Fun with Maps ISSUE 2025-014

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (January 23, 2025) – In today’s edition of Fun with Maps we celebrate the building of a bridge.      

WALKING EAST AND WEST AT THE MISSISSIPPI

One hundred seventy years ago, the first permanent bridge to span the Mississippi River opened.

It was located in Minneapolis, Minnesota and took about 6 months to build.

Named after Father Hennepin, an early explorer in the area, the first bridge stood until 1877 when it was replaced by a second one. Today a fourth version, built in 1990, stands in the same place and if you visit First Bridge Park, you can see remains of all the generations of the structure.

The original structure opened as a toll bridge.  It cost 25 cents per team of horses and per pedestrian to cross the river.

The grand opening consisted of a parade from St. Anthony to Nicollet Island where the new bridge stretched across the river to Minneapolis. After parading through the riverfront, the group returned to St. Anthony for a celebratory dinner.

Hennepin was not the only bridge to cross the Mississippi for long.  A railroad bridge opened in Davenport, Iowa later in 1855.

Johnson’s map of Minnesota and the Dakota Territory is shown here from 1860.

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps.

Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Steve Kovacs: Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.