boat up the river, to
be from thence distributed through the whole southern section of
Minnesota by means of the important railway line extending from this
city to the interior, tapping the St. Paul and Milwaukee road at
Owatanna, and the St. Paul and Sioux City at St. Peter's and Mankato;
draining one of the most fertile districts in the commonwealth of its
immense stores of wheat and other grains seeking an outlet and an
eastern market. This road is known as the Winona and St. Peter's, and is
a trunk line, with the sure promise of increasing importance to the
State and profit to its projectors. By means of it the great lumber
marts of Minneapolis and St. Anthony, and likewise the Capital, are
brought in close proximity to this commercial city of Winona; and much
of the trade and travel of the fertile valley of the Minnesota River
must, by means of this line, prove tributary to the rapid growing town.
The march of progress is never ended in the life of the West; and, ere
the present year passes, an entirely new line both north and east will
have been completed, and then a new era of prosperity will be
inaugurated. We refer to the St. Paul and Chicago Air-Line Railway,
which, starting at St. Paul, follows the river banks to this place,
where it is to cross to Wisconsin, thence direct to Chicago, leaving La
Crosse forty miles below, and out of the line. Heretofore the means of
travel to Chicago and the east has been either by rail to Owatanna, far
to the west, or the more common practice of going by steamer in summer
and stage in winter to La Crosse, thus of necessity paying both
compliments and costs to this rival town, which has not been highly
relished by the Winonians. The new route will make them entirely
independent of the denizens of La Crosse. But both places have resources
peculiar to themselves and quite sufficient to insure prosperity and
fame.
Those visiting Winona are impressed with the general neatness of the
place, and the number and finish of its business blocks and private
residences. There are many fine churches erected, whose capacity, though
large, is not much greater than seems demanded by the church-going
inhabitants, which affords both a commentary and index to their general
high character. Among the public buildings worthy of special attention
is that of their Normal school, recently finished at a cost of over one
hundred thousand dollars, being a model of elegance and convenience.
This is a State institution, free to pupils of a certain class, and is
one of three--all of the same character--erected under the patronage of
the State, and for the location of which towns were invited to compete.
Winona secured this, Mankato another, and St. Cloud the third, all noble
buildings, as we can personally testify, and which give to the people of
this State opportunities such as those of the older commonwealths were
utterly destitute, and are still, so far as scope, scale, and affluence
are concerned. Then there is the city school, costing over half a
hundred thousand dollars, and likewise highly ornamental, as well as
useful.
New England long boasted of her superiority in the rank of her schools;
especially was this the case in Connecticut, where a school fund
existed, reducing somewhat the expense attending their maintenance; but
they used no part of this fund toward the building of school-houses, and
it is a question if it has not had there an opposite effect of what
originally it was intended to accomplish. The same old shabby
school-houses, fifteen by twenty, still do duty, and the district
committee annually figure with the many youthful candidates for
teachers--who, it used to be said, came there on a horse--to make the
per-head allowance of the school fund, with boarding around thrown in,
pay for their three months' services. Had the people understood they
must hand out the whole school expenses, and seen personally to the
education of their children, they would have had a livelier interest in
the whole business; and this, with compelled liberality, would have
paved the way for greater expenditure and effort. Neighborhood rivalries
of suitable buildings would have followed, and, instead of incompetent
teachers being the rule, they would have been the exception, and those
of us whose fortune it has been to be born in New England would not now
be such "jacks of all trades and masters of none" as we are. The West
deserves great commendation for their lively interest in all that
relates to the education of the young. Why, almost any of these States
excel those of New England in school matters, outside of two or three of
the great universities which they happen to possess. Several years ago,
in passing through Indiana and visiting several of the village schools,
we were surprised and astonished at the superior class of text-books
that were in use, and the improved methods of teaching in practice; and,
likewise, the prompt and intelligent manner of the scholar in his
exercises and examples, as compared with similar schools at the East;
all a proof of the superior methods and facilities in vogue.
