Bluff Country - the Hidden Treasure of Midwest

Hoai CaoPage 87

An Image from Google Earth

• This atlas page lies in the very southeastern corner of Minnesota and it is known as Bluff Country.

• Largely covered by the Richard J Dorer Memorial Hardwood State Forest

• The Mississippi River cuts down across the page, and Wisconsin claims the entire right edge of the map across from the Mississippi.

• It consists of Winona County, Houston County, and a part of Fillmore County.

Table of Contents:

Physical Setting. Historical and facts of the land. Richard J Dorer Memorial Hardwood State

Forest. Goat Prairies. Wiona. Rushford. La Crescent. Caledonia. Vacation Plan.

Physical Setting

Bluff Country in SE Minnesota is the only part of the state that was not covered by glaciers.

Because of the lack of glacial drift, the terrain here is much older than the rest of the state, reflecting more than half a million years of erosion. It is commonly referred to as a “Karst” area, which is a Paleo-European word for stone.

Physical Setting (cont.)

• The word karst is used more specifically to refer to limestone regions that have developed sink holes, underground streams, and caverns.• A sink hole is formed when the roof of a cave

collapses. Surface water sometimes sinks down into the earth through fractured bedrock either joining an aquifer or continuing as a stream

Historical and facts of the land

• Proximity of Mississippi river and other bodies of water made it an attractive spot for lumber businesses.• In 1851, the Dakota Indians signed the Treaties of

Traverse des Sioux and Mendota, selling the southern half of Minnesota to the United States• Most of settlers came up the Mississippi River by paddle-

or steam-boats. • First saw mill in the area build in 1855• Provided access to land west of the Mississippi by

steamboat and in 1890 by railroad once a bridge was build in Winona

Richard J Dorer Memorial Hardwood State Forest

• Richard J. Dorer Memorial Hardwood State Forest is made up of a patchwork of forestlands purchased in an attempt to rehabilitate the area.

• Much of the bluff country lies within the heart of Richard J. Dorer Memorial Hardwood State Forest.

• The forest spans over one million acres.

• There is camping, canoeing, snowshoeing and many more activities for you and your family available.• Mainly a deciduous forest.

Goat Prairies

• Occur along the Mississippi River Bluffs in SE Minnesota.• Goat Prairies are dry, hilly prairies that sit on a

steep slope.• Dries out the land due to the angle of the sun

that hits the goat prairies.

Wiona: Population: 27,592

• Originally named Montezuma.• Was renamed Winona, which means “first born

daughter” in 1853.• Was Minnesota’s third largest town in 1860. It’s

location on the river helped it grow in the lumber industry and helped the expansion west of the Mississippi• Home to Winona State University, St. Mary’s

University of Minnesota, Art museums…

RushfordPopulation: 2,350

• Founded in 1854• The Root River State Trail is located here.• An important historical landmark found in this

town is the original 1867 Railroad Depot, which is the oldest one in Minnesota

La Crescent.Population: about 5,000

• Apple Capital of Minnesota• The first apple orchard in the Midwest was

planted here in the 1850's. • Some of the most distinct apple varieties in the

United States can be found here.

CaledoniaPopulation: 2,810

• “Wild Turkey Capital” of Minnesota• Beaver Creek State Park down the road from

downtown Caledonia• Very rural area entrenched in the heart of Bluff

Country.• Plenty of fishing, hunting, and other outdoor

activities with a state park and the Mississippi nearby.

Vacation Plan