COLDWAT
cold water
s pri n g
A study of place and its interpretation By Michelle Stein with guidance from Pat Nunnally
mitakuye oyasin During a meeting with David from the National Park Service, he shared with me this beautiful Lakota phrase Mitakuye Oyasin, which is actually a prayer that implies relationships are in the realm of the sacred. This theme runs central to Coldwater Spring, a place that finds its meaning in relationships. the relationships between cultures and between peoples the relationship of people to the land the relationship of water to water, water to sky, water to land the relationship of Coldwater to surrounding confluence area the failure to understand relationships, leading to pain and destruction …and now the healing of these relationships These relationships give life to Coldwater; Coldwater gives life to these relationships.
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PHOTOS NARRATIVE CONTEXT SITE TIMELINE ANALYSIS INTERPRETATION NOTES
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Photos
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“So many Susans” August 16, 2013 Summer has nearly come and gone, and I finally made it over to see Coldwater Spring in all its summer glory. In fact, between Coldwater Spring and Fort Snelling State Park, I made four visits with three different friends in just a few weeks. With each visit, I found myself caught up in the beauty and history surrounding this place. Here are a few thoughts: Coldwater Spring shares so many stories without saying a word, yet these stories only skim the surface of the stories still waiting to be told. Coldwater’s summer attire is by far my favorite. The age-old stream spills out of the pond, feeding the young vegetation eager to drink life from its endless supply. The black-eyed Susans paint the grassy knolls a vibrant yellow, mimicking over and again the yellow spot of sun glowing through the treetops. In the midst of it all, what intrigues me more than all the beauty of this place, are the stories of people who were here before, the relationships between the people and the spring. And though the spring converses with the susans, our understanding of them is limited without additional research. How can we begin to interpret (or even join into) this conversation in a non-intrusive, meaningful way? Visiting with three different people gave me a glimpse of the vastness of Coldwater’s audience, and the necessity for a vast range of programmatic opportunities. I found it funny how differently my friends responded to their visits. Their first impressions couldn’t have been more different. One was so excited to experience this new place and eagerly listened as I shared just a handful of stories from Coldwater’s past. One enjoyed being outdoors, but her excitement over the confluence’s history seemed forced. I guess that is the reality of it, though. It is helpful to consider that everyone comes in with a different agenda. Some are eager to learn the stories of the place. Some would rather take it as it is.
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“Seasonal Transformation” March 17, 2013 A few days ago, I decided to visit the site again, hoping that it would speak to me in a new way now that I have spent an extended period of time with my eyes glued to pages upon pages of historical documentation. Aside from the bitter winds occasionally slapping against my face, I found my excursion most enjoyable. And it did speak to me in a different way than before. It probably shouldn’t come as a surprise. I mean, I have lived in Minnesota the majority of my life. I am well aware that the seasons have a considerable influence on the landscape (and everything in it). I knew the landscape at Coldwater would be whiter than it was when I visited last fall. But I quickly began to see there was more to its transformation than simply its paled complexion. As I walked into the lifeless winter landscape, I was struck by the life of the spring, tenaciously fighting the cold when each of its friends had months ago succumb to its deadly curse. It was beautiful (if you can try to ignore the stones piled all too carefully along the upper banks of the spring on either side of the bridge). Watching the water gently fall over the rocks below, I almost forgot about the whipping winds battering my face and the cold ground penetrating the soles of my boots. Another thing that attracted my attention was the footpath, or rather lack thereof. Since the snow covered just about everything on site, all of the signs that had previously sought to limit people’s movements to the path were no longer applicable. Therefore, the footprints were a clear indication of people’s desired movements throughout the site (close to the original layout in some areas, but quite different in others). One of the routes I found particularly interesting was a common trail of boot prints along the spring following it to a trail below. Clearly people are drawn to the water.
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02 narratives The stories of three primary characters surround Coldwater Spring; the spring is the thread that ties them together. It has been a source of life for Native Americans, military, and nature alike. Though their stories are distinct, all three character’s are brought to a place of common ground at the spring.
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02 narratives
Native American
U.S. Military
Nature
Coldwater Spring
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Rock formations
Unktehi
Camp Coldwater
Layers upon layers of rock were formed around Coldwater Spring from ancient glacial waters. Of these, St. Peter sandstone, gray Glenwood shale, and light-colored Platteville limestone provided materials for the construction of Fort Snelling. They also used the clay for making bricks at the fort.
Coldwater Spring is the dwelling place of the Unktehi, a Dakota god.
Camp Coldwater provided a place for the Military to stay while they were in the process of building fort snelling. During this time, it also became a center for trading with the natives...
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02 narratives
Source of life
Mdote
Ceremonies (Inipi)
For the native dakota, ojibwe, the u.s. military, and natural biosystems alike, the spring provides a source of life. It is a place of significance for all.
Coldwater Spring is especially significant to the Dakota for its connection to the larger context of Mdote (Meeting of Waters).
