Yesterday I posted photos of a beautiful Marina on Lake Pepin (if you missed it, take a look). It's formation is pretty interesting. "Lake Pepin is a naturally occurring lake, and the widest naturally occurring part of the Mississippi River, located approximately 60 miles downstream from Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is a widening of the river on the border between Minnesota and Wisconsin. The formation of the lake was caused by the backup of water behind the sedimentary deposits of the Chippewa River's delta. It has a surface area of about 40 square miles (100 km2) and an average depth of 18 feet (5.5 m), which makes it the largest Lake on the entire Mississippi River." Credit: Wiki
Lake City is located across the lake from here on the Minnesota side. It's claim to fame is the invention of water skis and skiing:
"Ralph Wilford Samuelson (July 3, 1904–August 28, 1977) was the inventor of water skiing, which he first performed in the summer of 1922 in Lake City, Minnesota, just before his 19th birthday. Samuelson was already skilled at aquaplaning—standing on a board while being pulled by a powerboat—but he hoped to create something like snow skiing on the water....Samuelson's early attempts included using staves from wooden barrels and snow skis before he created new skis made of pine boards 8 feet long and 9 inches wide (240 × 23 cm). He bent up the front tips after softening the wood by boiling them in his mother's copper kettle. His brother Ben operated the powerboat that pulled Ralph along, towed by a rope. Later on, he would ski behind an airplane. Gaining confidence on the water, he began jumping wakes, but broke the original skis (the remains of which were believed to be found on a beach on Pepin) in one landing. His slightly-modified second pair still exists; today they are at the Lake City Chamber of Commerce, in Lake City, Minnesota." Credit: Wiki
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Cass Gilbert, 1898-This house is "another of what might be called picturesque symmetry. Here, the arcaded loggia evokes the Venetian Renaissance while the central dormer above strikes a medieval pose with its steeply pitched roof and Gothic bargeboards. Now divided into five condominiums, the house was originally owned by Crawford Livingston, Jr., whose buisiness interests included utilities and railroads.
A Last Ride Before School Starts...
Summit Avenue is St. Paul's most renowned street, a mansion row that extends for nearly five miles through the western half of the city. It plays an essential role in what might be called the city's sense of self. St. Paulites take great pride in the avenue, and its name conjures up images of huge houses, monumental churches, wide green lawns, and a refined and gracious way of life." Credit: AIA Guide to the Twin Cities, Larry Millett. The Stuart Driscoll House shown here was built in 1858 with additions in 1910 and 1918, an Italian villa-style mansion with much Classical Revival updating.
