Glimpse: Steamboats once carried freight, tourists on the Minnesota

Historical accounts describe how steamboats once plied the Minnesota River as far up as the Upper Sioux Agency near Granite Falls. These steam-propelled vessels carried passengers and freight to the communities forming along the river.

In the late 1800s, steamboats were the major means of transportation between Mankato and St. Paul. Their names included The Jeannette Roberts, The Yankee, The Nominee and The Franklin Steele.

Steamboat trips were dependent on weather. The railroad drawbridge at St. Peter could not be opened when winds were too strong.

Early each May, the river's water level would drop and a spot a few miles north of Mankato would become too low for steamboat travel.

One unlucky steamboat, The Julia, sank after she hit a snag May 10, 1867.

Not all boats carried freight. An excursion boat, The Anthony Wayne, was the first steamboat to come up river as far as the future site of Mankato. In July, 1850 the vessel traveled up the Mississippi River from St. Louis carrying passengers who wanted to see the new country. A band was also aboard.

The Henrietta docked in Mankato April 27, 1897. It was an excursion boat that previously sailed out of Stillwater. The sternwheeler was three decks high and probably the largest steamboat ever to navigate the river from St. Paul.

A trip on the Henrietta between St. Peter and Mankato took three hours. She could carry 175 people, who sometimes included members of the St. Peter Band.

Capt. Ed Durant, of Stillwater, planned the round trips that cost 75 cents per passenger.

During its two-hour stops in Mankato, people were allowed to come aboard for tours.

In 1909, Captain Charles DeMers, traveled on the river aboard his small vessel, The Lorene, that was accompanied by a barge called The “O.K” Dubuque.

DeMers ran excursions during the summer months. His boat would leave Mankato at 9 a.m., arrive in St. Peter at noon and return by 7 p.m. to Mankato.

A round trip cost 50 cents. The boat and barge also were rented for private parties.

The heyday of steamboating on the Minnesota was between 1855-1865, according to the Joseph R. Brown Minnesota River Center.

The building of railroads and bridges in the 1860s spelled doom for the system of traveling on water.

For more information about historic topics, visit the Blue Earth County Historical Society at 424 Warren Street, Mankato or at BlueEarthCountyHistory.com.