Jay Cooke State Park is a Minnesota State Park located about ten miles southwest of Duluth, Minnesota, just outside of the small town of Thomson, Minnesota. Jay Cooke is situated on the St. Louis River, which enters into Lake Superior through Duluth's Harbor, so it is considered by many to be the southernmost of the Lake Superior State Parks. Lake Itasca in Minnesotas oldest state park A Minnesota state park is an area of land in Minnesota preserved by the state for its natural, historic, or other resources. ... Duluth is the name of some places in the United States of America: Duluth, Minnesota - on Lake Superior Duluth, Georgia - a suburb of Atlanta See also the French explorer Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut. ... State nickname: North Star State, The Land of 10,000 Lakes, The Gopher State Official languages None Capital Saint Paul Largest city Minneapolis Governor Tim Pawlenty (R) Senators Mark Dayton (D) Norm Coleman (R) Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 12th 225,365 km² 8. ... Thomson is a city located in Carlton County, Minnesota. ... The Saint Louis River is a river in Minnesota that flows into Lake Superior. ... The Great Lakes from space; Lake Superior is on the upper left Lake Superior (known as Gitchigume in a Native American language) is the largest of North Americas Great Lakes. ...

History

The first 2,350 acres of land on which Jay Cooke is situated were donated to the state by the St. Louis Power Company in 1915. The park remained generally undeveloped until 1933, when a Civilian Conservation Corps camp was established on the site. The CCC camp built a rustic swinging bridge over the St. Louis River just slightly downstream from some torrential rapids and waterfalls. This camp also built a picnic shelter. The camp was disbanded in 1935, but a second camp was set up in 1939. This camp rebuilt the swinging bridge and built the River Inn, which now houses the visitor center. This camp was disbanded in 1942, shortly before the federal government ended the CCC entirely. In 1945, the state began to add more land to the park, eventually giving it its current size of 8818 acres. Civilian Conservation Corps workers restoring the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. ...

Geology and Wildlife

Jay Cooke has strange and unique geology. The bedrock is largely composed of slate and greywacke. The river washed away the red clay topsoil and caused this bedrock to become exposed. Underground movements also caused the bedrock to bulge and break, making large protrusions of shale, often at more than 45 degree angles to the ground. Wherever the red clay topsoil has not been eroded, it is almost entirely covered with brush and dense forests. The park is inhabited by 46 species of mammals. Black bears, timberwolves, and coyote have been spotted within the park. It also houses 173 species of bird species and 16 species of (non poisonous) reptiles. Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape it. ... Slate Slate is a fine-grained, homogeneous, metamorphic rock composed of clay or volcanic ash which has been metamorphosed (foliated) in layers (bedded deposits). ... Greywacke (German grauwacke, signifying a grey, earthy rock) is a variety of sandstone generally characterized by its hardness, dark color, and poorly-sorted, angular grains of quartz, feldspar, and small rock fragments set in a compact, clay-fine matrix. ... Shale Shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. ...

Architecture

Jay Cooke is famous for its rustic style historical structures. All the major landmarks in Jay Cooke are built with local basalt or gabbro stone and dark planks and logs. Most famous of all landmarks is the swinging bridge, which is one of only two suspension bridges in any Minnesota state park. The bridge was designed by Oscar Newstrom and built by the CCC. It runs 200 feet long, 126 of which run over the river itself. It is supported by two large concrete pylons also faced with gabbro. The bank of the river near the River Inn is too steep to walk along, so anyone who wishes to hike the length of the river generally must cross this bridge. Basalt Basalt is an extrusive igneous rock, sometimes porphyritic, and is often both fine-grained and dense. ... Gabbro Gabbro is a dark, coarse-grained, intrusive igneous rock that is chemichly equivalent to basalt. ...

External Links

• Jay Cooke State Park Minnesota DNR
• Minnesota Historical Society National Register Listing