Minneapolis/Saint Anthony Falls Historic District

The Saint Anthony Falls Historic District is an area of Minneapolis, nestled between downtown, Northeast Minneapolis, and Southeast Minneapolis. The district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Understand

The district is an architectural, historical, and natural gem in the historical heart of Minneapolis. Its history dates from use as sacred and utilitarian site by the indigenous peoples of the region, through being the center of one of the Midwest's great milling districts, to today's mix of commercial, residential, and recreational uses.

Indigenous displacement by US settlement

An understanding of this historic area is not complete without considering how it came into the hands of white European settlers. At the time of this area's European settlement, the majority of what is now southern Minnesota was occupied by the Eastern Dakota (Sioux) people who had lived in the region for thousands of years. (The areas of northern Minnesota were occupied by the Anishinaabe, or Ojibwe, peoples.) After the formation of the United States and as white settlement headed west, the lands of Minnesota were ceded to, or taken by, state and federal governments.

The first of these land transfers relevant to the Twin Cities was Zebulon Pike's 1805 Treaty of St. Peters with the Dakota, which sold a large portion of the land on which the Twin Cities now sits, for a mere $2,000. However, the status of this treaty (it was never "proclaimed" by the President) and its boundaries were murky.

A much less ambiguous cession of the Dakota lands in this historic district east of the Mississippi came in June 1838 with the proclamation of the Treaty of 1837 with the Dakota. Not long thereafter in 1849 the Minnesota Territory was formed, and the township of Saint Anthony platted on the east bank to harness the Falls of St. Anthony.

In 1851, the treaties of Traverse de Sioux and Mendota ceded the Dakota lands west of the Mississippi to white settlement. In 1855, on the west bank of the river, the platt for Minneapolis was submitted. Only three years later, in 1858, Minnesota became a state.

The last nail in to coffin of Dakota occupation in Minnesota was the Dakota War of 1862 – 1863, after which Congress abrogated all treaties with the Dakota and they were exiled from the state (with State-sponsored bounties for their scalps). In less than 60 years since the first treaty in 1805, all Dakota had been driven from Minnesota.

Read

• Saint Anthony Falls Rediscovered: The heritage of Minneapolis's St. Anthony Falls Historic District. Minneapolis Riverfront Development Coordination Board (1981).
• The Falls of St. Anthony: The waterfall that built Minneapolis. Kane, Lucile M. (1987). Minnesota Historical Society Press. (Earlier edition was published as The Waterfall That Built a City in 1966.
• Oldest Twin Cities: A guide to historic treasures. Severson, Julie Jo (2023). Reedy Press.

See

• 1 Saint Anthony Falls (Dakota: mnirara "curling waters", owahmenah "falling waters", or mniyomni, "whirlpool") (the best places to view the falls are from Water Power Park, the Stone Arch Bridge, he Upper Lock and Dam, and the Mill City Museum observation deck). This now-tamed waterfall is the only major natural one on the Mississippi (Dakota: wakpa tanka, "great river"). The Dakota consider the falls a sacred site and a home of Oanktehi, an evil water spirit. After discovery by European explorers the falls became a tourist destination by the mid-19th century. They used to flow naturally over a hard limestone ledge, but since the 1880s the falls have been engineered to serve the hydro-powered uses of the region's white settlers, and also to prevent their further retreat upstream and eventual deterioration into rapids.  