The new States have had it in their power to do what most of the older
ones had not, and after all they cannot claim all the credit of their
advancement in these matters, for the general government shares part of
the honor in this wise provision for the education of the people, having
donated one section of land in every township in some of the newer
States. This was the case in Minnesota. These lands are to be used in
establishing a school fund, and this has already amounted to a large
sum--two million five hundred thousand dollars; and these normal school
buildings are an evidence alike of the wisdom of the measure and
magnitude of this fund.
The site of the town--while ample for a large city, having an area of
several miles in extent--seems rather too low to insure that dryness
essential to good health, though we believe its general sanitary
reputation is as good as any of the towns along the river, and this is
more than could be expected, since its general elevation scarce exceeds
a dozen feet above the river when at a fair stage of water. Its levee
accommodations are extensive and excellent, and the place must always
remain the most important in southern Minnesota.
Passing several minor towns and landings, along the river, we next come
to
WABASHA,
a village of about fifteen hundred inhabitants, with the prettiest
location of any that we have yet seen. It stands on an elevated table,
about forty feet above the river, and invites the tourist and invalid,
by its pleasant quietness, to tarry and inspect the place. The
hospitable-looking hotel, with its ample lawn and grounds close by the
banks of the river, give promise of abundant rest and recreation.
The grain interest is the all-absorbing one at this point, as it is
everywhere along the river.
A short distance above, and
REED'S LANDING
appears. This town is at the foot of Lake Pepin, and likewise at the
foot of a huge bluff. This place becomes in spring the terminus of the
steamers which are prevented from proceeding farther in consequence of
the heavier ice of the lake remaining an obstruction to commerce for a
period of ten days or two weeks longer than that in the river proper.
LAKE PEPIN
is nearly thirty miles in length, with an average width of about three
miles, presenting an unbroken sheet of water; bounded on both its sides
by tall perpendicular bluffs, with here and there isolated peaks
towering far above their companions, having something of the dignity of
mountain ranges.
This lake is famed for its great attractions of natural beauty, and is
not disappointing to the traveller. It is a singular body of water, and
while it is a part of the river still it differs from it in so many
aspects that it is fairly entitled to be termed a lake. Below, the river
is divided into numerous and devious channels by intervening islands of
an irregular and picturesque character, uniting to give a grand,
kaleidoscopic variety to the journey; but here, at Lake Pepin, the
waters have free scope, and rise and swell under the pressure of storms
sufficient to move and sway the heaviest fleets. The water is remarkably
clear and cold, and is said to be over a thousand feet in depth at some
points. It is a tradition among the Indians that the bed of the river,
with its islands, sank during a great storm, in which the earth trembled
and shook for many leagues around. This seems quite possible, and the
general formation of the lake indicates that their tradition is founded
on actual fact.
The chief point of interest attaching to this locality is that known as
the Maiden's Rock, a perpendicular cliff midway of the lake on the
eastern shore. Were there no legend connected with it, the eye would be
arrested by its lofty and impressive form, as it stands alone frowning
on the dark, deep waters of the lake below.
Chief Wapashaw, whose village once occupied the site of the present city
of Winona, had a daughter, _Weenonah_, the beauty and pride of all his
tribe. This fair maiden had been thwarted in her affections by powerful
and cruel hands, and rather than submit to unite her young life with
one, other than he whom she so fondly loved, resolved to sacrifice
herself. A fishing party, of which she was a member, proceeded to this
lake, and while resting on the eastern shore she fled away, and to the
top of this high eminence, where, discovering herself to the company
below, she recited the story of her broken heart and undying love for
him whose name she had been even forbade to speak, and, closing by
chanting a wild death-song, flung herself down the sides of this
terrible precipice, and was dashed in pieces. Her father and friends,
guessing her intent, on being hailed by her from the top of this rock,
dispatched, as the story goes, their fleetest of foot to her rescue, but
unavailingly. No Indian passes by this place of tragedy without uttering
mournful wails in memory of their beautiful and loved Weenonah.
Along the base of these cliffs are numerous caverns, once the abode of
wild beasts, and, even as late as Carver's visit, in 1766, numbers of
bears were found wintering in them, and in the minor caves numberless
rattlesnakes were seen by him. In his explorations in this immediate
neighborhood he discovered, on the edge of the prairie, the outlines of
an old fortification, which was distinctly traceable, and extended for
nearly a mile, in its sweep enveloping an area ample for five thousand
men. Its form was semi-circular, with the flanks resting on the river.
