Sioux Falls, South Dakota & Iowa's Effigy Mounds

We were grateful to be in Sioux Falls on a Saturday so we could experience their popular Farmer's Market. It is October, so the ground is covered in pumpkins and the tables are full of zucchini and squash. We stopped by the coffee vendor, Cherry Bean Coffee Co., to fill our tumblers. Reed, the owner, shared with us his experience living in Everette, Washington. I must say, the more we travel, the smaller and bigger the world seems, all at the same time.

The day was overcast, and we managed to view the area before the sky opened up. Whew!



Falls Park is scattered with Quartzite, the natural stone locally called Sioux Quartzite or Jasper. The park is also rich with evidence of past business attempts.

The most prominent structures are from the Queen Bee Mill, built in 1881 of Quartzite quarried from the site. A millrace and dam were also constructed as a power source for the mill. The Queen Bee Mill was the most advanced mill in America at the time, and it had hopes of producing 1200 barrels of flour a day. Unfortunately, with too little wheat and often too little water, the mill closed operations in 1883.

The Turbine House perched along the edge of the falls.

In the photo above, I am standing near the old foundation of the Gate House, which controlled the flow of water to the mill. The stone stands below held the pipe that pumped water from the Gate House to the Turbine House.

Remnants of the 7-story building of the Queen Bee Mill

Behind an iron fence are the remnants of the 7-story building that housed milling machinery for the Queen Bee Mill. It burned in 1956, leaving the stone base.

Hydroelectric Plant Building

Sioux Falls Light & Power hydroelectric plant (later called the Northern States Power, or NSP) began operations at the old Queen Bee Mill site in 1908, housing three 500-kilowatt generators. Today, the old plant is a modern cafe frequented by locals and tourists.



Probably the most surprising discovery while we were in Falls Park was the existance of an island, Seney Island, in the center of the park. It began to disappear in 1907 when the hydroelectric plant was built. A bigger dam was built and the area around the island was closed off for more water power. Later, the Milwaukee Railroad bought the island, cut down trees, and filled in the channels around the island to connect the banks of the river. Bummer. It is still an enchanting park, though.

___________________________________________

After a night at Wyalusing State Park (about 500 feet above the confluence of the Wisconsin and Mississippi rivers - what a view!), we woke up to an extremely foggy morning with a drippy tent and that little bite of cold in the air. Walking around the park that morning (mainly to warm up), we spotted some of our first effigy mounds. We decided, before heading east to Madison, to cross into Iowa to visit Effigy Mounds National Monument and learn more about these historic piles of dirt.



The park has 206 known mounds, with 31 in the shape of animals (bears and birds). To give you an idea of size, the animal shapes are about 3 to 4 fee high and 212 feet long. The American Indians created these mounds between 850 and 1400 years ago. The reason for the mounds is uncertain, as well as why they stopped building them. Maybe they were religious sites, clan symbols, a connection to the spirit world? Some of the mounds are indeed burial sites containing human remains.

While there are large collections of effigy mounds throughout the Midwest, many were unknowingly logged or plowed and turned into farmland. Surveys of northeastern Iowa (1800-1900's) showed over 10,000 mounds. Within 100 years, less than 1,000 survived.


There are 4 known shapes: animal, conical, linear, and compound.

• Conical are the oldest and most numerous, dating back 2500 years
• Linear mounds were built between 1700 and 1300 years ago
• Compound mounds are a combination of conical and linear mounds, and are only found in the Effigy Mounds region (includes northeastern Iowa, southern Wisconsin, northern Illinois, and southeastern Minnesota).
• Animal mounds are obviously those built in the shape of animals, mostly bears and birds.

We thought the mounds were best viewed and most appreciated for their scale from the air. Unfortunately, there are only hiking trails to the mounds, so close-up views were our only option. We did a short hike from the visitor's center to view the three conical mounds, then headed for Madison.