• 2 Stone Arch Bridge. 6AM – midnight. From this pedestrian and biking bridge you get excellent front-row views of the Saint Anthony Falls, the northernmost lock (now decommissioned) on the Mississippi, the former milling district, and the modern buildings of downtown Minneapolis. Probably due to this, the bridge is a great spot for taking portraits—during mild weather almost every day you'll see professional and amateur photographers doing just that. The bridge very accessible, with nearby parking, from both banks of the river, with the Mill Ruins Park on the west bank, and Father Hennepin Park on the east side. The bridge contains several interpretive signs explaining local views and the bridge itself. The Stone Arch Bridge is a former railroad bridge opened in 1883 by the Great Northern Railway. It was built to increase passenger rail service from the east to downtown Minneapolis, by way of a newly-built railroad terminal in downtown Minneapolis which came in 1885. It remains the second oldest bridge to span the Mississippi. The last passenger train passed over the bridge in 1978, and in 1994 it was converted into a pedestrian and biking path by the Minneapolis Park Board. It remains the second oldest railroad bridge over the Mississippi. Now registered as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. Free. (updated Apr 2023)

• 3 Hennepin Island Hydroelectric Plant (St. Anthony Hydro Plant) (the best vantage points to see the building are from the Stone Arch Bridge and the Water Power Park). The oldest still-operating historic hydro plant in the US, this facility generates almost 14MW of power using five turbines. Built in 1908 by the Pillsbury-Washburn company, it was leased to Minneapolis General Electric, who in turn sub-leased to the fast-growing Twin Cities electric streetcar system. It is also unique in that it was intended to harness "surplus" water that the nearby mills could not. Not open to the public. (updated May 2023)

• 4 Pillsbury "A" Mill, 301 SE Main St. Now artist lofts, he building is not typically open to the public although it sometimes houses art gallery shows, a pop-up store, or art event. Built in 1881 as a flour mill, at the time it was the largest mill in the world—and remained so for 40 years. At its peak, it produced almost 3.5 million pounds of flour a day. The building is the only architect-designed flour mill in Minneapolis and is now on the National Register of Historic Paces and is a National Historic Landmark. It was restored and repurposed since 2015 as artists lofts and was also retrofit with a 0.6 MW hydroelectricity turbine. See the entrance to the mill's headrace (water inlet) at the river just to the right when facing the entrance to Water Power Park 44.98413°N 93.25510°W / 44.98413; -93.25510, and see the two tailraces (water outlets) from the trail that starts across the street from the mill 44.98325°N 93.25266°W / 44.98325; -93.25266. Private. (updated Apr 2023)

• 5 Southeast Main Street. This charming cobblestone-and-brick street is the original Main Street of the city of Saint Anthony. The streetscape, extending from SE 6th Avenue to Hennepin Avenue, is experiencing a new vitality and renaissance in the 2020s with the influx of nearby business and residential development. Prior to European settlement, indigenous people used roughly this same route as a portage for maneuvering watercraft around the falls. Before Minneapolis absorbed it in 1872, Saint Anthony had its own milling district, commercial areas, industries, churches, and residential areas. Today Main Street sports a combination of the area's oldest historical buildings interspersed with more modern attempts at urban revitalization—of what was a blighted area after the mills ceased operation. In fact, still lurking below the street is the headrace tunnel that fed the local mills. (updated Apr 2023)

• 6 East Channel Escarpment (across Main Street from the Pillsbury "A" Mill; take the stairs down about 100 feet until you see the limestone cliff on your right). 6AM – midnight. The escarpment in this area is the remains the waterfall (now blocked) in the east channel of the river around Hennepin Island. It is the only exposed instance of the original falls, in Father Hennepin Bluff Park. Free. (updated Apr 2023)

• 7 Main Street Station. A hydroelectric plant that once provided power to the Twin Cities' streetcar system. On what had been the site of extensive sawmills during the area's lumbering phase (which ended in the 1880s), this building was built in 1911 after a former plant on the site (complete in 1895) burned down. The plant contains three turbines. Not open to the public. (updated Apr 2023)

• 8 Upton Block (Aster Cafe, Union Iron Works), 125 SE Main St. Built in 1855, this is the oldest masonry building still standing in Minneapolis. Over the course of its life the building has housed hardware sales, residences for prominent lawyers, offices of the Minnesota Republican newspaper, and an iron works. While an iron works, it specialized in making elements of milling machinery. Now it's home to the Aster Cafe and its beautiful outdoor patio. Architecture follows the Federal Style. (updated Apr 2023)

