Mini-Wakan State Park

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Mini-Wakan State Park
Iowa State Park
Country United States
State Iowa
County Dickinson
Location Spirit Lake
 - elevation1,404 ft (428 m) [1]
 - coordinates 43°29′51″N95°06′12″W / 43.49750°N 95.10333°W / 43.49750; -95.10333 Coordinates: 43°29′51″N95°06′12″W / 43.49750°N 95.10333°W / 43.49750; -95.10333
Area20 acres (8 ha)
Founded1934
Management Iowa Department of Natural Resources
USA Iowa location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location of Mini-Wakan State Park in Iowa
Website: Mini-Wakan State Park
Mini-Wakan State Park Historic District
Built 1934
Built by Civilian Conservation Corps
Architect Amos Barton Emery
Architectural style Rustic
MPS CCC Properties in Iowa State Parks MPS
NRHP reference # 10000021 [2]
Added to NRHP February 17, 2010

Mini-Wakan State Park is located north of Spirit Lake, Iowa, United States. The 20-acre (8.1 ha) park is along the north shore of Big Spirit Lake. It provides space for picnicking, hiking, biking, swimming, boating and fishing on the lake. The park is connected to the Dickinson County trail system in Iowa and the Jackson County trail system in Minnesota. It was listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010. [2]

Spirit Lake, Iowa City in Iowa, United States

Spirit Lake is a city in Dickinson County, Iowa, United States. The population was 4,840 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Dickinson County.

Big Spirit Lake lake of the United States of America

Big Spirit Lake is a natural body of water, approximately 5,684 acres (2,300 ha) in area, in Dickinson County in northwest Iowa in the United States. It is part of the chain of lakes known as the Iowa Great Lakes, the northern shore of the lake straddles the border with Minnesota. It is the largest natural lake in Iowa. The Dakotah Indian name for the lake was Minnewaukon. Early French traders named it Lac D' Esprit after the Indian legends of an evil spirit who dwelled in the lake.

Dickinson County, Iowa County in the United States

Dickinson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2010 census, the population was 16,667. The county seat is Spirit Lake. The county was organized in 1857 and is named in honor of Daniel S. Dickinson, a U.S. Senator for New York.

History

Local residents acquired the initial 12.5 acres (5.1 ha) for Mini-Wakan. [3] Civilian Conservation Corps Company 778 began park development sometime between the beginning of June and the end of October 1933 as part of their work with the National Forest Service. [4] Their work included grading for a road, building the picnic and parking area, the stone gate pillars, and placing riprap along the lake shore. Work on the shelter house was completed in 1934 after they were transferred to the National Park Service. The park was put under the jurisdiction of Gull Point State Park in 1936. [4]

Civilian Conservation Corps public work relief program

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men. Originally for young men ages 18–25, it was eventually expanded to ages 17–28. Robert Fechner was the first director of the agency, succeeded by James McEntee following Fechner's death. The CCC was a major part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal that provided unskilled manual labor jobs related to the conservation and development of natural resources in rural lands owned by federal, state, and local governments. The CCC was designed to provide jobs for young men and to relieve families who had difficulty finding jobs during the Great Depression in the United States. Maximum enrollment at any one time was 300,000. Through the course of its nine years in operation, 3 million young men participated in the CCC, which provided them with shelter, clothing, and food, together with a wage of $30 per month.

United States Forest Service federal forest and grassland administrators

The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass 193 million acres (780,000 km2). Major divisions of the agency include the National Forest System, State and Private Forestry, Business Operations, and the Research and Development branch. Managing approximately 25% of federal lands, it is the only major national land agency that is outside the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Riprap rock used for armouring structures

Riprap, also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armor or rubble, is rock or other material used to armor shorelines, streambeds, bridge abutments, pilings and other shoreline structures against scour and water or ice erosion. Common rock types used include granite and limestone. Concrete rubble from building and paving demolition is sometimes used.

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References

  1. ↑ "Mini-Wakan State Park". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey. 1979-04-30. Retrieved 2016-05-31.
  2. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  3. ↑ "History of the Mini-Wakan State Park". Spirit Lake Protective Association. Retrieved 2016-05-31.
  4. 1 2 Rebecca Conard. "Pillsbury Point State Park Overlook District". National Park Service . Retrieved 2016-05-31.
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