The whole appearance was as if it had been built full a century before
his visit, and while the ditch was indistinguishable, its angles were,
and "displayed as much of science as if built by a pupil of Vauban
himself." What race could have originally constructed it is a mystery,
certainly not any of the known tribes inhabiting this country. Carver
could not have misjudged the character of these intrenchments, since he
had himself received a military education, and was therefore, of all
explorers, not likely to be misled in his estimate.
The pleasure seeker will find it convenient to visit any portion of
Lake Pepin from any of the villages along its shores. From Lake City a
steamer usually plies to all interesting points, up and down the lake.
Those wishing to halt in a locality of rare beauty and refined society,
will choose FRONTENAC above.
Half a dozen miles above the north end of the lake comes
RED WING,
named after one of the great Dakota chiefs. It is attractively situated
on the esplanade adjoining the famous Barnes' Bluff, with an
amphitheatre of hills in the rear completely sheltering and hedging the
place from view as it is approached from the south. The bluff is between
four and five hundred feet in height, and on its summit lies buried the
remains of the great chief, Red Wing.
The place has an increased importance, now that the "Air-Line" railway
between St. Paul and Chicago passes through, giving speedy and constant
communication to those cities all the year round.
On reaching the mouth of the St. Croix, thirty miles above, both banks
of the Mississippi belong to Minnesota; the former watercourse filling
out the eastern boundary of the State.
THE ST. CROIX RIVER
is an important tributary to the Upper Mississippi, and penetrates one
of the great pine districts of the northwest. The principal business
done on this stream is lumbering, which gives employment to many
hundreds of people, and amounts in the aggregate to many thousands of
dollars annually. Navigation extends to Taylor's Falls, some sixty-five
miles from its mouth.
There is a regular line of steamers plying between St. Paul and the head
of navigation, making daily trips, and doing a prosperous business. They
are, however, quite small and apparently inadequate to the increasing
trade.
The most important of all the towns on the St. Croix is
STILLWATER,
with a population of several thousand souls. The chief object of
interest, statewise, is the penitentiary, which we did not care
particularly to examine. The city can boast, however, of a noble school
edifice, and county court-house, either of which would adorn any place
in the country.
There is at present no rail connection with St. Paul, though this want
is soon to be supplied, and when completed it is expected to extend the
line toward the railway system of Wisconsin and the East.
The St. Croix is famed among tourists for its beautiful scenery and
attractive falls at the head of navigation. Pleasure parties make
frequent excursions from St. Paul, and the trip is truly enjoyable if
you are always sure of so urbane and obliging an officer as is Captain
William Kent.
Just above the junction of these two rivers is the town of
HASTINGS,
one of the great wheat marts of the northwest. It has several thousand
inhabitants, the foreign element preponderating, we should judge. There
are no specially interesting features either in or about the immediate
neighborhood, if we except the Vermilion Falls.
The only remaining object worthy of attention, aside from the scenery of
the river, between this town and the city of St. Paul, is
RED ROCK
camping-ground, situated on the east shore, on a level stretch of land
six feet above the river at high water. This tract is quite extensive,
and for the most part free of any timber beyond a grove or two, all of
which is now owned by the Methodist Association, and occupied by them
annually as a camp-ground.
This same ground was formerly used by the Indians as a camp-ground on
the assembling of the various tribes of the Dakotas in general council,
or on grand holidays, celebrated by all the various national bands. It
derives its name from a rock, which is about six feet in diameter and
nearly round, lying a few rods only from the river and in plain sight as
the steamer passes. This rock was mysteriously striped with red paint
every year by the Indians, and was known by them as the Red Rock. Long
after the occupation of the country by the whites, the custom of
painting it was regularly kept up while any of the race remained, and it
still bears marks of their work. No one ever saw them paint it, and it
is believed the work was secretly done at night. It was held sacred by
them as the abode of some good spirit, and received a certain homage,
such as these superstitious, polytheistic people were accustomed to
render their gods.