Saint Anthony Falls Heritage Trail: The Whirlpool

“The falls are going out!” cried the alarmed citizens of St. Anthony on October 5, 1869. A tunnel being dug under the river bed to bring power to Nicollet Island had collapsed. A giant whirlpool formed below the island as the river rushed into the hole. Efforts to plug it with log rafts, dams and mud were all unsuccessful. New breaks opened up and swallowed the lower part of Nicollet Island. The problem was finally fixed in 1876 when the US Army Corps of Engineers constructed a large dam underneath the entire river bed.

Location: 44.985914,-93.258348