Projects & Studies
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Benton County near St. Cloud, Minnesota
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Canisteo Mine Pit Flood Control Project, Itasca County, Minn.
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Chippewa River at Big Bend , Minnesota - Stream Bank Protection
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Crow River at Delano, Minnesota
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Devils Lake Basin, North Dakota
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Devils Lake Flood Risk Management Project
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Devils Lake Levee, North Dakota
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Devils Lake: Minnewaukan Flood Control Project, North Dakota
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Drayton Initial Assessment - Drayton, North Dakota
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Emergency Streambank Protection, Section 14, Brooklyn Center, Minn.
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Erosion along Highway 2, Red Lake River, Crookston, MN
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Fargo-Moorhead and Upstream Feasibility Study
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Flood Control: Downtown St. Paul Airport, St. Paul, Minnesota
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Flood Risk Management Continuing Authority, Red River of the North: Wahpeton, N.D.
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Flood Risk Management: Fargo-Moorhead Metro, North Dakota and Minnesota
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Flood Risk Management: Red Lake River, Crookston, Minnesota
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Flood Risk Management: Roseau River, Roseau, Minnesota
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Flood Risk Management: Twin Valley, Wild Rice River, Minnesota
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Hay Creek Aquatic Ecosystem Restoration - Roseau County, Minnesota
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Homme Dam and Reservoir Dam Safety, North Dakota
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Integrated Watershed Study: Minnesota River Basin in Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota and Iowa
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Kickapoo River Flood Damage Reduction, La Farge, Wisconsin
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Lac Qui Parle River, Dawson, Minnesota
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Marsh Creek near Mahnomen, Minnesota
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Minnesota River Flood Control Project : Montevideo, Minnesota
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Minnesota River Flood Control Project, at Granite Falls, Minnesota
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Mississippi Headwaters Reservoirs Project Sites
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Newport, Minnesota Flood Risk Management Project, Section 205
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Painter Creek Habitat Restoration, Minnehaha Creek, Minnesota
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Park River Flood Protection Project at Grafton, North Dakota
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Pembina River Flood Control Project: Neche, North Dakota
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Reconnaissance Study: Minnesota River Basin in MN, SD, IA and ND
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Red River of the North Basin: Basin-Wide Watershed Management Planning
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Red River of the North Basin: Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Manitoba, Reconnaissance Study
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Red River of the North Flood Control: Breckenridge, Minnesota
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Red River of the North at Grand Forks, North Dakota/East Grand Forks, Minnesota Flood Risk Management
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Ridgewood Addition, Fargo, North Dakota
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River Resource Values and Expectation
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Roads Serving As Water Barriers, Devils Lake Basin, North Dakota
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Sand Creek Flood Risk Management Project, Jordan, Minnesota
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Section 205 Flood Control Project, Borup, Minnesota
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Section 205 Flood Control Study: Mississippi River, Aitkin, Minnesota
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Sheyenne River Flood Control, West Fargo, North Dakota
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Sheyenne River, Baldhill Pool Raise, North Dakota
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South Fork Zumbro River Flood Control: Rochester, Minnesota
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South Washington Watershed District
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Stillwater Flood and Retaining Wall Project, St. Croix River, Stillwater, Minnesota
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Stream Bank Protection: Section 14, Pug Hole Lake, Minnesota
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Western Flood Control Sites - Minnesota: Lake Traverse, Orwell Lake, Hwy 75 - Bigstone, Lac qui Parle
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Western Flood Control Sites – North Dakota: Lake Ashtabula, Homme Lake Souris River
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White Rock Dam Safety, Wheaton, Minnesota
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Wild Rice River (MN) Feasibility Study
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Wild Rice and Marsh Rivers, Ada, Minnesota
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Winnibigoshish Lake and Dam
*** Lake Winnibigoshish Recreation Area is offering full services. ***
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Overview
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The Lake Winnibigoshish Recreation Area is situated at the outlet of Lake Winnibigoshish, located about 14 miles northwest of Deer River, Minn. The lake is 67,000 acres in size and has 141 miles of shoreline. It was formed by a huge ice block left behind by a receding glacier.
Area forests contain towering red pine, which are home to an abundant assortment of animals including bald eagles, porcupines, black bears, chipmunks and many others. Seasonal berries that decorate the forest floor include blackberries, raspberries and blueberries. Spectacular sunsets can be viewed from the dam structure as you look west out over the reservoir.
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The well maintained, clean recreation area offers camping, boating, picnicking, fishing and playground areas. The camp sites are located east of the Mississippi River and Winnibigoshish Dam. A majority of the camp sites are available for reservation. Some have access to electricity. There is also a camp site and rest room accessible to those who are mobility impaired.
Lake Winnibigoshish is one of the premier walleye, perch and musky lakes in the state. Fishing is allowed from the shoreline, as well as from boats. There is one boat ramp that leads into the Mississippi River for a cool and relaxing day.
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Directions
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From Deer River, Minn., go west on U.S. Hwy. 2 for one mile, turn right on MN Hwy. 46 and go 12 miles, turn left on Itasca County 9 and go 2 miles, turn left at signs.
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Recreation Information
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Make a reservation with the National Recreation Reservation Service Detailed information on individual campsites, picnic shelters, availability, cost, etc.
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You can reserve camp sites and day use facilities at many U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recreation areas nation-wide, as well as many other agencies, online by visiting RECREATION.GOV. Reservations may also be made by calling RECREATION.GOV toll free at 1-877-444-6777.
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History
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The Winnibigoshish Lake Dam is located on the Mississippi River at the outlet of Lake Winnibigoshish. This is the largest reservoir in the system; it controls the runoff from a 1,442-square-mile drainage area containing 28 lakes.
The Corps of Engineers began construction of the original timber dam at "Winni" in 1881. It was put into operation in 1884. Nearly 2 million feet of white and Norway pine cut from the lakeshore were employed in construction of the pilings, dams and other structures. Logging operations, labor and material shortages, weather problems and the difficulties of constructing roads and installing machinery in near-wilderness conditions caused construction delays. The project employed 300 skilled and unskilled laborers, including local Chippewa Indians. In 1882, the Corps of Engineers announced that, "The Winnibigoshish Dam is the inauguration of the reservoir system for the entire country."
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The present concrete structure was constructed between 1899 and 1900. Stop logs divide five 13-foot sluiceways into three sections. A 12-foot log sluice and a five-foot fishway, the latter constructed in 1912, are no longer in use.
During the first phase of dam construction, workmen built 17 buildings across the channel to the west, opposite the present site. All of the buildings were of log construction. A map of 1883, made by Capt. Thomas Allen, shows the Corps' headquarters and the nearby location of an Indian village and burial mounds. At the time of dam reconstruction between 1899 and 1900, the complex of buildings was also reconstructed at the opposite side of the dam.
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Of special note is a prominent prehistoric linear burial mound located east of the present Corps of Engineers' maintenance building. Also, the Lake Winnibigoshish Dam was listed on the National Register of Historical Places in 1982.
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[Printable Copy]
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