• 9 Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church (formerly the church of the First Universalist Society of St. Anthony), 1 Lourdes Place. This is the oldest continuously use church in Minneapolis. Food-wise, the church is today known for its tourtières (French Canadian-style meat pie) and fish fries during Lent. Originally built in the Greek Revival style, the church opened in 1857 as the First Universalist Society of Saint Anthony, and was acquired in 1877 by the French-Canadian parish of St. Anthony of Padua (the first Catholic parish in Minnesota). Since then, the building has been modified with a towering steeple and bell tower, transept, sacristy, and front vestibule and now is more in the French Provincial style. The church was almost boarded up in 1968, but for the intervention of the Minneapolis City Council and Catholic archbishops. Free tours are available via their web site. (updated May 2023)

• 10 Brown-Ryan Livery Stable (Brown & Ryan Building), 25 SE Main St. Built about 1880 at 20 2nd St NE, the building was moved to its current location by the city in 1981 to make room a high-rise residential project. It is now the Brown & Ryan Building (office space) and is part of the Riverplace complex. (updated May 2023)

• 11 First Bridge Park. 6AM – midnight. This park just below the modern Hennepin Avenue bridge on the west side shows off several artifacts of prior bridges on this site. The first (a toll suspension bridge made of wood) was opened in 1855 and was the first permanent span to cross the Mississippi River. Later bridges were completed in 1876, 1891, and the current one in 1990. Free. (updated May 2023)

Do

• Saint Anthony Falls Heritage Trail (around the Minneapolis central riverfront). 1.8 mi (2.9 km) loop, marked by kiosks, signs and waymarkers. It provides a year-round, self-guided tour of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District. Created by the St. Anthony Falls Heritage Board. (updated May 2023)
• 1 Mill City Museum, 704 South 2nd St., ☏ +1 612-341-7555. For hours, see site. Museum focusing on the history of milling in Minneapolis, run by the state historical society. Family friendly, with many hands-on activities. Be sure to take the "Flour Tower" show (requires a separate free reservation ticket) that ends at an observation deck with an amazing view of the mill district and falls area. Also check out the ruins of one of the original mills. The museum also occasionally hosts tours of the Washburn "A" Mill, Southeast Main Street, and the riverfront area; check their web site for details. WiFi available. $12 – free. (updated May 2023)
• Open Doors Minneapolis. Annual event (typically in the spring) in which various venues throughout Minneapolis allow visitors to take self-guided tours and sometimes see normally inaccessible areas. Many of these sites are of historic importance and/or in this historic district. Example venues from past events: the Upper Lock and Dam, the Pillsbury "A" Mill, and the St. Anthony Falls Hydro Plant. Free. Some sites require pre-registration. 
• Stone Arch Bridge Festival, ☏ +1 952-473-6422. Arts festival held near the Stone Arch Bridge in spring or summer. Includes music, artists, and culinary arts. Family-friendly activities included. Free. (updated May 2023)

Sleep

• 1 Nicollet Island Inn, 95 Merriam St. (in the historic district, on Nicollet Island), ☏ +1 612)-331-1800, frontdesk@nicolletislandinn.com. Hotel and restaurant in an old converted manufacturing building. Lots of walkable nearby restaurants, bars, coffee shops, strolling, entertainment, and shopping. Rooms: $230–290; mains: $30–80. 
• 2 The Depot (Milwaukee Road Depot). Prior to becoming a hotel and event center, this building on the National Register of Historic places served as the local depot for the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroad ("Milwaukee Road"). Built in 1899 in the Renaissance Revival style, it also has adjacent one of the last remaining train sheds, of impressive ironwork construction. By 1920 it was serving 29 trains per day. The depot closed in 1971 and was shuttered until 2001 when it reopened in much its current form.