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102:. On the south side of Golden Valley Road just east of Wirth Parkway, a stone containing a weathered plaque marks a point on the 45th parallel. The Mississippi, which runs to the southeast, directed the early growth of the city. Most early streets ran parallel to the river to maximize the amount of land that could be used. Eventually, growth of Minneapolis turned to north-south and east-west streets. Many unique intersections like Seven Corners on the eastern periphery of downtown were formed to translate between the two layouts. Some streets, especially older and more traditionally important ones like
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were formed, cutting through the limestone layer with tremendous force, to release ice meltwater and glacier effluence. The result was a series of troughs in the limestone, which were filled by glacial till and outwash deposit as the glaciers receded. Sometimes the sediment would be mixed with huge
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for cars, a bikeway for riders, and a walkway for pedestrians run parallel paths along the 50-mile route. A growing number of bikeways and walkways crisscross the city and interconnect with neighboring cities.
95:, the city has a total area of 151.3 km² (58.4 mi²). 142.2 km² (54.9 mi²) of it is land and 9.1 km² (3.5 mi²) of it (6.01%) is water. The city center is located just south of
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is often credited with the development of this system that brought a playground within the reach of most children and the canopy of trees and boulevards in much of the city. The
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remains as a picturesque and informative relic of River Warren Falls, and the limestone-over-sandstone construction is readily apparent in its small gorge.
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on the Twin Cities as it receded. Later the
Grantsburg Sublobe of the Des Moines Lobe also covered the area. Under these vast layers of ice,
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Minneapolis has a large park system consisting of ten square miles (26 km²) of land and water that is interlinked in many places.
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are to the east. Connected by bike, running and walking paths, Minneapolis lakes are used for swimming, fishing, picnics and boating.
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302:. Connecting the city lakes in several north-south arteries are gorges cut through the bedrock, but filled with sand and sediment.
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circles through the city and many of the larger park areas including land along the
Mississippi, lakes and scenic areas. A
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chunks of ice, which would leave voids in the soil. These voids created basins for the Twin Cities Lakes, such as
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sea which covered east-central
Minnesota 500 million years ago. The hard limestone cap was formed from fossilized
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Twenty four small lakes are within the city limits. Among the largest freshwater lakes to the west are
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410:. U.S. Department of the Interior — U.S. Geological Survey. April 29, 2005. Archived from
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in 1680. Due to its value as a power source, this waterfall determined the location of
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receded only a few hundred yards from one of the channels of the
Mississippi.
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is the home of a 1913 water tower, one of the highest points in
Minneapolis.
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281:. About 20,000 years ago, the area was covered by the Superior Lobe of the
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317:. The new falls also receded upstream on the Mississippi, carving the
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487:. Minnesota Geological Survey, University of Minnesota. Archived from
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generally consisted of a 155 foot (47 m) thick layer of
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and cultural heritage events every year. Tower Hill Park in
389:. Minnesota Historical Society. Spring 1998. Archived from
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courtesy NASA/Goddard
Scientific Visualization Studio
460:"ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE CENTRAL MINNEAPOLIS RIVERFRONT"
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333:. One branch of the river coming from the west,
309:receded past the confluence of the much smaller
408:"Elevations and Distances in the United States"
156:connects regional parks and visitors centers.
154:Mississippi National River and Recreation Area
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519:. University of Minnesota. Archived from
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462:. The Institute for Minnesota Archaeology
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517:"Glacial Geology:Twin Cities Highlights"
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162:is the largest in the city, shared with
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384:"Minnesota Preservation Planner IX (2)"
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273:. These layers were the result of an
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18:Geography of Minneapolis, Minnesota
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482:"Minnesota Rivers - How they Work"
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31:Climate of Minneapolis, Minnesota
357:Wurlington Bros. Press (n.d.).
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257:The area now occupied by the
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432:City of Minneapolis (2006).
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515:Hays, Karen; Dawn Cardace.
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93:United States Census Bureau
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209:, known together as the "
183:Grand Rounds Scenic Byway
741:Geography of Minneapolis
458:Anfinson, Scott (1989).
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480:Jennings, PhD, Carrie.
325:first saw it and named
319:Mississippi River gorge
311:Upper Mississippi River
746:Minneapolis–Saint Paul
680:Notable Minneapolitans
604:Events and attractions
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271:Platteville limestone
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315:glacial River Warren
283:Laurentide Ice Sheet
573:City of Minneapolis
434:"About Minneapolis"
359:"The 45th Parallel"
263:St. Peter Sandstone
160:Theodore Wirth Park
84:Minneapolis on the
307:River Warren Falls
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327:St. Anthony Falls
275:Ordovician Period
203:Lake of the Isles
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172:Minnehaha Falls
123:Minnehaha Falls
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114:Parks and lakes
108:Nicollet Avenue
104:Hennepin Avenue
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56:Hennepin County
38:is the largest
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247:Minnehaha Park
211:Chain of Lakes
168:Minnehaha Park
150:Theodore Wirth
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631:city council
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599:Demographics
525:. Retrieved
521:the original
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489:the original
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464:. Retrieved
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416:. Retrieved
412:the original
398:. Retrieved
391:the original
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367:. Retrieved
363:the original
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300:Lake Calhoun
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233:Bde Maka Ska
215:Lake Nokomis
199:Bde Maka Ska
195:Lake Harriet
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143:Lake Nokomis
133:Bde Maka Ska
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70:Minneapolis
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710:Skyscrapers
331:Minneapolis
259:Twin Cities
52:county seat
36:Minneapolis
735:Categories
700:Public art
658:historical
626:Government
538:References
527:2007-05-12
498:2007-05-12
466:2007-05-08
439:2007-01-19
418:2007-04-11
400:2007-03-21
369:2007-01-18
279:shell fish
253:Waterfalls
243:Barred owl
207:Cedar Lake
50:, and the
29:See also:
614:Geography
594:Companies
44:Minnesota
695:Protests
663:branches
100:latitude
62:Physical
715:Streets
653:Library
643:History
619:climate
296:Harriet
287:moraine
229:Mallard
187:parkway
46:in the
720:Trails
690:Police
636:mayors
581:Topics
205:, and
685:Parks
670:Media
648:Lakes
492:(pdf)
485:(PDF)
394:(PDF)
387:(PDF)
345:Notes
305:When
267:shale
72:flyby
609:Fire
589:Arts
405:and
298:and
217:and
181:The
106:and
40:city
245:at
231:at
213:".
54:of
737::
507:^
448:^
201:,
197:,
58:.
565:e
558:t
551:v
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372:.
20:)
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.