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Minneopa State Park
Minneopa State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was established in 1905 to preserve Minneopa Falls, a large waterfall for southern Minnesota, and was expanded in the 1960s to include the lower reaches of Minneopa Creek and a large tract of prairie. Minneopa is Minnesota's third oldest state park, after Itasca and Interstate. Two park resources are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the 1862 Seppman Mill and a district of seven Rustic Style structures built by the Works Progress Administration in the late 1930s. The park is located almost entirely on the south side of the Minnesota River, three miles (4.8 km) west of Mankato. In 2015, the state reintroduced American bison to the park in a 330-acre (130 ha) fenced enclosure, through which visitors can drive in their vehicles.
Minneopa State Park is divided into two distinct sections by a corridor of roads, railroads, and private property. The original section contains the falls and Rustic Style structures. The much larger northern section, added in 1969, stretches along the Minnesota River and includes the campground and Seppmann Mill. The sections are contiguous with travel from one to the other by a county road.
Minneopa Creek drains a small watershed in Blue Earth County and a small part of eastern Brown County. Most of its 11 miles (18 km) flow through farmland before entering the park. 2.2 miles (3.5 km) upstream from its mouth, Minneopa Creek flows over two waterfalls. The creek cascades about six or seven feet (1.8 or 2.1 m) over the upper falls and flows 66 feet (20 m) before dropping over the 39-foot (12 m) lower falls. The name is a shortening of Minneinneopa, which is translated from the Dakota language as "water falling twice." Other translations have been given as "water of two falls" and "water of the dancing elk." Although Minneopa Falls is often referred to as the highest waterfall in southern Minnesota, Minnemishinona Falls in a nearby Nicollet County park is slightly higher at 42 feet (13 m), but is not as scenic or well-known. Lower Minneopa Falls can be called the region's largest, as it is 25 feet (7.6 m) wide, while Minnemishinona spans only 10 feet (3 m).
The region of the park has a continental climate of cold winters and hot summers. Temperatures are slightly milder along Minneopa Creek than in the prairie section due to the heavy woods.
Minneopa State Park is underlain by flat layers of dolomite and sandstone. Evidence from well-drilling indicates that beneath these sedimentary rocks is a steeply tilted formation of granite that slopes down to the east deep under Mankato. Atop everything is a thick blanket of till deposited by glaciers.
At the end of the last glacial period, the continental glaciers were melting to the north. Glacial River Warren carried torrents of meltwater across Minnesota, eroding a wide valley. As the water level diminished in stages over time, fluvial terraces were left like steps on the sides of the valley. The glacial runoff ceased around 9,400 years ago, leaving a channel soon occupied by the vastly smaller Minnesota River.
The park's flat prairie area is a terrace of the ancient river. The Dakota name is Tinta inya ota, meaning "prairie with many rocks", because it is studded with numerous glacial erratics. These boulders were carried far from their northern sources by ice over 15,000 years ago. The soil is quite thin over limestone bedrock.
Tributaries flowing into the Minnesota River had to drop down into the deep glacial valley, creating numerous waterfalls. The waterfall on Minneopa Creek was likely once at the creek's mouth on the river. Over the millennia, downcutting of the creek has carved a gorge through the soft Jordan Sandstone, causing the waterfall to "migrate" upstream. The double waterfall in Minneopa is the result of there being three layers of differing hardness in the sandstone. The upper and lower layers are softer than the middle, which creates a short stretch of erosion-resistant creekbed between two waterfalls. The gorge is littered with blocks of the middle sandstone that broke off as the supporting layer below wore away. Weathering from the constant spray of the falls helps keep the gorge walls nearly vertical.
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Minneopa State Park
Minneopa State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was established in 1905 to preserve Minneopa Falls, a large waterfall for southern Minnesota, and was expanded in the 1960s to include the lower reaches of Minneopa Creek and a large tract of prairie. Minneopa is Minnesota's third oldest state park, after Itasca and Interstate. Two park resources are listed on the National Register of Historic Places: the 1862 Seppman Mill and a district of seven Rustic Style structures built by the Works Progress Administration in the late 1930s. The park is located almost entirely on the south side of the Minnesota River, three miles (4.8 km) west of Mankato. In 2015, the state reintroduced American bison to the park in a 330-acre (130 ha) fenced enclosure, through which visitors can drive in their vehicles.
Minneopa State Park is divided into two distinct sections by a corridor of roads, railroads, and private property. The original section contains the falls and Rustic Style structures. The much larger northern section, added in 1969, stretches along the Minnesota River and includes the campground and Seppmann Mill. The sections are contiguous with travel from one to the other by a county road.
Minneopa Creek drains a small watershed in Blue Earth County and a small part of eastern Brown County. Most of its 11 miles (18 km) flow through farmland before entering the park. 2.2 miles (3.5 km) upstream from its mouth, Minneopa Creek flows over two waterfalls. The creek cascades about six or seven feet (1.8 or 2.1 m) over the upper falls and flows 66 feet (20 m) before dropping over the 39-foot (12 m) lower falls. The name is a shortening of Minneinneopa, which is translated from the Dakota language as "water falling twice." Other translations have been given as "water of two falls" and "water of the dancing elk." Although Minneopa Falls is often referred to as the highest waterfall in southern Minnesota, Minnemishinona Falls in a nearby Nicollet County park is slightly higher at 42 feet (13 m), but is not as scenic or well-known. Lower Minneopa Falls can be called the region's largest, as it is 25 feet (7.6 m) wide, while Minnemishinona spans only 10 feet (3 m).
The region of the park has a continental climate of cold winters and hot summers. Temperatures are slightly milder along Minneopa Creek than in the prairie section due to the heavy woods.
Minneopa State Park is underlain by flat layers of dolomite and sandstone. Evidence from well-drilling indicates that beneath these sedimentary rocks is a steeply tilted formation of granite that slopes down to the east deep under Mankato. Atop everything is a thick blanket of till deposited by glaciers.
At the end of the last glacial period, the continental glaciers were melting to the north. Glacial River Warren carried torrents of meltwater across Minnesota, eroding a wide valley. As the water level diminished in stages over time, fluvial terraces were left like steps on the sides of the valley. The glacial runoff ceased around 9,400 years ago, leaving a channel soon occupied by the vastly smaller Minnesota River.
The park's flat prairie area is a terrace of the ancient river. The Dakota name is Tinta inya ota, meaning "prairie with many rocks", because it is studded with numerous glacial erratics. These boulders were carried far from their northern sources by ice over 15,000 years ago. The soil is quite thin over limestone bedrock.
Tributaries flowing into the Minnesota River had to drop down into the deep glacial valley, creating numerous waterfalls. The waterfall on Minneopa Creek was likely once at the creek's mouth on the river. Over the millennia, downcutting of the creek has carved a gorge through the soft Jordan Sandstone, causing the waterfall to "migrate" upstream. The double waterfall in Minneopa is the result of there being three layers of differing hardness in the sandstone. The upper and lower layers are softer than the middle, which creates a short stretch of erosion-resistant creekbed between two waterfalls. The gorge is littered with blocks of the middle sandstone that broke off as the supporting layer below wore away. Weathering from the constant spray of the falls helps keep the gorge walls nearly vertical.