Today, the spring continues to provide a place of connection to heritage/ancestry among the Dakota people. As their ancestors did, they continue to use the water for healing purposes and in Inipi.
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audiences Recreational Users Hikers Bikers Dog Park Users Families Couples Neighbors
School Groups All ages
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Winter Users Skiiers
Snowshoers
Overflow Visitors Minnehaha Fort Snelling
Festival Visitors
Native Groups Dakota Ojibwe
Others?
Light Rail Riders Airport Visitors
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use 1 Recreational Relaxation Exercise
2 Educational History Nature Ethnography
3 Spiritual (Maybe best left hidden)
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First public school in Minnesota
Cam Coldw
Baker H
U.S. MILITARY
COLDW SPR
Camp while Fort Snelling was built Water was pumped out of Coldwater for Fort Snelling
Source
Certain plants grow only here
NATURAL
One o only n spring
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Dances
mp water
Ceremonies Neutral Ground Inipi
House
NATIVE AMERICANS Origin
WATER RING
Connected to Mdote
Unktehi lives in water Used for healing
e of life
Rock foundation created by water
SYSTEMS
of the natural gs left
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01 timeline
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02 narratives
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03 context When trying to understand a place, it is crucial to understand the adjacencies within its larger context. Coldwater Spring’s location along the Mississippi contributes to its significance.
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Zones Coldwater Spring (2) is located right between Minnehaha Falls (1) and Fort Snelling (3) and therefore should interact with each site.
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Intersections
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What should happen in the intersection/overlapping of spaces can be determined by audiences interactions between 3 sites.
Bridges Bridges may be necessary where a fluid intersection is not possible.
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Site Context
Place-Making
1. Project Boundary 2. Spring reservoir 3. Light Rail 4. Coldwater Spring 5. Dog Park
Points of necessary identification between transitional areas of the site
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Bridging
Interpretation
Connecting areas where there are otherwise no connections
Telling the story of the place
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05 timeline The land that composes Coldwater Creek, though only documented on maps back to the 17th century, was full of life even in the 13th century. The following maps track the changes in the natural and built environments over the recent centuries of Coldwater’s existence.
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1837 In 1837, much was happening at Coldwater Spring. As you can see, several buildings dot the landscape on both sides of the river. Previously known as “Camp Coldwater,� this area served as military cantonment in the summers of 1820 to 1822 (or 23). The area encompassing the spring later became an ideal location for settlers, fostering a relationship that was mutually beneficial for both the settlers (mostly Fur Traders) and the U.S. Military at Fort Snelling, who allowed their settlement on government land in exchange for their trading services with the American Indians. From 1832 to 1837, the Baker House (at the crossroads by the reservoir of Coldwater Spring) served as a trading post. There is so much more I could say about the activities at Coldwater during this time, including the life story of Jakob Falstrom, but I will save that for another time. Then for two short years, from 1837 to 1838, Baker and McLeod ran a school at the Baker house.
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1879 In 1839, Philander Prescott bought the Baker house and transformed it a year later into the St. Louis Hotel (which remained until it was burned in 1862, the same year as the Dakota Conflict). It was one of the only remaining buildings from Camp Coldwater. From 1861 to 1865, Coldwater Spring served as a source of drinking water for Fort Snelling during the Civil War, and after the Dakota Conflict in 1862, the Dakota were completely expelled from Minnesota in 1863 and were no longer a part of the Coldwater landscape. By 1879, the buildings of Camp Coldwater were no longer in existence. Rather, George W. Lincoln’s farmstead was about the only building at Coldwater Spring, located on site from 1866 to 1879.
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1885 In the early 1880s, a waterworks system was put in place to serve Fort Snelling. It was later removed in 1920. The few buildings here shown near the spring are part of this system.
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1903 A few years after the removal of the waterworks system until at least 1938, the area was known as Coldwater Park.
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1938
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1985 In 1959, the Bureau of Mines Twin Cities Research Center opened on the Coldwater grounds. It closed in 1996 and was left vacant until 2011 when the buildings were demolished.
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Present In 1999, construction began on Hiawatha/55 on the perimeter of the BOM property. During 2011 and 2012, the BOM buildings were demolished and the site has since been “restored� as a natural landscape. Scars of the BOM buildings, such as the former building entrance and the oil bins, remain in certain areas throughout the site.
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Spatial mapping over time
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speed
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relationships
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ENJOY LEARN from
RELATE to
COLDWATER
Program Statement I would hope that anyone who visits Coldwater would‌ Learn from relationships at Coldwater. Enjoy experience at Coldwater. Relate to Coldwater by developing a personal understanding of place. The focus of Coldwater is, essentially, on education, enjoyment, and relationships.
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spines
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spines
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nodes
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nodes
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nodes
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design
Markers of physical place, creating an invisible architecture that emphasizes the power in the stories already present 82 coldwater spring
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COLDWATER SPRING