The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1897-04-30
From Thursdays Daily.
TODAY'S EXCURSION.
A Large Crowd Takes the Steamer
to St. Peter.
Early Day Steamers On the
River.

The Henrietta left for st. Petel
this forenoon at little after nine
O'Clock, with nearly two hundred pas
sengers on board. Several hundred
other people stood on the bank to see
the steamer depart, and one or two
enterprising photographers were Oh
hand to take views.
The steamer swung around in the
stream without difficulty, having
gained experience from some little
difficulty had yesterday afternoon.
The boat will return by six or seven
o'clock tonight, but some of the eXcur-
sionists returned by train this after
noon.
The Henrietta made the trip from
this city to St. Peter yesterday after
noon in two hours and five minutes.
1t makes about an hours difference in
the trip whether the boat goes with
or against the current. The boat ar
rived at about eight o'clock last eve
ming on her return from St. Peter,
and gave an exhibition with her
electric search light, which was a
novelty in this city.
Captain Durant has under consid-
Grafton an excursion from this city to
New Ulm, and in case he has time to
have one before the water falls too
much he will give previous notice
through the papers. If the New Ulm
excursion is had, it will most likely
come off about week from Sunday.
While occasional trips have been
made almost every year as far up the
Minnesota as Shakopee, Skipper
Durant is the first navigator for a
good many years to make the attempt
to reach Mankato. This city, in the
early days before the railroads
appeared on the scene, was an i'm
portant point on the river, and there
were regular lines of freight and
passenger and thriving bust
ness.was done with the towns along
the stream. Indeed, it was the only
means of: communication with the
communities in the Minnesota valley
in those years. Steamers ran up to
New Ulm, and some even as far as the
lower Sioux agency, opposite the town
of Morton in Renville county.
One ambitious captain, it is record
ed, even2 conceived the daring
scheme one spring, when the water
was especially high, of making Big
Stone lake and sailing thence via.
Lake Traverse into uthe Red River.
And it is claimed, moreover, that he
would, have done. it, too, if his pilot
hadn't run:him out of the channel
and wrecked the expedition On
rock, when, almost Gin sight Of Big
Stone lake.
Steamers swere run regularly as
far as New Ulm for several years after
the advent of the railways.
In recognition ,of the navigation
possibilities of the stream all the
bridges up to New Ulm are of the
draw variety. . Engineer Haynes has
prepared the draw span OF the bridge
at this city to be Lopened On half an
hours notice. 1t has not been swung
for more than one or two boats since
the bridge was built, sand the works
were found to be rusty.
Some of the early settlers take issue
with Captain Durant's claim that the
Henrietta is probably the largest
boat that ever came up to the city.
One or two side wheelers are named
as having been larger boats.
The new bridge over the Minnesota
river, connecting Cambria and Court
lIud, has no draw, and would probably
S." p any excursion in that direction.
Th &c towns would be liable to heavy
6Auages for every day that steamer
WIZ jelayed, for obstructing naviga- |
biz rirnr. Other towns have paid for
this olation of the law, in the past.
The Cambria bridge is % feet above
lov water mark and the steamer
c .uld not 90 under.