The Free Press, Mankato, MN - Historic river crossing rediscovered

Sun, Nov 22 2009

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Bob Sandeen, Nicollet County Historical Society research coordinator, points out the location of a historic Minnesota River crossing to Traverse des Sioux History Site visitor John Anders.
Pat Christman

Bob Sandeen, Nicollet County Historical Society research coordinator, walks near Traverse des Sioux. Once a shallow river crossing used by American Indians and early European settlers, it now lies in an empty Minnesota River channel.
/ Pat Christman

A map from Thomas Hughes’ 1929 book “Old Traverse des Sioux” was overlaid with a map created in 2000 to locate the historic site of the river crossing. The two maps matched perfectly, to the amazment of a modern surveyor.
Pat Christman

Historic river crossing rediscovered

Traverse de Sioux is no longer in river

By Dylan Thomas
The Free Press

Last week Gardner and staff from the historical society trudged through mud and thick weeds near the Minnesota River to find the crossing. Its north and south ends, now no longer in the river channel, were marked with PVC pipe.

“The river has changed so much, the historic crossing has no real relationship to the river anymore,” Leonard said. “... Just boating down the river or walking to the site, you really would have no idea it’s there.”

Leonard said the trail system around the Treaty Site History Center on Highway 169 may be expanded to allow visitors down to the crossing. When it is, visitors will stand on ground crossed by innumerable travelers.

Leonard said the Minnesota Historical Society conducted an archaeological study of the Traverse des Sioux area in the 1990s and turned up two projectile points estimated to be about 9,000 years old. The modern Minnesota River is estimated to have begun flowing only about 10,000 years ago.

“People have been at this spot as long as the river has been here, and they’ve been here because of the crossing,” he said.

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